Slashdot Mirror
Historic Bucky Dome Needs Help
Anonymous Coward writes "Buckminster Fuller's Geodesic Dome is falling apart and one man hopes to save it. Read more at http://www.msnbc.com/news/748889.asp?0bl=-0" The Buckminster Fuller Institute has a page on the dome, which has contact info for donations.
its the other way around.
:) (diamond is another form of carbon. Graphite is, too. Its all about how the carbon is arranged)
Buckminster Fuller designed the geodesic dome, which is supposed to be an ultra-stable, aesthetically pleasing dome structure.
Then they discovered C60, which looked remerkably like of of buckminsterfuller's domes. And, being fans, the researchers named it after him. Its a cooler name than "diamond."
Of course, considering how crucial C60's formation and structure is to carbon nanotubules research, one would think that all the companies making money off (or planning to) it would at least be generous enough to support its namesake. But thats neither here nor there.
bucky domes are/were the perfect thing for protecting radar antennas from the elements, and for covering the tops of large otherwise open tanks.
they're not so good for building houses, though, as a retrospective shows -- the labor to fit drywall, the impossibility of making windows and roofing that don't leak, the impedence mismatches of standard rectanglar building materials and furniture; all make life with a dome a pain and not very cost effective.
but cool, man. the big dome in montreal for expo 70 was awsome; it too fell into disrepair.
-dB
"It if was easy to do, we'd find someone cheaper than you to do it."
Less well known than the Geodesic Dome is Fuller's Dymaxion House, a very cool hangout in my opinion with lots of features like "O-volving" shelves built in. See the nice restoration project pages at the Henry Ford Museum for more info.
A man, a plan, a canal: Suez!
structure is falling apart much quicker than my presure-treated-wood ad brick home?
Actualy that is a very valid question. A lot has been learned in building domes in the last 40 years. The biggest lesson learned is that roofing the thing to keep the water out does cause problems trapping condensation in the shell promoting decay. The shape was good. The early ventilation was poor.
Almost all new domes now have building code requirements to have the shell ventilated to prevent condensation from building up inside the outer shell. If you built a traditional home and didn't put in eve and roof vents, they also would rot out due to condensation under the shingles in the winter. Roof ventilation is required in both types of homes. More information on dome wall cavity ventilation using a cupola can be found here; http://www.domesnorthwest.com/Explanations.htm
The truth shall set you free!
The funny thing about Geodesic domes is that the bigger you build it, the stronger it gets. From the picture in the article, this one is downright tiny. Small wonder it's 'only' lasted 48 years, 30 of them with little or no maintenance.
Dyolf Knip