Bio Foam and Alginate Newspaper

What Biomaterials are we going to test?

• BioFoam
• Alginate Newspaper

Aim (to understand or to determine)

• To understand the texture and feel of the materials
• To understand the way we can shape the material
• To explore how we can use the Bio foam in our respective areas.
• To understand the direction for a sustainable or circular solution for a material, it should be experimented with what certain ingredients do to a material, and how much they contribute to a sustainable ideology.

Variation

• Trying to adjust the amounts in a recipe to see what happens to the material
• Trying to alter the soap, for example more organic soap.
• In shape and function.

Inspiration

Renee: My inspiration comes from a frustration that I have that it is mandatory for every adolescent to shape themselves to the standards of society. It is frowned upon when you, for example, don’t use big words to communicate with colleagues, or eat with your hands.

Tom: My inspiration is that I find comfort in nature, and want to use gardening as a subject. It is said that there are pots for plants that can dispose of water if the soil can not hold more. There are also pots that are made of a water absorbing material and I think altering this material or recreating it can give you more influence on the plant pot.

Experiment Hypothesis

Maria ( Personally in seeing how bio-based materials can replace everyday materials)

Renee: In what way can I use the bio materials to see if there is a way to feel like a kid again?

Tom: I think using a sustainable material (biodegradable) is good for gardening, once the plant is ready to be planted in the ground, the roots can perhaps grow through the material (pot) and you do not have to remove the pot and cause damage to its form. I think both materials can hold water, but are also porous because one is foam and another is newspaper which contains air holes.

These are the materials and steps taken in order to achieve what we have.

Tinker moment:

There was not thought of a mold. First we wanted to make a mold using newspaper and a rubber band. Since it does not matter if it sticks to the material. But we eventually used a plastic bag, and to make a pot shape we put a milk carton in it.