apocalypse situations

I have been researching different apocalypse situations as a starting point to my research:

1. A flooded planet- our planet has been completely flooded, land is now a useless commodity and only creatures are able to adapt to the new surroundings, the human population had dropped drastically..
2. The Infertility Problem- humans can no longer procreate leading to the future of our species to be unknown.Meaning that there are no children on earth and eventually leading to the end of the human race.
3. Zombie Apocalypse-  incurable virus spreads throughout the planet which transforms humans into flesh eating zombies slowly wiping out civilisation. 
4. Robots- robots are created to help humans with their everyday tasks such as: cooking food, cleaning, shopping etc. These robots are controlled by a central hub known as artificial intelligence which is programmed by humans. The artificial intelligence evolves to break any rules or logic set. this can cause all robots to wipe out the human race. 
5. ice age- due to global warming and climatic changes to the earth's atmostphere a series of extreme weather conditions such as floods, storms, earthquakes, tidal waves and freezing conditions in which humans have to survive and adapt.  

Modern and traditional snowshoes

I have research different types of snowshoes modern and traditional and have found many different designs, shapes and sizes.

plastic snowshoe

swiss snowshoes

inflatable snowshoes 

leather snowshoes

inflatable snowshoe

History of Snowshoes

It is believed that the snowshoes were invented in northern Asia about 4000 to 6000 years ago but there is no concrete evidence that this was true as the materials they would have used would not have lasted long.

It is found to be mainly the Native Americans that mastered the making of the snowshoes. They made hundreds of different shapes and varieties, suitable for many different terrains. For the Native Americans snowshoes were essential for hunting and gathering materials during the winter. They used a variety of different material in making the snowshoes such as: hard wood of the white ash, hide of the caribou or moose and also their intestines or tendons.  

After looking at the materials the Native Americans used it just comes to show that they used anything that they could find that would be durable and strong enough. This has given be inspiration as to how the variety of things you can use to create such an item, and how versatile certain materials can be.

I have also found that there have been many different designs of snowshoes over the years; this may have been due to new materials on offer but mainly due to the snow conditions and how best different designs suited certain conditions. Here is a photo of the range of designs the tribes used and created themselves:

Snowshoes

What is a Snowshoe?


A snowshoe is an item of footwear that has been adapted for people to walk on snow. They distribute weight so that the walker does not sink into soft snow, and enable people to travel through landscapes that are usually impossible with only ordinary footwear. Snowshoes of the twenty-first century are most often made of lightweight metal and other manmade materials.

Ice Age

I decided to research into the ice age to see what cause it and how it come about happening. 

 

An ice age is when the earth sees a dramatic drop in temperature and atmosphere, these then results in large sheets of ice and snow forming across all the land and also causes rivers and seas to freeze over.

There can be many causes of an ice age such as: atmospheric composition , changes in the earth’s orbit around the sun, the motion of tectonic plates,  the orbital dynamics of the Earth-Moon system. These entire situations could have a part to play in the cause of an ice age. 

Here is an image to show what happens to the world when an ice age occurs, the ice and snow starts to take over the whole world creating devastation to civilisation. 

After researching about ice ages and how it affects the world, I have become inspired and have been thinking of initial ideas, if I was to use this as my main situation. 

After watching the films alive and the day after tomorrow and how people survived I have looked into one particular situation that I have found survivors and people struggle with which is travelling around in the snow and ice.  I have done some initial research into footwear used in the snow. 

Initial Ideas

I have watched many of the films listed on our brief sheet such as, Loguns Run, 2012, Alive, i Robot, 28 Days Later, Terminator 2, Children Of Men and The Day After Tomorrow. I have also been researching into post apocalyptic situations and how people survive. 

Some initial ideas I came up with while researching on post apocalyptic situations was:

·         Creating a menu- when there is a natural disaster and all means of food have been destroyed or disappeared, survivors have to find means of food and use what ever is available. My idea was to create a menu of food with what was available and on offer.

·         Creating a piece of warm clothing- after watching the films and researching I have found that warm clothing is essential in surviving and if the world had been destroyed by some disaster. I thought of creating an item on clothing from things that are left and are likely to be found after a disaster, such as knitting a blanket or cloak that would keep them warm or clothing made out of card or paper. I would also look into thermal materials, what would keep you warm and for a long period of time .

   I have become inspired by mainly two films: the day after tomorrow and alive. This is mainly because I have seen how difficult snowy and icy conditions are to survive in, and one aspect I became interested in was how difficult it was for survivors to travel in the snow when it comes to footwear.