This page outlines student speculations regarding natural forces at work on stabilized earth construction, and how one might develop tests for evaluating stabilized earth's performance. These issues emerged after the studio made a visit to a strawbale house being built by David Eichler near Tonganoxie, Kansas. As we discussed the strawbale construction, we came up with the following list of general issues which would need to be addressed by virtually any wall system, of any construction type. This round of work divided the class into teams of 2, and asked the teams to speculate on how they would go about testing for stabilized earth's performance.

Strength
o What are the structural forces at work in a single block?
o What are the structural forces at work in an assembly?
o What are the structural implications for the entire system?

Humidity
o What are the thermal issues at work in a single block?
o What are the humidity control issues in an assembly?

Water Resistance
o How does a system of earth blocks deal with water?
o How does an earth block as a single thing deal with water?

Constructibility
o How do systems become integrated at the single block level?
o How does one think about integration at the assembly level?

Thermal Resistance
o What are the thermal issues at work in a single block?
o What are the thermal issues at work in an assembly?

Aesthetics
o How does one develop the aesthetic dimensions of a single earth block?
o What implications does that have for an entire assembly?