Experiments

One of the most insightful and valuable things you can do, whether you're a student looking at a new venture or an established brand looking to innovate, is to conduct experiments. Small-scale experiments let you test your hypotheses about consumer behavior and your assumptions about operating costs and promotions. Starbucks, for example, is using recovered cargo containers to create portable, energy-efficient drive-thrus for their customers, like this one shown here in Denver. media type="facebooklike" key="http%3A%2F%2Fprofcraigarmstrong.wikispaces.com%2FExperiments" width="450" height="80"

What can //you// do with a cargo container, rail car, or dumpster?
If you're part of a multi-disciplinary team of student engineers, entrepreneurs, designers, and construction specialists, you could create a home that operates entirely off the grid. Check out the Solar Decathlon site of the US Department of Energy.

Here are some time-lapse images from the 2011 competition showing in Washington, DC.

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==Shop on eBay! Most cargo containers go for $1,500 to $3,000. AND/OR Read this Instructable on how to get a cargo container.== ==And one person was using Kickstarter.com to get financing to create an open-source design for a cargo container home. He came up short in funding, but watch his pitch to get supporters.== media type="custom" key="21073658"