Mars Brick

pinshape

So yeah, I'm entering a block in the Mars Mission Challenge. It's printable on a dual extrusion head with support material that dissolves away seamlessly. The block is a recursive structure of a three dimensional binary tree, beginning with a large central rod branching out to two smaller rods, then four even smaller ones, and so on to as many levels as desired. So how does this create a Mars base? It's just a block, right? Well, you simply take two blocks and press them together. The plastic deforms and interlocks, attaching the two blocks without the need for cement or adhesive. Then, build structures like igloos by jamming blocks together and coating them with a mixture halfway between spray-on concrete and papier mache. The great thing is, it's a low-skill task because under harsh conditions, precision will be tough to achieve. This way, just force two blocks together and they lock in place, then add block after block, apply the coating, and you've got shelter. This block can be used to create any structure within reason, so I didn't make a base plan. The block is essentially all base plans or many of them anyway. Also great for quick repairs when that robot gets out of control and crashes into the hydroponics garden or whatever. I figure precision polished approaches have their place too, but what the explorers will need is a reliable block. So... BRICK IT!