This is a door in a restaurant in an old colonial era tavern in Pennsylvania. I think the counter-weight is such a cool way to close the door after people open it. (The large wood block hanging to the left of the door, with the rope leading up and over, tied to the top of the door.) It also puts some weight on the door so that it doesn’t fly open.
I was sitting and watching the door for a while – waiting for our table to be ready – and counted five people commenting on the door in fifteen minutes. So, I obviously wasn’t the only one intrigued.
So many authentic projects could be inspired by this photo. How do counter-weights work? What are other examples of counter-weights? (Check out the Falkirk Wheel in Scotland). What is the mathematical formula for this door to work? What if you put a lot more weight on the door? What if you put less weight?
And if this evolves into projects designing better doors, that’s authentic learning. (I need a door with a package door that can be opened with an electronic code to slip my packages through – I believe Amazon is already working on something like this…)
The Educational Journey 