What Would Happen

if the Earth Were

Cubical?
What Would Happen to Climate, Weather Patterns, and Life Forms?

Purpose
To theorize what effects a cube-shaped earth would have on climate, weather
patterns, and flora/fauna life.

Materials Needed
 2 empty half-gallon milk cartons
 knife or scissors
 baking soda
 water
 white paper
 tape or glue
 world map
 pencil
 ruler
 Sharpie marker
 Page protectors
 flashlight
 globe
 hollow plastic ball *approx. 5-inch (12-cm) diameter+
 sharp knife
 empty half-gallon milk carton
 2 unsharpened pencils with erasers
 2 thumbtacks
 modeling clay
 small squeeze bottle
 water
 food coloring
 a helper
 What Would Happen
if the Earth Were
Cubical?
What Would Happen to Climate, Weather Patterns, and Life Forms?

Experiment 1
 First you need to make a grid line. ,I used a
piece of page protector, a sharpie, and a grid
line of 1/2 inch squares.-
 A grid will be drawn on a sheet of page pro-
tector and projected onto an upright parallel
globe to simulate the sun and to measure the
concentrations of sunlight on various points
of a spherical earth. The same will be done
with a cubical earth, and the results of each
will be compared.

Procedure 1
1. Construct a cubical model of the
earth by cutting off the bottoms of
two empty half-gallon milk contain-
ers and fitting them together. (The
milk odor can be removed by soak-
ing the cartons in a solution of bak-
ing soda and water for about 15
minutes.) Then, tape or glue the
white paper to the cube. Refer to the
world map and draw the continents
and oceans onto the cube as you
think they might appear.
 What Would Happen
if the Earth Were
Cubical?
What Would Happen to Climate, Weather Patterns, and Life Forms?

2. After I was done making my cubical

Earth, I had my mom help me cover it with
a page
protector.

3. I labeled the equator by tracing over it

with a sharpie on the regular globe.
Repeat the previous step, this time with
the page protected
spherical globe, measuring half way down
on the “sun” exposed side.

4. Next I hung the grid line one foot

from the globe. Then shining a
flashlight through it at the bottom, I
traced the lines onto the page
protected globe.
 What Would Happen
if the Earth Were
Cubical?
What Would Happen to Climate, Weather Patterns, and Life Forms?

5. Repeat the previous step, this time with

the page protected
spherical globe.

Results:
 Compare the results from the spherical
earth to that of the cubical earth. What
do you notice?
 The spherical earth has more sunlight
coverage than the
cubical earth.
1/2 of the spherical earth has sunlight, but
the cubical earth has
only 1/4 coverage.

 Were there any

differences in the
way the simulated
sunlight was
concentrated on
each “earth”?
 The cubical earth
had smaller squares
and less coverage.
The spherical had
bigger squares and
more “sunlight.”
 What Would Happen
if the Earth Were
Cubical?
What Would Happen to Climate, Weather Patterns, and Life Forms?

Illustrate your answer:

1/2 of the spherical earth has sunlight, but the cubical earth has
only 1/4 coverage.
 What Would Happen
if the Earth Were
Cubical?
What Would Happen to Climate, Weather Patterns, and Life Forms?

Illustrate your answer:

1/2 of the spherical earth has sunlight, but the cubical earth has
only 1/4 coverage.

Spherical Earth Cubical Earth

 What Would Happen
if the Earth Were
Cubical?
What Would Happen to Climate, Weather Patterns, and Life Forms?

What do you think the climate would be like if you lived on

the cubical earth?
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Would we have four seasons on a cubical earth? Illustrate
your answer.
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