# What is this thing? \[Strange grid ball\] **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 12, 2013, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-thing-strange-grid-ball/646989 "2013-01-12T20:37:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 11
**Author:** ![DocCathode](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doccathode/32/18773_2.png) [@DocCathode](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DocCathode)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2013, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-thing-strange-grid-ball/646989/201 "2013-01-16T23:25:26Z")
> [@scr4](#): > > True. But I’d argue that it’s not trivial to get this thing built “correctly” - i.e. so that the pieces all fit together (mating surfaces all at correct angles, etc). If it were designed by an incompetent engineer, it would be lying in pieces because they didn’t fit together. I agree the builder was competent. But, we can’t be sure they were sane. ---
**Author:** ![AndrewL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@AndrewL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AndrewL)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2013, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-thing-strange-grid-ball/646989/202 "2013-01-17T00:07:37Z")
> [@scr4](#): > > True. But I’d argue that it’s not trivial to get this thing built “correctly” - i.e. so that the pieces all fit together (mating surfaces all at correct angles, etc). If it were designed by an incompetent engineer, it would be lying in pieces because they didn’t fit together. It wouldn’t be the first time I’ve seen a project that was competently put together despite being a terrible idea from the start. Heck, I’ve even worked on a few of those myself. ---
**Author:** ![DocCathode](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doccathode/32/18773_2.png) [@DocCathode](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DocCathode)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2013, 12:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-thing-strange-grid-ball/646989/203 "2013-01-17T00:18:06Z")
Could it be a test of some sort? The professor had students build it to prove their abilities and not because the finished product would be useful? ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2013, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-thing-strange-grid-ball/646989/204 "2013-01-17T00:44:38Z")
> [@scr4](#): > > True. But I’d argue that it’s not trivial to get this thing built “correctly” - i.e. so that the pieces all fit together (mating surfaces all at correct angles, etc). If it were designed by an incompetent engineer, it would be lying in pieces because they didn’t fit together. Agreed - the engineering itself seems to be quite superb. ---
**Author:** ![Ulfreida](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ulfreida/32/8014_2.png) [@Ulfreida](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulfreida)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2013, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-thing-strange-grid-ball/646989/205 "2013-01-17T01:58:41Z")
The fact that it is competently put together and superbly engineered argues vigorously against it being an art project. What is thrown out behind the art building is always limited to the stuff so ugly even your loving mother won’t store it in her basement. Doesn’t qualify. ---
**Author:** ![DocCathode](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doccathode/32/18773_2.png) [@DocCathode](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DocCathode)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2013, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-thing-strange-grid-ball/646989/206 "2013-01-17T02:21:48Z")
> [@Ulfreida](#): > > The fact that it is competently put together and superbly engineered argues vigorously against it being an art project. I have to disagree. I’ve known plenty of people who are both artists and scientists. ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2013, 2:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-thing-strange-grid-ball/646989/207 "2013-01-17T02:41:01Z")
> [@Fubaya](#): > > There must be 400 bolts on that thing. I count 40 meridians and 23 seams of latitude: that works out to a little shy of a thousand framework bolts, depending on how many ports it has (1012 with no ports at all). To that, add the 80 inward bolts around the upper and lower equatorial region. I am not OCD enough to try to calculate the number of bolts in the pipe, looks like at least a hundred there. Makes my wrist hurt just thinking about it. ---
**Author:** ![Fubaya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c2a13f/32.png) [@Fubaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fubaya)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2013, 5:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-thing-strange-grid-ball/646989/208 "2013-01-17T05:15:25Z")
> [@For You](#): > > I count 40 meridians and 23 seams of latitude: that works out to a little shy of a thousand framework bolts, depending on how many ports it has (1012 with no ports at all). To that, add the 80 inward bolts around the upper and lower equatorial region. I am not OCD enough to try to calculate the number of bolts in the pipe, looks like at least a hundred there. Makes my wrist hurt just thinking about it. D’oh, my 400 estimate was just for the face we can see. I forgot it has a whole 'nother side. ---
**Author:** ![TruCelt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trucelt/32/523_2.png) [@TruCelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TruCelt)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2013, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-thing-strange-grid-ball/646989/209 "2013-01-17T15:53:55Z")
Nitro: Can you get a look at the inside for us? ---
**Author:** ![Projammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/projammer/32/559_2.png) [@Projammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Projammer)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2013, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-thing-strange-grid-ball/646989/210 "2013-01-17T23:09:16Z")
> [@TruCelt](#): > > Nitro: Can you get a look at the inside for us? This is what I was going to ask. We’re assuming that it is actually many segments bolted together as it appears. If it’s some sort of art project it would more likely be a solid walled hollow sphere with the grid laid down on it to make whatever point the artist was going for. Unlikely I know, but there it is. ---
**Author:** ![busterpickle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/258eb7/32.png) [@busterpickle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/busterpickle)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2013, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-thing-strange-grid-ball/646989/211 "2013-01-18T01:00:33Z")
> [@Ulfreida](#): > > The fact that it is competently put together and superbly engineered argues vigorously against it being an art project. > > What is thrown out behind the art building is always limited to the stuff so ugly even your loving mother won’t store it in her basement. Doesn’t qualify. Wow.. you don’t know an artist. In my spare time, when I have it, I make metal sculptures. Last one took my 80 hours of fabrication. It was a millipede and I studied every picture I could find and went a zoo and watched them for about 4 hours, taking notes. I then spent a lot of time designing the sculpture within a modular way (it’s how I wanted to do it) while still being anatomically correct as I wanted people to immediately think “millipede” when they first see it and not “metal sculpture”. Total design time was the better part of a year. As I was shooting for the modular approach, I made 186 legs, matching the one I found at the zoo. Each leg is almost exactly the same as I made a jig to bend each one exactly the same. The segments are also the same as I went out and bought a metal cutting dry-saw, which uses a blade akin to that if you were to cut wood, to make sure each segment was precisely the same. I then bought about 200 magnets to hold the legs in place while I mimicked the rolling wave pattern of the feet as they millipede moves. I ended up using only a handful at a time as I found another method to accurately model the legs: another jig. Any ways, I could go on for hours on the millipede but I won’t. I could easily see myself or another artist type spend countless hours on a sphere like that. ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2013, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-thing-strange-grid-ball/646989/212 "2013-01-18T01:14:06Z")
It will be at least a week before I can get back for other photos, but here’s an alternate view of the thing, along with a closeup shot that answers many of the questions here about construction. It looks like an odd combination of high-end casting and machining and low-grade fasteners, and the broken bit is very interesting. I’m leaning more and more towards “art” even though the head of the art department knew nothing about it. Major art projects ARE done on this auxiliary campus, according to him. [ul] [li][Grid Ball, original view](http://www.dgath.com/misc/grid_ball.jpg)[/li][li][Grid Ball, alternate view](http://www.dgath.com/misc/grid_ball_2.jpg)[/li][li][Grid Ball, closeup](http://www.dgath.com/misc/grid_ball_3.jpg)[/li][/ul] ---
**Author:** ![AndrewL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@AndrewL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AndrewL)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2013, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-thing-strange-grid-ball/646989/213 "2013-01-18T01:44:50Z")
It does look like cast aluminum, connected together with what appear to be common cheap lock nuts. The pipes behind it seem to be needlessly complicated for any practical use. It looks like there’s three quarter-cylinder lengths of pipes, one connected to the cylinder at two places, the other two only connected to the first. And there are those little stubs of pipe capped with flat or hemispherical sections. The pieces making up the cap at the top pole of the sphere don’t seem to be attached to each other very well if at all. There’s no way this thing was gas or liquid tight. I’m leaning towards sculpture as well, I can’t see any practical reason for this thing to be built like this. ---
**Author:** ![CC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f1d935/32.png) [@CC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CC)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2013, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-thing-strange-grid-ball/646989/214 "2013-01-18T02:36:53Z")
Artwork. I’ve seen many works of art or structures that artists have made that look like they have some purpose or some aspects that seem to be made to look practical or functional. They’re not, of course, but that’s the art of it. Artwork. ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2013, 2:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-thing-strange-grid-ball/646989/215 "2013-01-18T02:39:07Z")
We need **NitroPress** to lick it, to see if it tastes like aluminum. On a really cold day. ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2013, 3:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-thing-strange-grid-ball/646989/216 "2013-01-18T03:32:36Z")
The end cap in the close-up is ridiculous. Four pieces? :dubious: Art. ---
**Author:** ![d1a1s1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f6c823/32.png) [@d1a1s1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/d1a1s1)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2013, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-thing-strange-grid-ball/646989/217 "2013-01-18T03:57:47Z")
Yeah. It’s needlessly complicated and defies all reason or purpose. Must be artwork. Having said that, no wonder its was ditched in a field. Uglay! ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Fun\_Ball](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_fun_ball/32/17664_2.png) [@Happy\_Fun\_Ball](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Fun_Ball)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2013, 4:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-thing-strange-grid-ball/646989/218 "2013-01-18T04:35:52Z")
Yeah, art. The pipes make no sense. It sure took someone a long time to put that together. ---
**Author:** ![Ulfreida](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ulfreida/32/8014_2.png) [@Ulfreida](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulfreida)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2013, 4:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-thing-strange-grid-ball/646989/219 "2013-01-18T04:52:45Z")
> [@electronbee](#): > > Wow.. you don’t know an artist. In my spare time, when I have it, I make metal sculptures. Last one took my 80 hours of fabrication. It was a millipede and I studied every picture I could find and went a zoo and watched them for about 4 hours, taking notes. I then spent a lot of time designing the sculpture within a modular way (it’s how I wanted to do it) while still being anatomically correct as I wanted people to immediately think “millipede” when they first see it and not “metal sculpture”. Total design time was the better part of a year. > > As I was shooting for the modular approach, I made 186 legs, matching the one I found at the zoo. Each leg is almost exactly the same as I made a jig to bend each one exactly the same. The segments are also the same as I went out and bought a metal cutting dry-saw, which uses a blade akin to that if you were to cut wood, to make sure each segment was precisely the same. > > I then bought about 200 magnets to hold the legs in place while I mimicked the rolling wave pattern of the feet as they millipede moves. I ended up using only a handful at a time as I found another method to accurately model the legs: another jig. > > Any ways, I could go on for hours on the millipede but I won’t. I could easily see myself or another artist type spend countless hours on a sphere like that. hey, I went to art school. The old SFAI to be exact. I am not talking about art, I am not talking about artists, I am talking about art garbage left behind by art students when the semester is over (right under the signs that forbid it). I have seen many examples, and this is just too nice to be such a thing. Please relax. ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2013, 1:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-thing-strange-grid-ball/646989/220 "2013-01-18T13:00:29Z")
> [@For You](#): > > We need **NitroPress** to lick it, to see if it tastes like aluminum. On a really cold day. I’ll let you know. In the meantime, kiss… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-thing-strange-grid-ball/646989.md?page=10) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-thing-strange-grid-ball/646989.md?page=12)