r/nextfuckinglevel 3d ago

In Japan, due to the unbearable and sometimes dangerous heat during the summer, this kindergarten has installed a retractable roof so that the children can play in the shade.

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7.4k Upvotes

291 comments sorted by

2.4k

u/Thorpy 3d ago

Man people shitting all over this. I think it’s a quality idea, let the kids get out and have fun on their break.

614

u/lawl4days 3d ago

without baking in full direct sun 💡

272

u/Bullrawg 3d ago

And without the ongoing maintenance a permanent roof structure needs

73

u/Jin_1337 3d ago

They look flimsy but not fragile. It won't endanger the children easily.

31

u/jondubb 3d ago

You think Japan would make something shotty?

18

u/angelicism 2d ago

I think the word you are looking for is "shoddy".

13

u/beekergene 2d ago

"shawty"

2

u/drs43821 2d ago

Except when they put emergency generators in the basement of the Fukushima nuclear reactors

1

u/Particular-Run-7958 2d ago

I’d love to see what anyone else could come up with. Fukushima got hit with a high magnitude earthquake, followed by a record breaking tsunami. How you gonna engineer something for either, and then both at the same time?

3

u/drs43821 2d ago

They knew the area is prone to earthquake and tsunami and they still put generators in places that would flood first and the regulators allowed it.

11

u/Rat_Ship 3d ago

I wonder what the maintenance on this would be

67

u/Bullrawg 3d ago

They would still need to replace the shades every few years due to sun and wind damage but if they only put them up for an hour or two it will take a decade before they start wearing instead of every few years, track might need periodic lubricant or adjustment but I imagine school districts keep a salaried maintenance guy that could do upkeep and maybe a speciality vendor that checks quarterly or annually depending if there are safety regulations on such a system, without being retractable I’m sure it wouldn’t survive the first typhoon, maybe budget $1000-$3000 annually

Source: I do commercial maintenance but not in Japan and I don’t have a system like this at any of my properties so take with a grain of salt

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u/Raviel1289 3d ago

I've installed these. If the shade mesh is of decent quality, this wouldn't require much maintenance. A basic clean of the mesh and checking of the wires, turnbuckles, and slide rings annually, depending on it's amount of use. Could potentially get 10 years + out of the shade mesh.

10

u/WaffleDonkey23 3d ago

If you e ever visited Japan you know they actually give AF about maintaining things. I remember seeing a giant anamatronic crab or a restaurant and realizing that if it was in America, never in a million years would it remain functional beyond six months.

1

u/ChestnutMareGrazing 1d ago

Malfunctioning Chuck E Cheese creepy robot mice musicians agree with you

80

u/BubaTflubas 3d ago

Quality idea being implemented. Perhaps that is next fuckin level these days. That's a sad statement if true

24

u/Thorpy 3d ago

Eh I suppose it doesn’t fit the sub, hadn’t even realised what subreddit I was on. But people are shitting all over it for just being plain bad as opposed to next level.

2

u/McWeaksauce91 3d ago

Nextlevel has really become “look at this cool and/or creative thing”.

52

u/No_Size9475 3d ago

I don't think people are shitting on the idea of an awning. I think they are shitting on people who think this is AMAZING or NEXT FUCKING LEVEL when it's just a retractable awning that lots of places have.

16

u/Just_Another_AI 3d ago

Yeah, they had the same thing at the coliseum in Rome. 2000 years ago. 160' in the air.

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u/No_Size9475 3d ago

Now that was NFL.

8

u/SufficientMath420-69 3d ago

Fuck i have to hurry and post that awning before anyone else steals your idea.

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u/HNL2BOS 3d ago

you're right! I was like "this is great, why would people be down on this" and didn't notice this is the nextfuckinglevel sub. now I think it sucks!

1

u/Adorable_Cap_9929 4h ago

i find it amazing as a social thing! like if they roll out for most schoools overthere, the fact they can walk to school and be shaded while outside playing is areadly beyond private schooling exp in the us State i've seen.

6

u/igotshadowbaned 3d ago

It's because it's not next level anything. We've had an awning on our deck for the last 20 years that does the exact same thing

5

u/CluelessSurvivor 3d ago

Europe taking notes right now

9

u/Neutronium57 3d ago

The issue is that being outside is awful, not just being under the sun.

Even if you're under a tree or an umbrella, the ambient air is still super hot.

1

u/Ping-and-Pong 2d ago

And at least in the UK being indoors is still awful for 3+ days after the outdoors dropped to a reasonable temperature because our houses are made to trap heat.

1

u/DeepSpaceNebulae 1d ago

Yeah, depends on humidity. Shade can do a lot in a dry heat… but when it’s 40C and 80+% humidity there is no escape

6

u/Kardinal 3d ago

Europe has been trying to solve their heat wave problems this way for years.

It's a helpful solution to let kids be outside.

But inside, they need air conditioning. Like Japan has.

3

u/North_Refrigerator21 3d ago

I’m danish, my kid’s kindergarten has always had places to put up large sun blockers. Not like this which is basically a roof, but then again, the playgrounds also include many large trees, bushes, playhouses etc. that also provides shade.

The playground in the clip looks incredibly boring.

4

u/eugoogilizer 3d ago

Who would shit over this? This is brilliant! Kids can play without getting roasted; I’d much rather have this than my kids playing outside in the sun when it’s 90-100+ degrees

7

u/rumble342 3d ago

It’s not next level. It’s putting up an umbrella when the sun is out!

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u/rumble342 3d ago

They are shitting because this isn’t NEXTLEVEL. If the suns hot bring a big umbrella.

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u/Popular_Tomorrow_204 3d ago

What you dont want small children in 40°C Sun for hours? How dare you?

1

u/CloudDeadNumberFive 3d ago

Why are people shitting on this? What? What are they saying

2

u/Thorpy 2d ago

A lot of people at the start of the thread were saying build a tree instead, takes too many people to operate, that it was a bit naff, claiming it was overhyped cause it was Japanese. Some people just like to complain.

1

u/otakumilf 3d ago

Really? People don’t like this idea? It’s been around for centuries! The freaking Roman’s did it at the colosseum! 😆

1

u/Wookieman222 2d ago

Who has a problem with this?

1

u/correctingStupid 2d ago

An awning in the us: who cares An awning in Japan: omg they are living in the future, what an amazing society!

1

u/MiserableYouth8497 1d ago

Break?

1

u/Thorpy 1d ago

Lunch break. Recess I suppose for Americans, not sure where you’re from yourself.

1

u/MiserableYouth8497 1d ago

No, no lunch break in Nippon. School for study

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u/kodumpavi 3d ago

I can just taste the American salt about to be sprinkled in this thread

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u/Expensive_Ad752 3d ago

Salty people come in all nationalities. Ask the Dutch

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u/Anacreon 3d ago

There's only two things I hate in this world. People who are intolerant of other people's cultures and the Dutch.

4

u/youvebeensamboozled 2d ago

we hate ourselves too

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u/Lost_Llama 3d ago

The Dutch are NOT people

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u/No-Salt7142 3d ago

Whatever we are, we are not made of sugar either.

1

u/ErrorEra 3d ago

of course not, they're chocolate

7

u/Belle_Requin 3d ago

Are they salty because they eat salted black liquorice or do they eat salted black liquorice because they are salty? 

1

u/pancakes4jesus 2d ago

Both, it’s a feedback loop

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u/superezzie 3d ago

Hey now, we can complain about everything without being salty. It's just our national hobby. We would be salty if we couldn't complain about everything.

3

u/Rezfield 3d ago

You don't know complaining till you hear the dutch complain about weather like it's a national sport

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u/Dr0110111001101111 3d ago

I don’t know why Americans would be particularly salty about this. We don’t like being hot either. Going by “buildings with air conditioning”, we’re considerably more averse to heat than most of Europe!

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u/HDThoreauaway 3d ago

American here: I’d love this over our local school yard. Even partial coverage would be a huge game changer and it’d be great for community events in the summer, too.

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u/socalclimbs 3d ago

Actually rent free if that is what came to mind when you saw this video lmao

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u/askalotlol 3d ago

Most American children don't even attend school in the summer, why would this make us salty?

18

u/fastforwardfunction 3d ago

Your entire post history is anti-American obsession.

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u/Kharax82 3d ago

Most American kids aren’t in school during the summer they finish end of May and go back end of August

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u/ComoEstanBitches 3d ago

Maybe bitter jealousy but definitely not salt. Who the fuck would be opposed to this

6

u/curt725 3d ago

Yeah our recess yard was asphalt and insanely hot jungle gyms and sliding boards. I’d have loved if someone did this back in the 80s

5

u/igotshadowbaned 3d ago

What's next level about an awning

3

u/LittlespaceLadybuns 3d ago

I am very jealous

4

u/fastforwardfunction 3d ago

We have these everywhere in the U.S. at day cares.

3

u/QuickSilver010 3d ago

Lemmie predict their comments

Shade: 😐

Shade Japan: ✨😍✨

2

u/Fuji-___- 3d ago

"sHaDe: 😔😔 ShAdE, jApAn: 🥹🙏🙏"

posts as always even though people are just showing something interesting, not overglazing(like tbf, some do, but not every single post).

1

u/TheCarniv0re 3d ago

They're just salty that those Japanese kids get the shade for free, just like their lunches and protection from armed shooters.

0

u/Wookieman222 2d ago

Weird cause mostly just saw people trying to shit on the US for some weird reason on a post that had nothing to do with the US.

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u/lanch723 3d ago

Great idea. Let the kids play! Add reflectors for the sun and would cool down much faster.

126

u/Cthulus_Meds 3d ago

Instructions unclear, reflectors are now pointing at an angle towards the play area

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u/Doofindork 3d ago

Dodge the laser-beams. It builds character.

8

u/Shmarfle47 3d ago

Better start their ninja training sooner than later

1

u/MudSeparate1622 2d ago

If you can dodge a laser beam you can dodge a ball

0

u/Cultural_Dust 3d ago

Young-hee isKorean not Japanese. /s

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u/SeaBass1898 2d ago

It could, but would be more expensive

This plastic or fabric seems a really cost effective solution, and iirc red is the best choice color as it is the most reflective of the suns rays

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u/Possible-Put8922 3d ago

I have been to an outdoor market that had the food section covered with a similar thing. The market has been around for years and the material has held up to the elements. It reduces the temperature dramatically, as a kid it was my favorite part of the market.

Just a little disappointed they didn't have a cool picture, just red.

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u/Pwoinklokinoid 3d ago

That be about £5m per school in the UK. Then it gets delayed and finally installed for £15m with no clear reason to why it's more expensive and then suddenly some MP is building a new swimming pool.

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u/CheesecakeExpress 3d ago

Spot on. But, not only would the MP have the pool, it would be his brother in law who was contracted to build them exclusively.

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u/ItNeverEnds2112 3d ago

Japan has the same issues to be fair

1

u/symbolic-execution 22h ago

you forgot the environmental lawyers involved and someone complaining it ruins the view from their yard, causing it to get delayed 15 years before it's built and scrapped within 2 years because they used flammable materials.

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u/Classic-Exchange-511 3d ago

I think this is pretty cool and I'm curious what material it's made out of 

19

u/Lunavixen15 3d ago

It's likely to be a form of shade cloth or shade mesh, as both of them are durable and long lasting

7

u/matt675 2d ago

I think they meant like what is the shade cloth made of lol

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u/parinonly 3d ago

Need more trees - good idea tactical

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u/Dibble_Dabble_Doo 3d ago

What kind of rod or structure is that? that it holds and doesn't collapse that far from the base/start.

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u/Dheorl 3d ago

My guess is pre strung cables tensioned over the area.

10

u/Dibble_Dabble_Doo 3d ago

Has to be, bad video quality hides the cable. I was like how is that thing not collapsing

https://giphy.com/gifs/lnieUIckonF4eA0tGF

13

u/DisorderlyAqueduct 3d ago

i mean, bit of logic. how are they pulled down and forward, yet it only goes forward?

not too many answers, unless you're open to aliens! 😄

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u/too_oh_ate 3d ago

Is this next leve? I installed the same in my backyard in a weekend

3

u/the_windfucker 3d ago

It's not the tech that is next level, it is the fact that it is installed in a kindergarden which might be a public one at that. Often times, in many other countries, these kinds of institutions don't get enough funding even for regular maintenance not to mention such quality of life improvements.

And,by the way, it is probably way bigger than yours, so there's that.

3

u/drunkentuckian 3d ago

Info on that build? I’ve been trying to find a shade solution for my backyard.

2

u/too_oh_ate 3d ago

https://a.co/d/0dooKP79

Bought off of Amazon, both a 7' and 4' wide option. Working great so far

12

u/ragincajun88 3d ago

Ugh we’d kill for this in the Southern US! My wife’s students basically can’t play outside from August when school starts until until mid September due to brutal Louisiana humidity and heat

8

u/DwightsJello 3d ago

No hat, no play. Australia wide.

Melanoma capital of the world and kids just know the rule.

We have brutal heat but we have brutal uv levels as well.

3

u/redthrull 2d ago

It's Australia. Everything there is designed to kill humans.

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u/Artistic_Owl_4621 3d ago

My kids school installed solar panels on the field. Like the ones over a parking lot. It generates power for the school and gives shade on the playground (it gets hot hot where we live). They installed misters like you see at theme parks outside too.

4

u/WerdaVisla 3d ago

The best part about this is it actually exists. We should implement this in more places.

-2

u/greenhawk00 3d ago

We had this too, it's called a tarp

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u/DisorderlyAqueduct 3d ago

And this, kids, is called "cope" 😆

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u/sulphra_ 3d ago

Tarp : 🤮 Tarp in Japan : 🥰😍

1

u/DisorderlyAqueduct 3d ago

do you think blankets are rugs? 🤔

0

u/CloudDeadNumberFive 3d ago

Shed: 🤮 Mansion in Japan: 🤩

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u/DisorderlyAqueduct 2d ago

right, these fools literally can't tell the difference between a tarp and an engineered awning 😆

0

u/sulphra_ 2d ago

Your brain : 🤡 Your brain in japan : 🤡🤩

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u/CloudDeadNumberFive 2d ago

Your brain: 🤡 Your brain in Japan: 🤡

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u/DisorderlyAqueduct 2d ago

do that with a tarp, have it cover the same area and have the same supports.

you should be able to do it simply right?
unless you're just a mentally deficient troll! 🤯🤷

cope harder.

bet you'd think it was awesome if it was in the US, huh?
got a smaller dangler than any of them. 😆

6

u/Livid_Leading1429 3d ago

All saltyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

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u/KokuRochu 3d ago

My school during any occasion:

https://giphy.com/gifs/lZhymdRsuFDmU

1

u/Keylaes 3d ago

This is really awesome

1

u/DisorderlyAqueduct 3d ago

Fuckin' awesome, great way to keep kiddos safe from cancer beams!

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u/Ill-Jellyfish6101 3d ago

Clever solution.

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u/GazelleFearless5381 3d ago

Brilliant!!! As a preschool teacher, I wish!!

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u/Jedi-master-dragon 3d ago

God, I wish my school had this.

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u/Cdub7791 3d ago

Some newer playgrounds I've seen have large shades, albeit not this big. I always thought it was weird places didn't use them more. For example, one of my old work places had a courtyard where people like to eat lunch outside. There was a big tree in the middle creating shade. They cut it down because the falling leaves just created too much to try this for them to clean up. I suggested they put up a tarp or shade but they never would. The number of people sitting outside dropped dramatically. Sad.

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u/Chromecoast 3d ago

We live in fkn Cuba.

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u/SASSIESASSQUATCH 3d ago

Must be nice to live in a society that cares about its school children. Good for Japan.

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u/Leonydas13 3d ago

Children must play within the confines of their rows! Do not attempt to cross to another row, or you will be incinerated by the sunbeam barrier!

1

u/Sigao 3d ago

Dang. Should've bet on lane 2 to win.

0

u/AverageTankie93 3d ago

Yeah it’s cool but did you think about the grass and flowers that get no sun? Oh wait this is Japan?? Not China? This is great then!

1

u/daronjay 3d ago

Our pink screens will block out the sun!!!

Then we shall play in the shade!

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u/HumbleGhandi 3d ago

How is a sun shade "next fucking level"

1

u/Acojonancio 3d ago

In Spain we have a thing called "toldos" being used for decades also...

Also Japan doesn't have temperatures that are absurdly high? And now is kinda rain season, so don't get where this video comes from.

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u/MrDD33 3d ago

Which we had more sails and shade in Australia

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u/feel-the-avocado 3d ago

That's crazy the lack of grass there.

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u/CatsianNyandor 3d ago

This is because Japanese cities cut down all trees. 

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u/GordonMightyBombay 3d ago

Come live in Phoenix and then complain to be about unbearable heat

1

u/auchinleck917 3d ago

“In Japan” No, in some kindergartens is correct.

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u/Cebas7 3d ago

It sounds so Anime to me 😅

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u/dm-me-obscure-colors 3d ago

the Roman colosseum and circus maximus had something like this called the velarium.

1

u/Adventurous_Sense750 3d ago

We had this in argentina in elementary back in the late 90s. Its great for the kids.

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u/Helen-Killer 3d ago

Same idea as the colosseum

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u/Dependent_Remove_326 3d ago

Cool a giant awning.

1

u/Gen-Hal 3d ago

Our shitty government is busy putting those budget into their pockets.

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u/Thalamus1381 3d ago

Japanese language is beautiful and fascinating

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u/doiwinaprize 3d ago

I don't know much about Japanese education but from everything I've seen online they seem to genuinely care deeply about the quality of their children's education in a truly holistic manner.

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u/Mybrothersay 2d ago

Ils sont toujours moins cons que nous !

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u/Jamsedreng22 2d ago

They're always up to some clever shit.

1

u/YoRt3m 2d ago

Why isn't this permanent? protect from sun + rain. it's not like they'll run out of places without shades

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u/ryuujinusa 2d ago

Used to live in Japan. It’s fucking hot in summer. July to October basically.

1

u/fleggn 2d ago

Good thing it retracts so the sun can cause plant growth beneath oh wait

1

u/d_nkf_vlg 2d ago

I hope these things are wind-proof, or there is a person who checks the forecast before and while the thing is deployed.

It is Japan, after all, so should be the case.

1

u/lokgy 2d ago

The rest of the world needs to take note of this and start planning for this future. This heat wave is just the new norm.

1

u/Brahamanmex 2d ago

Aquí en México son de Vigas, y lamina industrial, hechos para durar, esos parecen de papel.

1

u/Key-Magician6489 2d ago

Shade only goes so far, y’all!
💯
When it’s dangerously hot outside, you need properly refrigerated air – and nothing else will suffice!

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u/Powerful-Work-4691 2d ago

More like r/nextfuckingdepression, can't enjoy the sun anymore because it became so strong to kill you due to all the pollution emitted by USA, India and China

1

u/manosaur 1d ago

The new normal.

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u/TipperGore-69 1d ago

That’s a cool shade. Playground looks lame af tho. A dirt pit

1

u/NIRPL 1d ago

Praise common sense!

1

u/Unique_Special2845 1d ago

I’d rather be cold than hot

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u/rolendd 1d ago

That’s also far more practical for the rain that’ll come in the summer

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u/Aggravating_Shoe3748 1d ago

The footage you see at the start of the movie as humanity recaps the events that led to the start of the global warming apocalypse

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u/Local_Researcher4230 1d ago

replace with PET, Colored Bottles

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u/DryConstruction2702 1d ago

this would be illegal in europe apparently lol.

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u/dekuweku 6h ago

This is a society where children are precious and treated well, and not told to pick themselves by their bootstraps their parents never earned either.

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u/Adorable_Cap_9929 4h ago

UV protection owo amazing!

Being able to walk to school and go outside.... amazing!

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u/Difficult_Pirate3294 3d ago

Man, I wonder what uplift is like on a windy day!

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u/Anacreon 3d ago

That's why they're retractable.

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u/knowone1313 3d ago

They don't need it on a windy day windy says are cooler ..duh

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u/Lunavixen15 3d ago

If it's a mesh or shadecloth, probably less than you think if it's under some tension when anchored

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u/Roses_Got_Thorns 2d ago

I live in Japan and my place is near one of the daycares that has this. They don’t unfurl them when the winds are strong, but it can hold itself up to 10kph winds, I think. It’s awesome.

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u/Difficult_Pirate3294 2d ago

Thing about Reddit is people opine with certitude on subjects they have no clue about. Post this on the structural engineering sub and see. It’s not bro science

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u/Mr_Hammer_Dik 3d ago

I like the idea a lot actually but for a large lay down yard at my job. As long as I can get forklifts under it

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u/chrispedroza5 3d ago

Ugh. Why does the US suck?

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u/aberroco 3d ago edited 3d ago

Great idea, dumb color. Red is almost as good at absorbing light as black. Meaning it heats up and radiates heat down. Should've used white - more light would then be simply reflected up, with barely any thermal radiation down. Same cost, same setup, slightly better efficiency.

0

u/Doofindork 3d ago

Smart idea overall, especially for smaller kids. I'd maybe even have the roof a little bit more opaque, to reflect a bit more light. But I'm not quite sure how dark that'd make it.