What were the three pigs houses made of
Mythbusting the three little pigs – Building Specifier
We are all familiar with the fairy tale of the three little pigs; a moral-laden fable about three pigs that construct three houses from different materials. The big bad wolf blows down the first two pigs’ houses, made of straw and sticks respectively, but is unable to destroy the third pig’s house, made of bricks. The story has been told and retold for hundreds of years. However, I think that things have changed…
There have been a multitude of innovations in modern construction techniques of late, so I have decided to take a second look at how affective the pigs’ methods actually were; would the straw and stick homes still fall to huffing and puffing today?
Straw house
With shortages of materials, lack of skills, an ever increasing population and subsequent carbon footprint, there is understandably an enormous demand for a housing solution that won’t cost the earth, both financially and environmentally.
Straw bale construction is one such material that could help achieve this goal. Indeed, a house built from straw goes one step further than helping to alleviate a housing crisis – it can even help the very occupants within that house keep the modern enemy of fuel poverty at bay. Straw bale buildings are so efficiently insulated that they require very little heating, even in the dead of winter.
Where timescales are an issue, straw bale building can also prove to be a worthwhile consideration. Last year saw the first ever straw bale houses hit the market in Bristol. The housing development consisted of seven homes that were erected on site in just nine days, thanks to their precision factory-made panels which slot together perfectly. This speedy turnaround adds to their affordability, of course.
Social Landlord Martin Connolly, responsible for the development, commented on the Bristol homes: “We got into straw bale housing to explore how we could make housing more affordable.
What was behind it was concern about homelessness and the environment.”
“In the first instance, we wanted to achieve natural non-toxic house building which sequesters carbon. Hugely insulated and air-tight, the homes produce virtually all the energy they need to run. We are installing rain water harvesting to cut down water and sewage bills, and LED lights, solar panels and an air-source heat pump to reduce light and heating costs. Bath University research shows the running costs can be reduced by as much as 90%. And, as volume of sales increase, we can strive to make the house purchase price even more affordable.”
So, was the first little piggy really that foolish to choose straw over other available materials? Let’s consider the facts; just shy of 4m tonnes straw is produced as a by-product each year by British agriculture. It only takes around 7 tonnes of straw to build a three-bedroom house similar to the Bristol developments. This means that theoretically it would be possible to grow enough straw to build more than half a million new homes each year using straw grown exclusively in British fields.
Perhaps not so foolish!?
Stick house
Was the second piggy wrong to build his house from wood? I think absolutely not. Perhaps, considering that the structure fell merely at the exhaling of a wolf, it is his construction skills (or lack thereof) that should be questioned rather than his choice of material. Timber frame buildings are inherently strong, durable and sustainable. Readily available and relatively low in cost, structural timber offers a competitive advantage over many other materials.
Studies suggest that by moving more towards offsite construction techniques, the reputation of the construction industry will improve in the eyes of the younger generation, who above all have a keen interest in innovation, technology and environmental issues. This means that a career within the sector would become a more viable and attractive option, which in turn will help to alleviate the chronic skills shortage currently blighting the industry. Even the second piggy could brush up on his abilities by enrolling in an apprenticeship scheme.
The government report, Construction 2025, highlighted that the poor public image of construction was having a detrimental effect on companies’ abilities to recruit and retain the best talent. The cleaner, safer and more professional setting of a modular construction factory could definitely help attract prospective apprentices and graduates into this relatively new and exciting area of our industry.
Timber is the perfect choice for specifiers who want a precision engineered material that is both cost effective AND sustainable. Structural timber is a low-carbon alternative that offers high structural strength, airtight construction and a traceable supply chain. Therefore it is the perfect choice of material for little piggies with a passion for sustainability and style.
Brick house
Although the hero of the fairy tale is the pig that chose brick above all other materials, the truth of the matter is that there are pro’s and con’s to every material and brick is no exception.
Brick homes require very little maintenance and never require painting, caulking or staining. However, this does have a trade-off. Changing the appearance of a brick exterior can be somewhat difficult and expensive.
Homes made of brick are highly energy efficient and therefore remain cool in the summer and warm in the winter. Whilst this in itself is good for the environment, there are caveats and sadly the manufacturing process of bricks almost nullifies this benefit. The manufacturing processes used to create building materials such as cement and bricks are currently accountable for roughly 12% of all emissions of carbon dioxide in the world.
Brick manufacturing especially is very energy-intensive due to the kilns that are used requiring firing for up to three days in order for the bricks within to become hard and strong. Brick kilns operate at about 1100°C and are often kept hot even when not in use. This immense heat is generated using fossil fuels, which emit significant CO2 when combusted.
Houses constructed using brick are durable, energy efficient, highly fire-resistant and low maintenance. This means that they tend to have a higher resale value than their timber beam counterparts. Homeowner insurance is also a lot lower for these very reasons. So whilst savings can be made in the long term, the initial outlay will be much higher if using brick in your project.
Bricks are much more expensive as a building material than timber or straw. Also, whilst largely low maintenance for the most part, when repairs do need to be made they can be difficult, time consuming, highly invasive and expensive. This renders brick a non-cost-effective option for many home builders, regardless of savings that will be made at a later date.
Summary
It is clear to see that each method of construction has both benefits and draw backs. This means that no one method is a perfect solution to meet 21st century housebuilding demands. If the housing crisis, combined with materials shortages and the skills gap are the modern day “wolf at the door”, then it is only through a multifaceted approach that utilises all of the tools and knowledge in our arsenal that we can succeed and thrive as an industry.
It’s impossible to tell which material will come up trumps in the end – but one thing we can all agree on is that modular technologies, offsite methods and alternative material usage will play increasingly larger roles in construction as we go forward as an industry. Expect to see a lot more on the topic!
So in summary, does a fairy tale that was first committed to print in the 1840’s still offer worthy advice to the wise and considerate specifier who wishes to keep the wolves at bay? I say “no, no, not by the hair on my chinny chin chin!”
The Three Little Pigs - Cycles of Change Rehab Center
Many of us are familiar with the English children’s fairy tale, The Three Little Pigs. There were three little siblings pigs that each built houses made of straw, wood, and bricks. Along came a big bad wolf that knocked successively on each home, telling the pigs to open up the door or he will blow their houses down. Naturally, the pigs don’t open the doors to their places.
However, the wolf blows down the house made of straw, and then the house is made of wood. Luckily, the residing pigs managed to find refuge in the third house, which was made of brick and belonged to their brother. The wolf made his way over to the house made of brick, knowing that there were three little pigs inside, and he demanded that they open the door. The third little pig refused (while his brothers cowered in terror), and the wolf said, “Then I will huff and puff and blow your house down!” Well, it’s hard to blow down a house made of bricks, and in the end, the wolf decides to get into the house by crawling down the chimney, unaware that the third little pig has outsmarted him. The horrible wolf falls into a pot of boiling water, and the pigs eat him for dinner instead of the other way around.
Due to laziness, the first two little pigs did not build substantial houses. The third little pig worked very hard and made sure that he built a place that had a solid foundation. If we compare the story of The Three Little Pigs to Gresham’s Law and Alcoholics Anonymous, we can see an analogy between the different materials and methods that the pigs used to build their houses and various ways of working a 12-step program.
And we can deduce that the wolf is a metaphor for drug addiction and alcoholism.
The three ways of working the 12-step program include a feeble way, which really amounts to not working the program at all. This could involve a person who goes to meetings but doesn’t work their steps or a person who hits a few sessions a month and manages to stay clean and sober, but according to the Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous, suffers from being “restless, irritable and discontented.” This is a dry drunk syndrome, and it’s a miserable way of life. A recovering alcoholic/addict who weakly works the program is like the little pig that built a house of straw! In the end, the wolf or addiction was able to blow the house down. People who ineffectively work the program are prone to relapse.
Then there are the people who work the program in a medium manner. Perhaps they go to regular meetings and have performed their steps. But other disorders might have popped up, including sexual addiction, gambling, or kleptomania.
They are oblivious to these defects and still manage to stay clean and sober and consider themselves honorable members of the 12-step fellowship. Often these are the people who try to pick up newcomers at meetings or who try to use the program for their own devious motives. These people are comparable to the little pig that built a house of wood. And yes, the wolf managed to blow that house down, too!
And finally, the people who work a strong program are very similar to the little pig that toiled away and built a house made of bricks. This little pig provided refuge for his brothers and maintained serenity even when the wolf was at his door. In the end, the third little pig overcame the wolf. If we compare a person who works a strong 12-step program to that third little pig, we can ascertain that person will probably maintain their recovery while being happy and clear-headed, even when there is danger lurking around the corner.
At Cycles of Change, we offer a comprehensive 12-step approach, along with an evidence-based protocol that will help you build a strong foundation in recovery.
We will teach you how to work a 12-step program the healthy way and help you learn tools that will help you find serenity, clarity, as well as lifelong sobriety.
Detailed content of the play "The Three Little Pigs and the Gray Wolf" • Theater "Modern"
The play-tale about the three little pigs tells about the adventures of two brothers Nuf-Nuf, Nif-Nif and their little pig sister named Naf-Naf.
All summer long the three merry little pigs spent their time carefree: basking in the sun, somersaulting in the green grass and splashing in warm puddles. Autumn came and it got colder. Naf-Naf suggested that everyone build a house together for the winter, but Nif-Nif and Nuf-Nuf decided not to rush to build a house. The brothers decided that they would live separately, each in their own house, but for now, they preferred to enjoy the last warm autumn days, play and jump in the meadow. Naf-Naf did not wait for her careless brothers and started building her house.
She kneaded clay, dragged stones and slowly built herself a solid, reliable house in which she could hide from rain, wind, frost and other troubles. The brothers were surprised at such an impressive building and began to ask Naf-Naf why she needed such a solid stone house. “To protect yourself from the wolf,” said Naf-Naf. Nif-Nif and Nuf-Nuf laughed at their sister, “there is no wolf here,” said the piglets.
The brothers decided not to spend much time building houses. Nif-Nif built a house of straw in one day, Nuf-Nuf built a house of dry leaves and twigs in two. When the work was done, the piglets continued to play tricks on their sister, they imagined how easily they would deal with the wolf, although they had never seen him.
Loud laughter and songs of cheerful piglets were heard by an angry and hungry Gray Wolf passing by. The piglets were terribly frightened and, squealing throughout the forest, rushed to their houses. Nif-Nif was the first to reach his thatched dwelling.
“Come on, open the door, otherwise I’ll blow it and your house will fly apart!” The wolf shouted and blew with all his might on the house of Nif-Nif. The house scattered in all directions, as if after a hurricane.
Frightened Nif-Nif rushed to run and in a minute was already in Nuf-Nuf's house. The cunning wolf decided to pretend to be a sheep by putting on a sheep's skin. He knocked on the door and in a thin voice asked for a lodging for the night. The piglets opened the door ajar, but when they saw the sharp teeth of the wolf, they got scared and managed to close it back. “Come on, open the door, otherwise I’ll blow it and your house will fly apart!” shouted the Gray Wolf, blew with all his might on Nuf-Nuf’s house and it scattered in all directions.
The piglets ran away in horror and managed to get to the Naf-Naf house. The little sister let them into the house and quickly closed the massive oak door with a bolt. She had nothing to fear in her stone house.
No matter how hard the Gray Wolf tried, he could not get inside, neither through the windows nor through the door.
He decided that he would guard the house. “Sooner or later, the pigs will come out, then I’ll eat them,” the wolf thought and began to wait.
The night passed, but the gray did not go away. Morning came and Naf-Naf came up with a cunning plan to get rid of the wolf, she dressed up in a fox costume and invited the wolf to dance. Naf-Naf's outfit was so good that the wolf did not notice the change. In the meantime, the piglet brothers sneaked out of the house unnoticed and smeared glue on a pole next to a growing tree. Naf-Naf, in the form of a fox, skillfully performed her role. She twirled the wolf in a dance and, passing by a tree, leaned it against the glued trunk. No matter how hard the wolf tried to unstick from the tree, nothing worked for him. He realized that he was wrong and asked for forgiveness from the three little pigs. The piglets were very kind and therefore, of course, they forgave, released and released the Gray Wolf. Since then, the wolf and the three little pigs have become friends.
From now on, the piglets, two brothers and a sister, began to live together under one roof, in their cozy stone house.
Three little pigs (SV Mikhalkov), three little pigs literary fairy tale, Russian peoples of the world
Once upon a time there were three little pigs in the world. Three brothers.
All of the same height, round, pink, with the same cheerful ponytails.
Even their names were similar. The piglets were called Nif-Nif, Nuf-Nuf and Naf-Naf. All summer they tumbled in the green grass, basked in the sun, basked in puddles.
But autumn has come.
The sun was not so hot anymore, gray clouds stretched over the yellowed forest.
- It's time for us to think about winter, - Naf-Naf once said to his brothers, waking up early in the morning. - I'm shivering from the cold. We may catch a cold. Let's build a house and winter together under one warm roof.
But his brothers didn't want to take the job. It is much more pleasant to walk and jump in the meadow on the last warm days than to dig the ground and carry heavy stones.
- Good luck! Winter is still far away. We'll take a walk, - said Nif-Nif and rolled over his head.
- When necessary, I will build a house for myself, - said Nuf-Nuf and lay down in a puddle.
- Me too, - added Nif-Nif.
- Well, as you wish. Then I will build my own house, - said Naf-Naf. - I won't wait for you. Every day it got colder and colder. But Nif-Nif and Nuf-Nuf were in no hurry. They didn't even want to think about work. They were idle from morning to evening. All they did was play their pig games, jump and roll.
- Today we will take a walk, - they said, - and tomorrow morning we will get down to business.
But the next day they said the same thing.
And only when a large puddle near the road began to be covered with a thin crust of ice in the morning, the lazy brothers finally got to work.
Nif-Nif decided that it would be easier and most likely to make a house out of straw. Without consulting anyone, he did just that.
By evening, his hut was ready.
Nif-Nif put the last straw on the roof and, very pleased with his house, sang merrily:
You will go around half the world,
You will go around, you will go around,
You will not find a better home,
You will not find it, you will not find it!
Singing this song, he went to Nuf-Nuf. Nuf-Nuf, not far away, also built a house for himself. He tried to finish this boring and uninteresting business as soon as possible. At first, like his brother, he wanted to build a house out of straw. But then I decided that it would be very cold in such a house in winter. The house will be stronger and warmer if it is built from branches and thin rods. And so he did.
He drove stakes into the ground, interlaced them with rods, heaped dry leaves on the roof, and by evening the house was ready.
Nuf-Nuf proudly walked around him several times and sang:
I have a good house,
A new house, a solid house.
I'm not afraid of rain and thunder,
Rain and thunder, rain and thunder!
Before he could finish the song, Nif-Nif ran out from behind a bush.
- Well, your house is ready! - said Nif-Nif brother. “I told you we could do this alone!” Now we are free and can do whatever we want!
- Let's go to Naf-Naf and see what kind of house he built for himself! - said Nuf-Nuf. - We haven't seen him for a long time!
- Let's go and see! - agreed Nif-Nif.
And the two brothers, contented that they had nothing else to worry about, hid behind the bushes.
Naf-Naf has been busy building for several days now. He dragged stones, kneaded clay, and now slowly built himself a reliable, durable house in which one could hide from wind, rain and frost.
He made a heavy oak door with a bolt in the house so that the wolf from the neighboring forest could not climb into it.
Nif-Nif and Nuf-Nuf found their brother at work.
- What are you building?! - the surprised Nif-Nif and Nuf-Nuf shouted in one voice. - What is it, a house for a piglet or a fortress?
- Piglet's house should be a fortress! - calmly answered them Naf-Naf, continuing to work.
- Are you going to fight with someone? - Nif-Nif grunted merrily and winked at Nuf-Nuf.
And both brothers were so merry that their squeals and grunts carried far across the lawn.
And Naf-Naf, as if nothing had happened, continued to lay the stone wall of his house, humming a song under his breath:
Of course, I'm smarter than everyone,
Smarter than everyone, smarter than everyone!
I build a house from stones,
From stones, from stones!
No animal in the world,
A cunning beast, a terrible beast,
Will not burst into this door,
Into this door, into this door!
- What animal is he talking about? - asked Nif-Nif from Nuf-Nuf.
- What animal are you talking about? - Nuf-Nuf asked Naf-Naf.
