Gitana - Headlines - How do we really know?

Headlines: How do we really know?
How do we know...
- we're really moving when we can't see it?
- how much power we're using or need to make?
- how long we'll need to run the water maker for?

We've been working on some ideas for our blog over the next few weeks, as
it would be easy to slip into the normal day to day stuff but today, we
each had a moment where the reality of boat life compared to normal life
has buried itself a little deeper into our daily habits. At my school, we
have 'habits of excellence' - we're working on those here!

I sat next to my bunk in the saloon (like a living room, just smaller with
no TV!), it was morning, the sun was up, my head knows we're moving and my
body starts to go with it, but why? How do i know when i can't actually
see it? There are a few clues. The table and seats don't move, the chart
table doesn't move, the books on the shelf don't move, i can only see sky
through the windows above me - but the fruit hammock is swinging, the
cooker is swinging on its gimbles (things that mean the hobs on the cooker
stay flat when you're cooking), then i notice the curtain moving too. I
can feel the movement, but i can't see it - i can only see what happens
because of the movement...no wonder people get sea sick!

Dave sets up for lunch on the table on deck, the boat's rolling heavily
from side to side - soon enough the cups of juice go flying into mike who
is now wearing orange squash, the kitchen knife gets quickly moved to a
space where it can't damage anyone and we all wedge a foot or an arm into
something to keep ourselves from falling over when we're eating! That
doesn't happen at home!

Then there's the power. How do we know how much we use? How much we need
to make to replace what we've used? We know how much power the lights
use, we know how much charging cameras use, our auto-pilot (nicknamed
'Poppy' by my goddaughter so i'm not the only girl) draws 5.5amps when
it's in use - how do we get that back? (TPA are on their 'switch off
fortnight' week 2 this week - I wonder how many teachers managed the
'tech-free' lesson - they get bonus points for that! Year 11 student
Arnya is in charge at home - looking forward to hearing how it all goes)

-- DOLPHINS! Nothing like dolphins to interrupt the train of thought, a
huge pod of dolphins just spent the last 10 minutes dancing around the bow
of Gitana, surfing, jumping, diving - so much fun they have!! I have
pictures and video for you! --

Back on track - Don't forget the water - water, water everywhere but not a
drop to drink... unless you've got a water maker! A constant conversation
because we need it throughout the trip - so I'll leave this with you!

A little maths question for you:
There are 5 people, who must drink 2 litres of water a day each, use
20litres of water a day for washing up, the kettle (which is 1 litre) gets
filled 6 times a day. We've got 280litre water tanks - how many days
until we run out?

Challenge question:
If we take 21 days to get to St.Lucia and we have a water maker that can
make 40litres per hour, how many hours will need to run our water maker
for to arrive in St.Lucia with full tanks?

So, how do we really know? Well - we need to work it out first, gather
some evidence to support our ideas and then manage the problem solving
process to ensure we have enough water, power and food to make our
crossing successful!

As it stands, we're 3rd in class, still heading SW to avoid the high
pressure ridge that is sitting just to the North of us, once we're round
it we can head west to St.Lucia! 3 days down... making good progress!

TPA - remember questions to Miss Masters :)



SY Gitana