Levin Mitchell September 17th. 2008 Wild Chicago Survival 1. We, as humans, are prepared for survival before being put into a surviving
situations. The human body stores excess fat to be used in a surviving situation. If there isn't any food, the body will use the extra fat and burn it for food and energy. The body will know when it is in a surviving mode by slowing down the metabolism. This would store more energy if surviving will take a long period of time. Also, the other two factors are being knowledgeable and human character. Knowing what plants are edible is key to surviving without food. If the person has a strong will to live would survive better then a person who is about to give up. Three reasons that people live in urban environments are less prepared for emergencies are heed emergency warnings, awareness of hazards, and dealing with stress, self-reliance. People relying too much on government help like the police or the fire department. Relying on others for your own survival is why people living in urban environments will have trouble. Awareness of hazards is also an issue for people who live in the urban environment. People who think a shelter or a building is a good place to hide during a hurricane or tornado can actually be a hazard. Knowing where to hide or which building is safe is critical for surviving. Dealing with stress is a big issue for emergency situations. People who live in urban environments deal with stress almost every single day. Having stress during an emergency can hinder the person's ability to find a safe place. Stress is a problem that can be easily avoidable.
2.
There are four important things to consider when building a good shelter. It is
shingling, insulation, fire, and air-proofing and all these are critical for creating a good shelter. Shingling is important because it keeps the water out. Having a dry shelter means not getting wet when sleeping. Insulation is important for a good shelter because it keeps the warmth in the shelter. Packing grass and bark in-between cracks of your shelter will help keep the heat in the shelter. Fire is really important because this the main source that provides heat. Fire is essential if your shelter is made in the winter where it could get really cold. Without fire, the person who is living in the shelter can die without heat. Airproofing is least the important, but it still plays a role in making a good shelter. Airproofing a shelter will stop the wind from blowing cold air into the shelter. This is also helpful because if cold air mixes with warm air, there would not be any reason for making a fire. For comfort, I would lay down soft grass and leaves on the bottom of the ground to make ground the softer. It's also important to thinking about comfort. If the shelter is not comfortable then the people should not make it.
3.
There are many things in Chicago that can be used to create a good shelter. The
best place to build a shelter is in an alley. Buildings are really close together so it's almost air-proofing. It's hard for wind to circulate cold air into the shelter. Also, an alley provides protection on two sides. A lot of stores throw away card board boxes. Boxes can be used as comfort and as the actual shelter. The perfect insulator and shingle for a city shelter would be plastic garbage bags. Every person, store, restaurant and etc. throws away garbage everyday. Outlining the inside and outside with garbage bags insulates the inside with heat while shingling. People workout with garbage bags to lose water. The bags does not allow heat to escape the body making the body sweat a lot. The heat from
the individual will keep the shelter warm because of the plastic bags. The plastic bag on the outside will shield the cardboard box from getting wet. The most important thing is to keep the shelter as dry as possible while keeping the inside warm.
4.
There a lot of different ways of obtaining food in the wilderness. These methods
include, trapping, waterfowl, collecting eggs, bird liming, and collecting local plants. Trapping is illegal in all states and punishable by law, so its not suggested to do this unless surviving is critical. Waterfowling is the act of swimming underwater breathing through a small hose. While swimming, the person would grab a bird floating on top of the water. This is method is can't be really utilized in Chicago because its illegal to swim in the most parts of the Chicago River. Collecting eggs seems easy, but living in Chicago, its hard to find a next. Chicago is made up of buildings so birds usually build their nests in-between cracks in the buildings. Bird liming is very illegal and its punishable by law, so its not the smartest thing to do to catch food. The best option of obtaining food is to live off of wild edible plants found throughout Chicago. There are some plants that are toxic, but most of them are edible. 5. The most well-known plant in Chicago would be the dandelion. Dandelion is a
weed, but people think that we shouldn't eat weeds. Dandelions contain an antioxidant that is good for you. Every part of the dandelion is edible. The leaves can be eaten raw like in a salad or boiled in water for five minutes. Also, the roots can be cooked or roasted and ground into coffee. The dandelion can be used in many different ways. There are so many dandelions available throughout Chicago and the Chicagoland area.