I need materials to build a house with insulators of heat!?

Question

Details here:
I need ideas for building a house with a 40cm by 40cm base. I also need materials that insulate heat and they must be light. A beaker of boiling water will be put in my house. The house will be left in my school's science laboratory for half an hour. After half an hour, the beaker will be taken out and the temperature drop must be at its minimal, as little as possible.
Please read the points above before you answer this question, I appreciate any reasonable answer. Thanks!

Answer 1

Your "house" can have a 15 3/4 inch square base and can be taller than that since there was no height limit stated. Whatever thickness you have for the walls can have additional thickness in the top and bottom .Use polyurethane building insulation board and line it inside with aluminum foil, shiny side toward the beaker. Using double or more layers of the board to make the sides, top and bottom as thick as you can to minimize the internal volume around the beaker and maximize the insulation.The joints can be glued with construction cement.
On the floor put two small round wodden dowels to just support the beaker up off of the foil to prevent contact.

Now, if there is no rule about the beginning temperature of the "house", and this is a contest, wrap the outside with foil too and get it all as hot as you reasonably and safely can before you put the beaker inside. But beware and warn others of all hot surfaces.

Answer 2

Yeah, styrofoam. Big lumps of expanded polystyrene, the thicker the better. You won't easily improve on that.

Answer 3

wrap the styrene in foil.

Answer 4

http://www.insulatedbuildingpanels.com/e3technology.html

Answer 5

styrofoam! :D

have fun!