Attention, tinkerers, mad scientists and those with lots of time and patience. The 2014 Rube Goldberg Machine Contest by rubegoldberg.com is open for registration. In case you’re not familiar with the term, the official definition is:
Rube Gold·berg
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1.ingeniously or unnecessarily complicated in design or construction.“a Rube Goldberg machine”
The Rube Goldberg Machine Contest (RGMC) is an annual national competition that challenges teams of students from middle school to college age to compete in building the most elaborate and hilarious Rube Goldberg Machine.
The 2014 challenge is to “ZIP A ZIPPER!” which may even top the 2013 challenge to “Hammer A Nail”. The idea is to create a Rube Goldberg machine that ultimately zips a zipper. Machines must complete the task through an intentionally over complex, series of chain reactions. The annual contest is open to teams of from all over the country.
Here’s a great example of a Rube Goldberg machine in action:
