Rube Goldberg Machines Steve Case University of Mississippi NSF NMGK-8 January 2006

NSF North Mississippi GK8 Rube Goldberg Reuben Lucius Goldberg 1883-1970 Born in San Francisco Graduated with engineering degree from University of California Berkeley Worked as an engineer for City of San Francisco Water and Sewer Department NSF North Mississippi GK8

NSF North Mississippi GK8 Rube Goldberg Convinced his father he wanted to work as an artist Got a job as an office boy in sports department of a San Francisco newspaper Kept submitting cartoons until he was published Moved to New York to draw daily cartoons for Evening Mail NSF North Mississippi GK8

NSF North Mississippi GK8 Rube Goldberg Founding member of National Cartoonist Society Pulitzer Prize winner National figure, often-quoted television and radio personality 60-year career NSF North Mississippi GK8

Rube Goldberg’s “INVENTIONS” Cartoons that symbolized “man’s capacity for exerting maximum effort to accomplish minimal results” Cartoons depicted convoluted machines functioning in complex ways to perform simple tasks “Rube Goldberg” has become synonymous with any complex system achieving a basic task NSF North Mississippi GK8

Invention for Opening the Garage Door without Getting out of the Car NSF North Mississippi GK8

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NSF North Mississippi GK8 So what . . . ? Rube Goldberg machines are examples of complex machines. All complex machines are made up of combinations of simple machines. Rube Goldberg machines are usually a complicated combination of simple machines. By studying the components of Rube Goldberg machines, we learn more about simple machines. NSF North Mississippi GK8

NSF North Mississippi GK8 Simple Machines Have few or no moving parts Make work easier Can be combined to create complex machines NSF North Mississippi GK8

NSF North Mississippi GK8 Lever A rigid board or rod free to rotate around a fixed point called a fulcrum By varying position of load and fulcrum, load can be lifted or moved with less force Trade off: must move lever large distance to move load small distance NSF North Mississippi GK8

NSF North Mississippi GK8 Inclined Plane A slope or ramp that goes from a lower to higher level Makes work easier by requiring less force to lift something a certain distance Trade off: the distance the load must be moved would be greater than simply lifting it straight up NSF North Mississippi GK8

NSF North Mississippi GK8 Wheel and Axle A larger circular wheel affixed to a smaller rigid rod at its center Used to translate force across horizontal distances (wheels on a wagon) or to make rotations easier (a doorknob) Trade off: the wheel must be rotated through a greater distance than the axle NSF North Mississippi GK8

NSF North Mississippi GK8 Screw An inclined plane wrapped around a rod or cylinder Used to lift materials or bind things together Trade off: the screw must be rotated many times to move something a small distance NSF North Mississippi GK8

NSF North Mississippi GK8 Wedge An inclined plane on its side Used to cut or force material apart Trade off: the wedge must be moved a large distance to separate the material a small distance NSF North Mississippi GK8

NSF North Mississippi GK8 Pulley A rope or chain free to turn around a suspended wheel By pulling down on the rope, a load can be lifted with less force Trade off: no real trade off here; the secret is that the pulley lets you work with gravity so you add the force of your own weight to the rope NSF North Mississippi GK8

NSF North Mississippi GK8 The trick is WORK Simple machines change the amount of force needed, but they do not change the amount of work done. What is work? Work equals force times distance W = F x d By increasing the distance, you can decrease the force and still do the same amount of work. NSF North Mississippi GK8

NSF North Mississippi GK8 Examples: Lever: Work is equal on both sides of a lever. You move the long end a LARGE distance with SMALL force. The other end moves a SMALL distance with a LARGE force, which is why it can lift heavy objects. Inclined Plane: It takes a certain amount of work to get the cabinet into the truck. You can either exert a LARGE force to lift it the SMALL distance into the truck, or you can exert a SMALL force to move it a LARGE distance along the ramp. NSF North Mississippi GK8

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Invention for Opening the Garage Door without Getting out of the Car NSF North Mississippi GK8

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NSF North Mississippi GK8 Sources Edheads. 2005. “Simple Machines.” Accessed January 28, 2006. <http://edheads.org/activities/simple-machines/sm-glossary.htm#s2> Fyon, Eric. November 8, 1999. “Professor Beaker’s Learning Labs: What is an Inclined Plane?” Accessed January 28, 2006. <http://www.professorbeaker.com/plane_fact.html> Mikkelson, Barbara and David P. 2006. “Cog.” Accessed January 28, 2006. <http://www.snopes.com/autos/business/hondacog.asp> Rube Goldberg, Inc. 2006. “Rube Goldberg Machine Contest 2006.” Accessed January 28, 2006. <http://www.rube-goldberg.com/html/contest.htm> Smith, Patrick. 2006. “Vector Park.” Accessed January 28, 2006. <http://www.vectorpark.com/Levers.html> Telegraph Group Limited. 2006. “Lights! Camera! Retake!” Accessed January 28, 2006. <http://www.opinion.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2003/04/13/nhonda13.xml&sSheet=/news/2003/04/13/ixhome.html> NSF North Mississippi GK8