Rube Goldberg machine

A Rube Goldberg machine is a nonsense machine that performs a specific task with intent to numerous unnecessary detours and complicated individual steps in a complicated way. The elaborate design of a simple task thus has no practical use, but is intended to give pleasure in observing.

Name

The term Rube Goldberg machine goes back to the American cartoonist Reuben " Rube " L. Goldberg, who drew comics about a Professor Lucifer Gorgonzola Butts, who constructed unnecessarily complicated machines. The name Rube Goldberg machine appeared in 1931 for the first time on writing.

Demarcation

Retrieved from " nonsense machines " or kinetic art such as the World machine of Franz Gsellmann the Rube Goldberg machine differs in that it consistently a specific task when, also done in an extremely complicated way.

Unlike the domino effect the reaction steps are not identical, but as different as possible. So this is not a chain reaction, but a reaction chain.

Similar devices

• In German this type of machine is known as what- happens -then machine.
• The term Heath Robinson contraption, named after the fantastic comic machinery of the British cartoonist William Heath Robinson, has a similar meaning, but is dated prior to the Rube Goldberg machine, originating in the United Kingdom in 1912.
• In France, a similar machine usine à gaz, or called gas - work ', suggesting a very complex work with all lines running. Common nowadays especially among programmers to refer to a complex program, even in journalism for a confusing legal situation.
• In Denmark, they are called Storm P Maskiner, Storm P machines ', according to the Danish cartoonist Robert Storm Petersen.
• In Spain devices are similar to the Goldberg machines known as Inventos del TBO ( tebeo ), named after those who invented artist Ramón Sabatés for a section in the magazine TBO and has drawn, supposedly developed by a professor Franz from Copenhagen.
• In Turkey, these devices are known as Zihni Sinir Proceleri, allegedly invented by a certain Prof. Zihni Sinir (, grumpy head '), a curious scientist drawn by Irfan Sayar in 1977 for the comic magazine Gırgır.
• In Japan they are, Pythagorean devices "or Pythagoras Switch ' called. PythagoraSwitch (Japaneseピタゴラ スイッチ, Pitagora Suicchi ) is the name of a TV show with such devices.
• In Bengal, the humorist and children's book author Sukumar Ray uses in his poem Abol tabol ( nonsense ') a character ( Uncle ) with a Rube Goldberg machine called Uncle 's contraption. This word is colloquially in Bengali, for a complex and useless object.

More artistic reception of the topic

• The Swiss artist duo Peter Fischli and David Weiss worked about it. Became famous especially their film The Way Things Go from the year 1987.
• Several artworks by Tim Hawkinson contain complex devices that are typically used to make abstract art or music. Many of them are based on the randomness of other devices (like a slot machine ) and depend on them to produce some minor effects.
• The completed in 2003 TV commercial for the Honda Accord Cog contains about two minutes long sequence mutually activating auto parts, which was authentic rotated and composed of two sections.
• 2008, the artist Christoph Korn developed a series of digital -based "NON machines". These machines are simple, sometimes redundant applications that draw attention to aspects of deceleration, dewetting, knowledge deprivation, agrammaticality, non- functionality.

More comic work

• The Norwegian artist and storyteller Kjell Aukrust created a cartoon character named Reodor rims that constantly invents complex machines. Although they are often constructed of very strange parts, they always work very well. Rims also shines as the inventor of a very powerful, but too complex cars, Il Tempo Gigante, in the animated by Ivo Caprino animated puppet film Flåklypa Grand Prix (1975).
• In Tom and Jerry the issue will be taken up, such as in the episode Jerry Designs on of 1953.

Another phenomenon is related to the Japanese art of hypothetically useful but unusable vehicle called Chindogu.

Was processed the issue in several computer games, in particular, The Incredible Machine (Sierra 1993) and Crazy Machines ( FACT / Pepper Games 2004).