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Team “Big Ruby” Wins Annual Rube Goldberg Physics Contest at Minooka Community High School
(Minooka) – Anthony Babich’s physics students at Minooka Community High School put their inventions and creativity to the test on Friday as part of the annual Rube Goldberg contest.
In teams ranging from three to five members, students were challenged create a machine from household items that would be able to assemble a hamburger consisting of no less than one pre-cooked meat patty, two vegetables, and two condiments, sandwiched between two bun halves in a minimum of twenty automated steps. The local contest is part of a nation-wide contest among high school students.
When being judged, the teams’ machines must complete the assigned task without human intervention. Each human intervention resulted in a deduction of points, obviously impacting the team’s overall score.
In the end, the Big Ruby team, comprised of juniors Kate Scholtes, Sara Jepsen, Amy Strohman, and Paula Bernhard won first place with an average score of 100 points (out of a maximum possible total of 100 points). Close behind in second place with an average score of 99 points was the Batman team, which included seniors Bryan Wellner, Mike Redican, Ron Cerovic and junior Michael Schmitz. These top two teams now advance to the next round of the Rube Goldberg contest, which will take place at the University of Illinois.
Rube Goldberg was a Pulitzer Prize winning cartoonist, sculptor, and author who was known for his drawings that depicted difficult ways to achieve easy results with common tasks. For more information on Rube Goldberg and the Rube Goldberg competition, visit www.rubegoldberg.com.
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