Rube Goldberg!

[jawwzard]

allright so i'm constructing a rube goldberg device as a side physics independent project and it has to go through ten steps to achieve the final outcome of lighting a bulb. i need some ideas for steps i'm drawin a blank.

it has to go through 5 different energy changes like potential, kinetic, rotational, electrical, light, magnetic, or stored chemical

some help guys?

[jawwzard]

i got a pool ball rolling down a hill and knocking over a stack of dominos so i got rotational kinetic and linear kinetic taken care of but i need 8 more steps b4 i get to the light bulb

[FredGarvin]

Electromagnets are always good for this too.

[dav2008]

You can do something where you put a balloon over a flask with water in it, then have something turn on a heater to boil the water which will inflate the balloon, which will knock something over

[Mk]

Or you could lay a piece of bread on a scale, and wait for mold to grow on and increase the mass measured which would move the scale, that would drop a piece of tobacco, then a Dave the squirrel would scamper over to the tobacco, but then he would be shocked with 10,000 volts and his temperature would go up which would...

[kleinjahr]

Gotta have a bowling ball!!

[Mk]

Ooooh yes, most important. And a shotguns.

[pervect]

allright so i'm constructing a rube goldberg device as a side physics independent project and it has to go through ten steps to achieve the final outcome of lighting a bulb. i need some ideas for steps i'm drawin a blank.

it has to go through 5 different energy changes like potential, kinetic, rotational, electrical, light, magnetic, or stored chemical

some help guys?

Well, it would be defintely cool if somewhere along the line you lit a fire. Not sure how you're going to do it - light a match? Flint & steel? An electrical igniter? Or what you'll burn. Especially if you want to keep it reasonably safe.

Safest thing I can think of off hand is to light some sterno with an electric igniter that they use for model rockets.


Once you get the fire started, though, you can heat a kettle of water until it bolis. THis will drive something that spins around - with enough force to turn a crank. That can lift a gate to let a ball roll out or something.

Maybe that's too complicated, but it'd be a nice classic idea.