Colleges stage machine contest for high school students
| Published: 04/21/2003 |
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MSOE is co-hosting nearly 40 teams of Wisconsin high school students who will compete in the popular Rube Goldberg Machine Competition Friday, April 25 at Wisconsin State Fair Park.
The Milwaukee Colleges of Engineering Partnership -- a coalition of MSOE, UW-Milwaukee’s College of Engineering and Applied Science and Marquette University’s College of Engineering -- will host the event at the Wisconsin Exhibition Center, 8100 W. Greenfield Ave., beginning 8 a.m.
In 2004, the partnership will bring the first national competition just for high school students to Milwaukee, attracting teams from around the United States.
The Rube Goldberg Machine Competition is the largest machine-building contest for high school students in the nation. Named after the Pulitzer Prize-winning artist whose silly “inventions” satirized new technologies, the contest gives teenagers a chance to transform ordinary materials into a wacky machine that accomplishes a simple task in no fewer than 20 steps.
Goldberg’s cartoons of crazy machines reached their heyday in the mid-1940s. But the tradition he inspired has enjoyed a huge following more than 50 years later, says Frank Wolfe, president of the organization that owns Goldberg’s intellectual property and trademark.
This year's challenge: Build a machine that will select and crush an empty 12-ounce, aluminum soft drink can and move it into a recycling bin. The goal may seem mundane, but the result is anything but.
In past years’ contests, held at UWM's Klotsche Center, teams have used a plethora of junk, from mousetraps and showerheads to bowling balls and even Barbie dolls to get the job done. Teams get extra points for machines that don't use electricity and a separate award is given to the team that uses the most duct tape.
Judges, drawn from area businesses, industries, associations and other organizations, will narrow the field to five finalists. The first place winner will take home $500 and bragging rights.
Corporate sponsors include Johnson Controls, Rockwell Automation, Briggs & Stratton Corp., Capitol Stampings Corp., We Energies, Kohler Co., A.O. Smith Corp., and Earth Tech Co.
Founded in 1903, MSOE is celebrating its first 100 years.
MSOE is an independent university with about 2,600 students. MSOE offers 16 bachelor’s degrees in areas such as engineering, nursing, business, management information systems, technical communication, engineering technology and construction management. Graduate study includes engineering, engineering management, environmental engineering, structural engineering, medical informatics and perfusion.