Rube+Goldberg+Simple+Machines

The Rube Goldberg Machine that we created uses two different simple machine mechanisms. The first machine that we used is called an inclined plane. We released a marble at the top of the plane allowing it to slide down the inclined plane and then drop off onto the yellow part, the catch, of a mousetrap. We tied a string to the “hammer” part of the mousetrap and attached that same string to a toothpick. The toothpick was poked through a cylinder in order to keep the marble in the cylinder in place. When the first marble hit the catch of the mousetrap, it caused the hammer part of the mousetrap to spring forward which pulled the toothpick out of the cylinder causing the marble to fall down the cylinder onto another inclined plane. The hammer part of the mousetrap is acting as a lever, which is the second simple machine that we used. After the marble slide down the second incline plan, it moved onto the next group’s Rube Goldberg mechanism, initiating the movement of their first machine.