Rube Goldberg What Now?!

Have you ever set up the Mousetrap game and actually PLAYED the game? Of course not, no one does THAT!! Everyone took the time to set up the game just to play with the contraption you construct. (At least that's what MY research shows!) That contraption is called a Rube Goldberg machine.
What IS a Rube Goldberg machine?
A Rube Goldberg machine is a contraption, invention, device or apparatus that is deliberately over-engineered or overdone to perform a very simple task in a very complicated fashion, usually including a chain reaction. The expression is named after American cartoonist and inventor Rube Goldberg. (1883–1970)

I love Rube Goldberg machines for couple of reasons.

• Those clever OK Go boys featured one in their video for This Too Shall Pass (which is also an AWESOME song!)

• The kids at my house LOVE RG Machines and fun mom-fact: they are a good project for kids on a rainy day.  (Just make sure that clean-up is part of the arrangement!)

So when I heard about a city in Latvia that set a world's record with their Rube Goldberg machine they used to light the city's Christmas tree, I was all over it.
Enjoy!

Their machine uses 412 interactions which beats the previous record of 382.