Rube Goldberg Machine Contest - History

History

The Rube Goldberg Machine Contest originated at Purdue University in 1949 as a competition between Theta Tau and Triangle fraternities, and it was held annually until 1956. Phi Chapter revived the contest in 1983 as a competition open to all Purdue students. Since 1989, the Theta Tau Rube Machine Contest has been a national competition held at Purdue University in March each year with participation by winning entries from local competitions sponsored by Theta Tau Chapters across the nation. The national contest has gained much coverage by the press and television media. Past winners of the contest have made appearances on the Late Show with David Letterman and Jimmy Kimmel Live!. The Machine Contest is the subject of the feature documentary Mousetrap to Mars.

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