The event, organized by UI engineering students, will be from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. March 3 and from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. March 4. The UI Engineering Open House is one of the largest technological showcases of its kind in the nation, attracting more than 30,000 visitors each year. 1402 W. Springfield Ave., Urbana.
All events are free and open to the public.
We do this through informative and entertaining demonstrations, exhibits and design competitions spread across the engineering campus. In the high school design competition, students will pay homage to Rube Goldberg, a satirical cartoonist best known for his designs of ridiculously complicated gadgets that performed the simplest tasks in whimsical roundabout ways. We encouraged the students to dig through their attics and junk drawers to find the weirdest things imaginable to use on their machines, but no flammable objects or live animals will be allowed. Each machine must use at least 20 steps to accomplish the task, Chmiel said. Approximately 15 teams from central and southern Illinois high schools will compete in the contest, which will be held on March 3 in the Kenney Gymnasium Annex.