Robots battling one another while running an obstacle course, whimsical Rube Goldberg contraptions, and laboratory tours of the Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology are among the attractions awaiting visitors to the 79th annual Engineering Open House at the University of Illinois. The event, organized by U. of I. engineering students, will be from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. March 5 and from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. March 6. The U. of I. Engineering Open House is one of the largest technological showcases of its kind in the nation, attracting more than 30,000 visitors each year. Visitor guides containing a campus map and descriptions of the activities and exhibits will be available at an information booth in the Kenney Gymnasium Annex,1402 W. Springfield Ave., Urbana.
All events are free and open to the public.
Through exhibits, demonstrations and design competitions, visitors will be treated to an interactive and fun-filled educational experience in the wonders of engineering. The winning teams will be determined by distance traveled and time taken through the obstacle course, but prizes also will be given for the most ingenious design, the most impressive arsenal and the most spectacular failure. In the high school design competition, students will pay homage to Rube Goldberg, a cartoonist best known for his designs of ridiculously complicated gadgets that performed the simplest tasks in whimsical roundabout ways. Students must accomplish the task in a minimum of 20 steps by combining their engineering skill, creativity and odd pieces of worn-out junk into contraptions that function in fun and wacky ways. Younger visitors, too, will have an opportunity to learn about science and to test their creativity.