First of all, yes, OK, pretty much anything can kill you under the right circumstances. But what about marbles, and what about the specific circumstance of pretty little glass marbles, shot by a stainless steel slingshot into ballistic gelatin, by an amusingly T-shirted Eastern European madman? In super-slow motion? More »
He’s a generous Dad too – he has put the instructions on Instructables for building your very own. I don’t think you even need children as an excuse to create this, that’s how awesome it is. [Instructables via DailyWhat]
newVideoPlayer( {"type":"video","player":"http://www.youtube.com/v/F7dsQ9sb_9A&hl=en&fs=1&fmt=22","customParams":[] ,"width":570,"height":400,"ratio":0.824,"flashData":"","embedName":null,"objectId":null,"noEmbed":false,"source":"youtube","wrap":true,"agegate":false} );
What is it about watching marbles roll down elaborate tracks that’s so entertaining? Are we so simple? Apparently yes! Just look at this huge contraption made out of over 4000 popsicle sticks! More »
newVideoPlayer( {"type":"video","player":"http://www.youtube.com/v/MNipg3AVCG4&hl=en&fs=1&fmt=22","customParams":[] ,"width":570,"height":412,"ratio":0.824,"flashData":"","embedName":null,"objectId":null,"noEmbed":false,"source":"youtube"} );
Equipped with a marble, some wood, and the principles of potential energy, kinetic energy and gravity, one man built a remarkable machine that warps your very sense of what’s physically possible. Prepare yourself, then hit the clip at 2:30. More »
There’s not a ton of info out there on these amazing, handmade marble mazes other than what’s to be found in these Japanese YouTube videos, but we think they’re cool enough to share with you anyways. Apparently, there’s a subculture in Japan that makes really elaborate marble mazes that look like models from a train set or something. Check out the first one above, then hit the jump for two more.
Oh man, do I like this table. Sure, it provides a flat surface for eating or working on like most tables, but it also has marble tracks carved into it. That means that when you get bored of your meal/job, you can put marbles in the top and watch them follow an elaborate path around the legs and down to the ground. Call me a simpleton, but this thing would keep me entertained for an embarrassing amount of time. [Product Page via NotCot]
newVideoPlayer("qbamaze.flv", 475, 376);
Combining the concepts of LEGO with the concepts of Rube Goldberg, the Q-BA-MAZE gives you a set of 20 to 50 pieces that you put together to make a descending maze for marbles. It sounds boring from our description, so if you watch the video you’ll notice that it’s…only slightly less boring. This may be cool to use to teach your kids about gravity, mazes, and the fact that you shouldn’t put marbles up your nose, but we’d be much more impressed if there were more pieces that did different things. [Q-BA-MAZE] More »