New York Times Article "Rube Goldberg’s Greatest Machine Is His Legacy"
"Decades after Mr. Goldberg, a cartoonist, died, artists and engineers have found creative inspiration in his outlandish inventions.
"By Sam Corbin
"What’s the simplest way to open a can? Faced with this question, most would suggest a can opener. The artist Rube Goldberg, however, believed the task could be better accomplished using a golf club, waltzing mice and a disgruntled pet dragon whose fire-breathing would light a welding torch positioned in front of the closed can. Simple.
"This approach to everyday tasks was summarized in the introduction to 'The Art of Rube Goldberg,' a collection of Mr. Goldberg’s work that was published in 2013. 'These are things that need doing,' the introduction, written by Adam Gopnik, reads, 'but they don’t need this much doing.'"