Latvia uses Rube Goldberg machine on Christmas tree

  • 03/12/2016
The world's largest Rube Goldberg machine (APTN)
The world's largest Rube Goldberg machine (APTN)

The Latvian city of Riga has attempted to break the Guinness World record for the world's largest Rube Goldberg machine.

A Rube Goldberg machine is an apparatus that is deliberately made to do a task in the most complicated way, often involving a long, convoluted series of actions.

This machine used 400 various parts and links to set in motion - a chain reaction that culminated in switching on the lights on the Christmas tree.

"On December 2 [we] planned to beat the record [currently held by Hungary, with 383 steps] with a 400-step long machine, which will culminate in the Town Hall Square spruce lighting up," Riga city council promised.

The machine used an eclectic range of devices, including balls, wheels, levers, a fan and a coffee maker.

Hundreds of people turned up to watch. It took 10 minutes for the machine to finish its work, and the crowds cheered when the lights were successfully lit.

Newshub.