More about Rube Goldberg machines

If you havent checked out my first post about Ok Go's new video click here.
A Rube Goldberg machine is a deliberately over engineered machine that performs a very simple task in a very complex fashion, usually including a chain reaction. The expression is named after American cartoonist and inventor Rube Goldberg. Wiki




A Rube Goldberg machine performs a simple task in a complex way.


Many designers of Rube Goldberg machines participate in competitions, such as this one in New Mexico.

More video examples of Rube Goldberg machines

"An Honest Mistake", a 2005 music video by the alternative rock band The Bravery

Rube Goldberg machine from the 2005 movie "Waiting"

MythBusters Rube Goldberg Machine

 

Japanese Rube Goldberg Contest - Amazing Rube Goldberg type machine to fix ramen for dinner   

 

Rube Goldberg Fire Machine

Rube Goldberg stands in front of an x-ray and sees an idea inside his head showing how to keep shop windows clean.

Passing man (A) slips on banana peel (B) causing him to fall on rake (C). As handle of rake rises it throws horseshoe (D) onto rope (E) which sags, thereby tilting sprinkling can (F). Water (G) saturates mop (H). Pickle terrier (I) thinks it is raining, gets up to run into house and upsets sign (J) throwing it against non-tipping cigar ash receiver (K) which causes it to swing back and forth and swish the mop against window pane, wiping it clean. If man breaks his neck by fall move away before cop arrives.

Rube Goldberg Biography
Rube Goldberg (1883-1970) was a Pulitzer Prize winning cartoonist, sculptor, and author.

Reuben Lucius Goldberg was born in San Francisco on July 4th, 1883. After graduating University of California Berkeley with a degree in engineering, Rube went on to work as an engineer for the City of San Francisco Water and Sewers Department.

After six months Rube shifted gears and left the Sewers Department to become an office boy in the sports department of a San Francisco newspaper. While there he began to submit drawings and cartoons to the editor until he was finally published. Rube soon moved from San Francisco to New York to work for the Evening Mail drawing daily cartoons. This led to syndication and a national presence – and the rest is history.

A founding member of the National Cartoonist Society, a political cartoonist and a Pulitzer Prize winner, Rube was a beloved national figure as well as an often-quoted radio and television personality during his sixty-year professional career. Goldberg wrote a feature film featuring his machines and sculptures called Soup to Nuts which was released in 1930 and starred Ted Healy and The Three Stooges.

Best known for his “inventions”, Rube’s early years as an engineer informed his most acclaimed work. A Rube Goldberg contraption – an elaborate set of arms, wheels, gears, handles, cups, and rods, put in motion by balls, canary cages, pails, boots, bathtubs, paddles, and live animals – takes a simple task and makes it extraordinarily complicated. He had solutions for How To Get The Cotton Out Of An Aspirin Bottle, imagined a Self-Operating Napkin, and created a Simple Alarm Clock – to name just a few of his hilariously depicted drawings.

The promise and pitfalls of modern technology make Rube Goldberg’s inventions even more relevant now than when they were originally created. From think-tanks in Silicon Valley, to the New York Times, to Sunday morning’s Meet the Press, hardly a day goes by without the name “Rube Goldberg” being invoked. In fact Rube Goldberg is an adjective in Webster’s Dictionary.

Today Purdue University hosts the annual National Rube Goldberg Machine Contest which brings Rube’s comic genius to life for millions of fans. Covered widely by the national media, the winning team and their working invention always appears on late night talk shows like David Letterman, Jay Leno, or Jimmy Kimmel Live. To get a real window into the machine contest, go to www.mousetraptomars.com where you can watch a 2 minute clip from the upcoming documentary that chronicles three teams vying for the winning slot. A coffee table book of Rube’s work is being published by Abrams in 2012, along with a calendar and children’s pop-up book.

At a time when the U.S. is looking to inspire young minds, Rube Goldberg’s legacy represents the best in American innovation, humor and unconventional thinking; an inspiring model for us all.

In the media: Various films and cartoons have included highly complex machines that perform simple tasks. Among these are Flåklypa Grand Prix, Looney Tunes, Wallace and Gromit, Pee-wee's Big Adventure, The Way Things Go, Edward Scissorhands, Back to the Future, Honey, I Shrunk the Kids, The Goonies, Gremlins, the Saw film series, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, The Cat from Outer Space, Malcolm and Waiting...

Also in the Final Destination film series the characters often die in Rube Goldberg-esque ways. In the film The Great Mouse Detective, the villain Ratigan attempts to kill the film's heroes, Basil of Baker Street and David Q. Dawson, with a Rube Goldberg style device.

The popular 1963 board game Mouse Trap, as well as its sequels Crazy Clock (1964), and Fish Bait (1965) are based on Rube Goldberg machines. Some examples of Goldberg-inspired videogames are Incredibots, LittleBigPlanet, the 1990s-era series of The Incredible Machine games, and Crazy Machines.

Rube Goldberg gets caught in a revolving door and becomes dizzy enough to dope out an idea to keep you from forgetting to mail your wife's letter.

As you walk past cobbler shop, hook (A) strikes suspended boot (B), causing it to kick football (C) through goal posts (D). Football drops into basket (E) and string (F) tilts sprinkling can, (G) causing water to soak coat tails (H). As coat shrinks, cord (I) opens door (J) of cage, allowing bird (K) to walk out on perch (L) and grab worm (M) which is attached to string (N). This pulls down window shade (O) on which is written, "YOU SAP, MAIL THAT LETTER." A simple way to avoid all this trouble is to marry a wife who can't write.

More information

Rube Goldberg.com
Rube Goldberg Machine Ideas by Jacob Shwirtz
Annual National Rube Goldberg Machine Contest
Rube Goldberg Oral History Interview 1970 Smithsonian Institution Archives

Rube Goldberg mistakes a lot of broken glass for bath salts and when they pull him out of the tub he mumbles an idea for dodging bill collectors

As Tailor (A) fits customer (B) and calls out measurements, college boy (C) mistakes them for football signals and makes a flying tackle at clothing dummy (D). Dummy bumps head against paddle (E) causing it to pull hook (F) and throw bottle (G) on end of folding hat rack (H) which spreads and pushes head of cabbage (I) into net (J). Weight of cabbage pulls cord (K) causing shears (L) to cut string (M). Bag of sand (N) drops on scale (O) and pushes broom (P) against pail of whitewash (Q) which upsets all over you causing you to look like a marble statue and making it impossible for you to be recognized by bill collectors. Don't worry about posing as any particular historical statue because bill collectors don't know much about art.

Odd/Weird & dumb baby names...

A good friend of mine just had a baby and now all of her children and the men in her husbands family are named after men from the bible. Well that seems normal enough to me. What's not so normal is a facebook group I was recently invited to join named "My sister said if I get one million fans she will name her baby Magatron". I joined (of course) but I'm secretly hoping she won't make her own sister name her baby that. The suffering and mockery that kid is sure to endure brings a tear to my eye.
That facebook group has me thinking how celebrities name their babies the most unusual names. It's as if they don't think about the future. Or they think too much. They don't want anyone to forget the names and who's spawn they are. Here's a list of some of the most unusual celebrity babies names and the loving parents.

Aanisah: Macy Gray and Tracy Hinds (also: Tahmel, Cassius)
Alabama Gypsy Rose: Drea de Matteo and Shooter Jennings
Alcamy: Lance and Mary Jane Henriksen
Anais: Noel Gallagher and Meg Matthews
Apple: Chris Martin and Gwyneth Paltrow (also: Moses)
Aquinnah: Michael J. Fox and Tracy Pollan (also: Schuyler, Sam, Esme)
Astrella Celeste: Donovan and Linda Lawrence (also: Oriole Nebula)
Atherton Grace: Don Johnson and Kelley Phleger
Audio Science: Shannyn Sossamon and Dallas Clayton
Aurelius Cy: Elle Macpherson and Arpad Busson
Banjo: Rachel Griffiths and Andrew Taylor
Barron: Donald Trump and Melania Knauss
Blue Angel: The Edge and Aislinn O'Sullivan
Bluebell Madonna: Geri Halliwell and Sacha Gervasi
Bogart Che Peyote: David "Puck" Rainey and Betty Rainey (also: Rocco Kokopelli)
Brooklyn: David and Victoria Beckham (also: Romeo, Cruz)
Bronx Mowgli: Ashlee Simpson and Pete Wentz
Buster: Johnny Lee Miller and Michele Hicks 
Calico: Alice and Sheryl Cooper (also: Sonora Rose, Dashiell)
Camera: Arthur Ashe and Jeanne Moutoussamy
Cannon: Larry and Shawn King
Caspar: Claudia Schiffer and Matthew Vaughn
Chastity: Cher and Sonny Bono (also: Elijah Blue -- Cher and Greg Allman)
Coco Riley: Courteney Cox Arquette and David Arquette
Dandelion: Keith Richards and Anita Pallenberg
Denim Cole: Toni Braxton and Keri Lewis (also: Diezel Ky)
Destry: Steven Spielberg and Kate Capshaw
Diva Muffin: Frank and Gail Zappa (also: Dweezil, Ahmet and Moon Unit)
Ever Gabo: Milla Jovovich and Paul Anderson
Everly Bear: Anthony Kiedis and Heather Christie
Fifi Trixibell: Bob Geldof and Paula Yates (also: Peaches Honeyblossom, Pixie, Little Pixie)
Free: Barbara Hershey and David Carradine
Fuchsia: Sting and Frances Tomelty
Gaia: Emma Thompson and Greg Wise
Goldie Priya: Ione Skye and Ben Lee
Gulliver: Gary Oldman and Donya Fiorentino
Harlow Winter Kate: Nicole Richie and Joel Madden (also: Sparrow)
Heaven: Lil' Mo (also: God'Iss Love Stone)
Heavenly Hiraani Tiger Lily: Michael Hutchence and Paula Yates
Hermes: Kelly Rutherford and Daniel Giersch
Holden: Mira Sorvino and Chris Backus
Hopper: Sean Penn and Robin Wright
Hud: John Cougar Mellencamp and Elaine Irwin (also: Spec Wildhorse)
Ikhyd: M.I.A. and Benjamin Brewer
Indiana: Casey Affleck and Summer Phoenix (also: Atticus)
Ireland: Alec Baldwin and Kim Basinger
Jaz Elle: Steffi Graf and Andre Agassi
Jazz Domino: Joe Strummer and Gabrielle Salter
Jermajesty: Jermaine Jackson and Alejandra Genevieve Oaziaza
Jeronimo: Diego Luna and Camila Sodi
Journey: Jenna Jameson and Tito ORtiz
Kafka: Tommy Lee Jones
Kal-el: Nicholas Cage and Alice Kim
Kyd: David Duchovny and Tea Leoni
Lennon: Liam Gallagher and Patsy Kensit
London Emilio: Slash and Perla Ferrar
Lyric: Robby Benson and Karla DeVito (also: Zephyr)
Maddox: Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt (also: Zahara, Pax, Shiloh, Knox and Vivienne)
Marquise: 50 Cent and Shaniqua Tompkins
Mars Merkaba: Erykah Badu and Jay Electronica
Memphis Eve: Bono
Moses Amadeus: Mia Farrow (also: Satchel and Lark Song)
Moxie CrimeFighter: Penn and Emily Jillette (also: Zolten)
Nakoa-Wolf Manakauapo Namakaeha: Lisa Bonet and Jason Momoa
Ocean: Forest and Keisha Whitaker (also: Sonnet, True, Autumn)
Phinnaeus: Julia Roberts and Daniel Moder (also: Hazel)
Pilot Inspektor: Jason Lee and Beth Riesgraf
Pirate: Jonathan and Deven Davis (also: Zeppelin)
Poet Sienna Rose: Soleil Moon Frye and Jason Goldberg
Poppy Honey: Jamie Oliver and Jools Oliver (also: Daisy Boo, Petal Blossom Rainbow)
Prince Michael II/Blanket: Michael Jackson (also: Prince Michael I, Paris Michael)
Puma: Erykah Badu and Tracy Curry (The D.O.C.)
Reignbeau: Ving Rhames and Deborah Reed (also: Freedom)
Rocco: Madonna and Guy Richie
Rocket: Robert Rodriguez and Elizabeth Avellan (also: Racer, Rebel, Rogue, Rhiannon)
Rowan: Brooke Shields and Chris Henchy (also: Grier)
Rufus Tiger: Roger Taylor (also: Tiger Lily, Lola Daisy)
Ryder: Kate Hudson and Chris Robinson
Saffron Sahara: Simon and Yasmin Le Bon (also: Amber Rose, Tallulah Pine)
Sailor Lee: Christie Brinkley, Peter Cook
Sage Moonblood: Sylvester Stallone and Sasha Czack (also: Seargeoh)
Satyana: Alyson Hannigan and Alexis Denisof
Satchel: Spike Lee and Tonya Lewis Lee
Seven Sirius: Andre Benjamin and Erykah Badu
Snow: Robin Gibb and Claire Yang
Sosie: Kevin Bacon and Kyra Sedgwick
Steveanna: Randy and Eliza Jackson
Story Elias: Jenna and Bodhi Elfman
Sunday Rose: Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban
Suri: Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes
Tabooger: Dan Cortese and Dee Dee Hemby
Tallulah: Bruce Willis and Demi Moore (also: Scout, Rumer)
Thyme: Isaiah and Jenisa Marie Washington
Tripp: Bristol Palin and Levi Johnston
Tu: Rob Morrow and Debbon Ayer
Yamma: James Brown and Deidre Jenkins
Zen: Corey and Susie Feldman
Zola Ivy: Eddie Murphy and Nicole Mitchell
Zowie: David Bowie and Angela Bowie
Zuma: Gwen Stefani and Gavin Rossdale (also: Kingston)

What about the celebrity parents themselves? 
Many have chosen to change their given names for a more marketable moniker:
Busta Rhymes: Trevor Tahiem Smith
Eminem: Marshall Bruce Mathers III
Kirk Douglas: Issur Danielovitch Demsky
Queen Latifah: Dana Elaine Owens
Whoopie Goldberg: Caryn Johnson
Demi Moore: Demetria Guynes

While a lot of names come from food or places the following are just weird or odd...
But they do exist

Animals
Bear
Bluebird
Coyote
Dingo
Jaguar
Raven
Stork
Tiger

Flowers
Calla Lily
Caspia
Freesia
Gladiolus
Lillium
Nigella
Oleander
Orchid
Peony
Poppy
Sunflower
Tulip
Wolfsbane
Zinna

Food
Alfredo
Bean
Brownie
Butter/Butters
Candy/Kandy
Caramel
Chardonnay
Cherry
Chocolate
Jeily/ Jelly
Marmalade
Paprika
Parsley
Pepper
Plum
Rye
Sage
Tangerine
Taffy

Beverages
Absinthe
Amstel
Bijou
Cider
Collins
Corona
Gin
Julep
Martini
Punch
Vino
Samuel Adams
Scotch
Toddy
Miller

Cities
Most found here. Period.
List of cities, towns, and villages in the United States - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
And states, countries, continents, solar systems etc.

Never EVER name your baby after an std or medicine either!

More weird names I've heard about.
Chlorine
Ducky
Eragon
Female
Flowbee
Frodo
Marti'an
Mister
Nada
Nautica
Nike
Patience
Troubles
Tyrannus Rex
Winnie
Yoda

WTF?
Lleieusszuieusszesszes Willihiminizisteizzi Hurrizzissteizzi
Brfxxccxxmnpcccclllmmnprxvclmnckssqlbb11116


Adolf Hitler Campbell:  The name of 3-year-old Adolf Hitler Campbell hit the media late last year when his parents tried to order a cake with his name on it (the store refused).  His sisters also have awful names:  Joyce Lynn Aryan Nation and Honszlynn Hinler Jeannie Campbell.  We don't know what's going to happen to poor Adolf when he gets older, but we can only hope he changes his name as soon as possible.

I'm not saying unique is the way to go. I grew up hating my name because it is so common. I'm thankful my mom didn't name me Apple or Snake, or after food or a town.
Unique is good. Just don't overdo it ;)

Popular baby names by Social Security Online

A Rube Goldberg machine is a deliberately over engineered machine that performs a very simple task in a very complex fashion, usually including a chain reaction. The expression is named after American cartoonist and inventor Rube Goldberg. Wiki

OK Go - This Too Shall Pass - Rube Goldberg Machine version

For the video, OK Go enlisted the help of Synn Labs to build the
monstrous contraption. As Adam Sadowsky, president of Synn Labs,
explained to Wired.com, "a Rube Goldberg machine is in its essence a
trial-and-error thing."

For it to work, every action and reaction needs to be precise for the
full range of events to occur. That, Sadowsky says, is the most trying
and time consuming part. "It took about a month and a half of very
intense work, with people on-site all the time," Sadowsky said. About
60 people worked on building the machine.

Here's the original video, youtube embedding is disabled :( A neat Vid none the less.

OK Go - This Too Shall Pass - Original

Ok Go also made of my favorite videos of all time...

OK Go - Here It Goes Again

Yes, I'm easily amused
---

Oh yeah, I really like this song too, except the electric thing they do in it. Once you hear it, you'll know what I'm referring to. I don't know but it annoys me:p

OK Go - Shooting The Moon @ Monolith Festival - Red Rocks Amphitheatre 9/12/09

I'm going on a road trip for the weekend but when I get back I will make a post further explaining A Rube Goldberg machine and give some more examples of it.

Interesting info in the news

The craziest news I've heard in awhile

Quake Shifted Earth's Axis, Shortened Day

Not too crazy, but think about it, the Chile earthquake has shifted the Earth's axis, creating shorter days, NASA says. The day change is permanent. 1.26 microseconds shorter!


Apart from claiming the lives of hundreds of people and wreaking enormous property damage, Chile's massive earthquake has likely altered the distribution of the Earth's overall mass, scientists from NASA say.

As a result, the length of a day is now a little shorter than it was before Saturday's magnitude 8.8 earthquake.


The speed that the Earth rotates also increased slightly in 2004 following the earthquake that struck off the coast of Sumatra, Indonesia. That 9.1 earthquake shortened the length of an Earth day by 6.8 microseconds, scientists say. The reason is that sudden changes in the dimensions of the Earth's tectonic plates, like those experienced in the earthquakes in Chile and Indonesia, can alter the velocity.


 If you are interested in reading more about this, please visit one of these sites:

Chilean Quake Likely Shifted Earth’s Axis, NASA Scientist Says
BusinessWeek

Chile Quake Shifted Earth’s Axis, Shortened the Length of a Day
Discover Magazine

Chile Earthquake May Have Shortened Days on Earth
Yahoo! News

NASA - NASA News and Features
NASA.gov

Not big news, but somewhat disappointing to me...

10 Most Downloaded iTunes Songs of All Time

iTunes' hit the 10 Billion download marker on my birthday ;)
But I'm not very fond of many of the songs when Apple revealed the 10 Most Downloaded iTunes Songs of All Time. What do you think?

10) Kesha: 'TiK ToK' (2009)

Featured off her debut album 'Animal,' this iTunes single -- with auto-synth back beats -- muses about the singer's crazy night out partying. The chorus is a definite party rocker: "Don't stop, make it pop / DJ, blow my speakers up / Tonight, I'mma fight / 'Til we see the sunlight..."

9) Leona Lewis: 'Bleeding Love' (2007)

The 2006 'X-Factor' winner released this R&B/pop track as her lead single off her debut 'Spirit.' Although it is considered a love song, the song's structure is more R&B danced-based (with wood block percussion and synthesized strings) than a slow-tempo ballad. This song not only made iTunes top 10 most downloaded list, but was the best-selling single in the U.K., as well as the top selling track of 2008, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

8) Taylor Swift: 'Love Story' (2008)

She may not have perfect pitch, but she sure can write, sharing the perfect love story that every girl would want, lyrically tying in the story between Romeo & Juliet (sans the tragic ending, obviously): "Romeo, take me somewhere we can be alone / I'll be waiting, all that's left to do is run / You be the prince, and I'll be the princess / It's a love story, baby, just say, 'yes'." This tune was one of the first songs to successfully crossover from country to pop, and become not only the most-downloaded country track in history, but the best-selling country song in the U.S. -- surpassing LeAnn Rimes' 'How Do I Live?' by 1 million copies.

7) Flo Rida: 'Low' (2007)

The first single off his debut album 'Mail on Sunday' the song features T-Pain, who also co-wrote the song. According to the RIAA, this top downloaded iTunes song received the highest Gold & Platinum certification of any artist in March of 2008, earning Flo Rida Gold, Platinum, and 3x multi-Platinum prestige for his chart-topping song, which was also ranked No. 3 song on Billboard's Hot 100 Songs of the Decade.

6) Lady GaGa: 'Just Dance' (2008)

The playful tune with prominent dance beats has the glittery, swaggering-bombshell singing about being wasted in a club: "What's going on on the floor? / I love this record baby but I can't see straight anymore / Keep it cool, what's the name of this club? / I can't remember but it's alright, a-alright / Just dance." Praised by critics, the song stayed on the Billboard 100 for almost five months before it finally topped the charts in January of 2009.

5) Coldplay: 'Viva la Vida' (2008)

A band known for stadium-scale melodies, this track's melody is no different, recognized for it's repeated, punchy string section -- so much in fact that musician Joe Satriani accused Coldplay of copyright infringement, saying that the melody was copied from his 2004 'If I Could Fly.' Luckily for Coldplay, the case was settled last September, as both parties reached a financial settlement. The lyrics to the song mention Roman cavalry, Saint Peter and Jerusalem bells, adding religious references to a pop-y song, which won both Song of the Year and Best Pop Performance by a Duo or a Group at the 2009 Grammy Awards.

4) Jason Mraz: 'I'm Yours' (2008)

Even though the song was released as Mraz's first single off 2008's 'I Sing. I Dance. I Steal Things,' the track was originally included as a demo on his 2006 limited Edition 'Extra Credit,' an EP to help promote his album 'Mr. A-Z.' 'I'm Yours' was nominated for two Grammys in 2009: Best Male Pop Vocal Performance and Song of the Year, but lost to John Mayer's 'Say' and, yep, Coldplay's 'Viva la Vida,' respectively.

3) Black Eyed Peas: 'Boom Boom Pow' (2009)

This top iTunes song -- with furturistic lyrics "I'm so 3008 / you're so 2000 and late" and heavy auto-tune -- gives the band a digital rebirth, not only in their sound but their image as well. So much, that in fact, the group won a 2010 Grammy for Best Short Form Music Video.

2) Lady GaGa: 'Poker Face' (2008)

Despite its upbeat electropop vibe, the song denotes a darker meaning sex and bisexuality, metaphorically linking to gambling: "Luck and intuition play the cards with Spades to start / And after he's been hooked I'll play the one that's on his heart." GaGa says she wrote this top downloaded iTunes song as a tribute to her rock 'n' roll boyfriends. The song won a 2010 Grammy for Best Dance Recording.

1) Black Eyed Peas: 'I Gotta Feeling' (2009)

You've blasted this top 2009 song once or twice while getting ready to go out, danced along to it at a club, and even rocked out to it at a house party -- yep, just like the music video, which features cameo appearances by co-producer and French house DJ David Guetta (other producer is Will.i.am) along with Katy Perry, American rapper Kid Cudi, and model/actress Chantal Jones. This No.1 downloadable iTunes song won a 2010 Grammy for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals.

Peanut Allergy Cure May Be Within Sight

Researchers in Cambridge, England, believe that they have uncovered a successful, long-term cure for the peanut allergy. As they embark on the largest clinical trial of its kind in the world, they predict a treatment for this and other potentially life-threatening food allergies in as little as three years.

For lots of us, this is important news.

Read more:  

New Treatment Brings Hope to Children with Peanut Allergy - Allergy & Asthma - FOXNews.com

Parents, Rejoice: Peanut Allergy Cure Within Sight, British Study Finds -- Politics Daily

While I personally do not have an allergy to peanuts, I have a few friends and family members that do. I know how it is suffering with allergies so I do hope this study helps!

The headline caught my eye because I'm so easily amused
Zombies' have free speech rights too, US court rules

WASHINGTON (AFP) – They're said to utter little more than an occasional groan, but zombies -- the blood-drenched monsters of Hollywood "B" movies -- still have a right to free speech, a US court ruled this week.

An appeals court in the northern US city of Minneapolis, Minnesota on Wednesday allowed a group of zombies -- or rather, several protesters costumed as such -- to press ahead with their lawsuit against police who arrested them for disorderly conduct.

Read the story here - Yahoo! News

The Olympics

While I didn't watch them as intently as I have in years past... (setting up my VCR and staying up late to watch absolutely everything) I still wanted to say goodbye to the games as they are now over.

In our Hearts

The Olympics got off to a somber start when, on the opening day, luger Nodar Kumaritashvili died in a tragic accident during practice.

Canadian figure skater Joannie Rochette skated for a personal best score in the short program and win a bronze medal despite the fact that her mother passed away unexpectedly just two days before the figure skating competition began.

2010 Olympics Highlights

* An estimated 32.6 million people watched The Olympic opening ceremony.

* American skier Lindsey Vonn won a gold medal in the ladies Super-G and set a new record for U.S. women's World Cup wins record despite undergoing surgery just a few weeks prior to the games.

* American snowboarder Shaun White pulled off a Double McTwist 1260 and scored 46.8 out of 50 to take gold and dominate the men's halfpipe competition

* Slovenian cross-country skier Petra Majdic won a bronze medal in the cross country ladies sprint classic despite breaking four ribs during practice just hours before the race

* Alex Bilodeau, the winner of the men's moguls, became the first Canadian to win an Olympic gold medal in his home country

* After winning the Men's hockey tournament, the host country, Canada, broke the record for the most gold medal wins at a Winter Olympic games, with a total of 14 gold medals.

*The United States surpassed the all-time record for most overall medals in a Winter Olympics with 37 total medals. 36 was the previous record.

Country					Total
	USA	9	15	13	37
	GER	10	13	7	30
	CAN	14	7	5	26
	NOR	9	8	6	23
	AUT	4	6	6	16

Vancouver Now - Full Medal Standings

Medal Info for the curious

While winning any Olympic medal is enough for any athlete, other people are wondering exactly how much the medals are really worth

Here's how it breaks down: a gold medal is made of 550 grams of silver covered with 6 grams of gold, a silver medal is made of 41 grams of copper and 509 grams of silver, and a bronze medal is made of a mix of mostly copper with some tin and zinc. This means that in today's market a gold medal is worth approx $494, a silver medal $260, and a bronze medal just $3.