|
PythagoraSwitch
is a 15-minute Japanese educational television program that has been aired by NHK since April 9, 2002. It encourages augmenting children's "way of thinking" under the supervision of and . A five-minute format called PythagoraSwitch Mini is also available. During the beginning and ending of each episode, and between each ''corner'' (segment), there are . "Pythagorean device" is the equivalent Japanese colloquialism for the American "Rube Goldberg machine" and British "Heath Robinson" contraption. The main focus of the program is a puppet show, but the subject is mainly advanced by small ''corners''. World phenomena, principles, characteristics, and the like are introduced in an entertaining way. At the end of each segment, the show's title is sung as a kind of punchline. Segments In the show, segments are called "corners". Today's Topic A puppet show in which explains the structure of the world to young penguins Pita and Gora. A recurring situation is that, while discus ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rube Goldberg Machine
A Rube Goldberg machine, named after American cartoonist Rube Goldberg, is a chain reaction-type machine or contraption intentionally designed to perform a simple task in an indirect and (impractically) overly complicated way. Usually, these machines consist of a series of simple unrelated devices; the action of each triggers the initiation of the next, eventually resulting in achieving a stated goal. In the United Kingdom, a similar contrivance is referred to as a "Heath Robinson contraption" after cartoons by the illustrator W. Heath Robinson. The design of such a "machine" is often presented on paper and would be impossible to implement in actuality. More recently, such machines are being fully constructed for entertainment (for example, a breakfast scene in '' Peewee's Big Adventure'') and in Rube Goldberg competitions. Over the years, the expression has expanded to mean any confusing or overly complicated system. News headlines include, but are not limited to, "Is Rep. Bi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
