In 99 percent of cases, saying that an invention is an enormous waste of time would be a negative. In the instance of Rube Goldberg machines, it’s precisely the point.

The book is a hybrid offering that combines biography, physics basics focused on simple machines, and instructions for creating Rube Goldberg machines.

The Art of Rube Goldberg: Exhibition runs until Jan. 21 National Museum of American Jewish History, 101 S. Independence Mall East, Philadelphia. Visit www.nmajh.org or (215) 923-3811 ...

Visit brooksmuseum.org. 'Rube Goldberg: The World of Hilarious Invention!'; The Children's Museum of Memphis For much of his working life, Rube Goldberg (1883-1970) was a household name.

In hindsight, however, it becomes clear that Goldberg’s keen lens—which he used to comment on everything from nuclear weapons to World War II—was his most useful invention.

Rube Goldberg’s “Peace Today” political cartoon won the Pulitzer Prize in 1947. In the ’40s, Goldberg turned to political cartooning, and in 1947 a cartoon titled “Peace Today” won him ...

Jennifer George with a reproduction of Rube Goldberg’s “A Simple Way to Sharpen Ice Skates,” a so-called invention cartoon originally published in the magazine Collier’s in the 1930s.

Rube Goldberg was one of the 20th century’s more illustrious and innovative figures as his cartoons of inventions captured the fancy of the nation, as well as a Pulitzer Prize.