Toy Physics: Catch Puzzle

The old toymaker has run his shop alone for years. Today he could use another pair of hands. Toys are coming down the line — ducks, marbles, jacks, wooden blocks — and every one of them is meant for a child somewhere. Your job is to get them safely into their crates. Draw a line beneath a falling toy. While your finger is down it is only a guide; let go and it sets firm, ready to catch. Give it a gentle slope toward a crate and the toy lands, slides, and is packed. Miss three and the packing run is spoiled. That is the whole game. It gets hard because the shop does not stand still. WHAT YOU ARE UP AGAINST • Hydraulic pistons that rise and fall on their own schedule • Conveyor belts that carry a toy away before you are ready • Swinging beams, spinning crosses, ropes and pulleys • Crates that patrol from one end of the bench to the other • Water, where a toy floats instead of falling 41…