Turing Tumble

Ages 8 to adult The rare toy that shows how a computer works inside rather than how to use one. Marbles drop through a pegboard of plastic ramps, bits and gear bits, and each bit flips as a marble passes, so it stores one piece of information in the way it points. A child is literally building logic out of moving parts and can see the machine's memory change ball by ball. The 60 puzzles come inside a comic story, which keeps younger solvers turning pages. The harder puzzles stretch adults too, which makes this a strong pick for a parent and child to work on together.