Educational toy made in plastic versions. In the mid-1950s, more explicitly engineering-themed construction toys appeared, including plastic girders, columns, and panels that could be assembled into a model curtain wall skyscraper. Later, this Girder and Panel structural system was extended to a Hydro-Dynamic setup by adding pipes, valves, tanks, nozzles, and pumps to allow construction of model plumbing, HVAC, and chemical engineering systems like a simulated distillation column. Other extensions of the system supported suburban-style housing developments (Build-A-Home), or monorail transportation systems (Skyrail). The building toy Lego was originally developed by Ole Kirk Christiansen in Billund, Denmark, in the 1930s. The name
Lego Group. In 1998, Lego bricks were one of the original inductees into the National Toy Hall of Fame at The Strong in Rochester, New York. Lego pieces of all varieties constitute a universal system. Despite variation in the design and the purposes of individual pieces over the years, each piece remains compatible in some way with existing pieces. Lego bricks from 1958 still interlock with those made in the current time, and Lego sets for young children are compatible with those made for teenagers. Six bricks of 2 × 4 studs can be combined in 915,103,765 ways. Each Lego piece