National Engineers' Week Student Competitions

UAA Campus, Anchorage, AK

Saturday February 24, 2001; 10:00 am - 2:00 pm

Egg Drop Competition

Location: UAA Engineering Building Atrium.

Objective: To construct a device that allows an egg to be dropped, without breaking, from a designated height on to a target. The uncracked egg that is closest to the center of the target will win.

Procedure: Register with the competition registration desk in the attrium of the engineering building when your team is ready to begin. Your Team of up to three members will be issued a kit (containing an egg and such things as baggies, tape, paper clips, card stock, etc.), some basic tools (such as sissors) and be given 20 minutes to construct your device from the time you are given the kit until you return to the time keeper. Teams in the 1st to 3rd grade and 4th to 6th grade categories will be given 40 minutes to construct their structures. Only materials in the kits issued to each team may be used for the competition.  No team can borrow or utilize unused material from other teams.   Each egg MUST be enclosed in a sealed plastic baggie (included in the kit). Teams must only utilize those members listed on the registration slip.  Teams taking longer than their alotted time will be penalized by having their final recorded distance increased 1 inch for each minute they are over the time limit.

At the end of the construction time, the team is to take their device to the designated time keeper for log-in then to the drop zones and register with the the competition official who will schedule the time of the drop. The team will then be allowed to test their device. The egg must be suspended above the drop platform floor level when it is released. Teams in the 1st to 3rd grade and 4th to 6th grade categories will drop their eggs from the 2nd floor catwalk and the older teams will drop theirs from the third floor catwalk.

When the egg comes to rest, the official will measure the distance from the center of the target to the center of the egg container if it appears that the egg survived the fall. If, on close inspection, the official determines that the egg is at all cracked the distance will not be recorded. All decisions by the competition judges on the competition day will be final.