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[nicholasmaurer]

If the task says “drop” a ping-pong ball, would doing something more along the lines of throwing it downward into the machine be allowed?

I think if they meant to allow for it to be thrown, they would've said drop or throw.

[Newbydad]

We went simple. Drop the ping pong ball down a tube (used caulk tube) hit the edge of the golf ball sitting on a golf tee below the tube. We shaved off part of the tee to make is simpler for the golf ball to roll and to direct which way it rolls. We offset the golf ball to the tube so the ping pong ball hits on the side. The golf ball can then trigger the next step after it rolls off the tee. It seems to work really well, very reliable.

[windu34]

We went simple. Drop the ping pong ball down a tube (used caulk tube) hit the edge of the golf ball sitting on a golf tee below the tube. We shaved off part of the tee to make is simpler for the golf ball to roll and to direct which way it rolls. We offset the golf ball to the tube so the ping pong ball hits on the side. The golf ball can then trigger the next step after it rolls off the tee. It seems to work really well, very reliable.

If the impulse of a ping pong ball is all it takes to start your device, what happens if you accidentally bump your device? What about if the table is not completely flat? I would be concerned that you might accidentally trigger your device to start without meaning to. I have seen this happen a decent number of times at tournaments.

[Newbydad]

If the impulse of a ping pong ball is all it takes to start your device, what happens if you accidentally bump your device? What about if the table is not completely flat? I would be concerned that you might accidentally trigger your device to start without meaning to. I have seen this happen a decent number of times at tournaments.

As the name suggests - First time one of my kids has been involved in Science Olympiad. You make a point. I will say in our testing it hasn't been an issue but we may need to re-look at how we start.

[cheese]

As the name suggests - First time one of my kids has been involved in Science Olympiad. You make a point. I will say in our testing it hasn't been an issue but we may need to re-look at how we start.

Hey, just a heads up, make sure you aren't too involved if you are a parent. The student should do almost all of the designing, building, and testing with you mainly supervising and potentially helping with power tools (if they are dangerous). Other people may have other opinions on this, but based on the code of ethics, I would say that parent involvement should be at a low.

[Chikoo10]

How exactly would someone utilize a mousetrap to complete this task? Any ideas would be really appreciated!!

[CookiePie1]

How exactly would someone utilize a mousetrap to complete this task? Any ideas would be really appreciated!!

You can try and see if a ping pong ball will even set it off, and then build up from there

[SluffAndRuff]

So somehow the Virginia ES decided to rule a golf ball supported by a container as modified, and will likely maintain the ruling for States.
I was pretty shocked by this interpretation... how is this being ruled elsewhere? And for Nats?

[TheSquaad]

So somehow the Virginia ES decided to rule a golf ball supported by a container as modified, and will likely maintain the ruling for States.
I was pretty shocked by this interpretation... how is this being ruled elsewhere? And for Nats?

As long as the golf ball can be removed from the device in an intact manner, it should count as unmodified.

[mjcox2000]

So somehow the Virginia ES decided to rule a golf ball supported by a container as modified, and will likely maintain the ruling for States.
I was pretty shocked by this interpretation... how is this being ruled elsewhere? And for Nats?

As long as the golf ball can be removed from the device in an intact manner, it should count as unmodified.

My interpretation of the rules -- and, I think, most reasonable interpretations of the rules -- would agree that an intact, easily removable golf ball is unmodified. The Virginia event supervisors and appeals committee disagree, saying that even so much as putting it in a cup is a modification. I don't understand where they're coming from, and they drew no solid line between what they considered "modified" and "unmodified."