This competition is about many things. First, it's about creativity. You will have many constraints to work within, and you will be evaluated on how you innovate within those constraints. Second, it's about collaboration. You will work with a team to design, and plan, and prototype your machine. Expect to not get it right the first time... and make sure you keep trying. The shortest path to a complex machine is through disciplined experimentation. Oh, and one more thing. This competition is also about energy transfer. Your machine will go through multiple steps before completing the task. Each of those steps will involve the release of potential energy that you will put in when setting up the machine. You can put this energy in by lifting a weight to the top of a ramp, or winding up a sp