6:00PM Wednesday, November 14 Seminar Room, The Winston School [Grade Groups Do Apply] ["Contestant" is defined as a group of three or four students] (Back to Competitions)

The purpose of this competition is to test a student’s knowledge of How Things Work.
The Competition

(1) Schools will assemble a team of up to four students to compete. No teams smaller than three students will be allowed to compete.

(2) Teams will be invited on stage to answer a series of 10 questions involving how "things" in science or modern technology work. For example, how does a battery work, how does a lever work, how does a Xerox machine work, or how does a microchip work?

(3) Questions for each grade group will be appropriate to the subject matter covered during those grades.

(4) Each team in a grade group will be asked the same series of questions. Teams will be sequestered during the competition.

(5) The team will be allowed 30 seconds to discuss the question. During this time period, the team must decide two things: (a) How they will answer the question; and (b) Which member of the team will present the answer. The first answer presented will be considered the "team’s answer."

(6) The team’s answer will be evaluated by a panel of judges. Teams will be awarded $10 for each correct answer, and $5 for each partially correct answer. Teams will lose $2 for each incorrect answer.

(7) Teams are not required to answer any question. They may "pass" and move on to the next question.

(8) The Team with the highest dollar score at the end of each grade group competition will be awarded an additional $100 for their efforts, along with Winston Science Trophies.

(9) Prizes will be awarded at the Awards Ceremony scheduled for Monday, November 19th.
Protests

It is understood that any competition based on such a subjective evaluation might produce disputes where reasonable minds might differ. In the event that a team feels that its explanation has been improperly evaluated, it must file a protest immediately following their competition.

The panel of judges may disregard frivolous or overly argumentative protests. Teams may be disqualified based on lack of appropriate decorum or poor sportsmanship.

Study Resource

www.howstuffworks.com

For additional information about Winston Science, contact Dr. Lehman Marks, Event Director. Copyright (c) 2007 Lehman Marks/The Winston School. All Rights Reserved.