“Our mission is to inspire young people to be science and technology leaders, by engaging them in exciting mentor-based programs that build science, engineering and technology skills, that inspire innovation, and that foster well-rounded life capabilities including self-confidence, communication, and leadership. [Our] vision is to transform our culture by creating a world where science and technology are celebrated and where young people dream of becoming science and technology leaders.” -Dean Kamen, Founder

The challenge for 2013 is named “Ultimate Ascent.” At its core, this is a game of robot frisbee… with a twist. The game is divided into 2 parts: A 15 second automomous period (where the robot is controlled by pre-loaded code and not by a driver) and a 2 minute teleoperated (where students drive their robots). There are 4 different goals, with each height having its own point value. There is also a tower with another 5th goal on top. For bonus points, teams can climb the towers on their side of the field. The higher you climb the more points you get.