[Warning:  this message is philosophical and is not expected to be
satisfying to anyone.  You don't have to read it.]

Well...

From Update 7, we know that the crate of bananas is a multi-part model

From Update 24, we know how to treat crates of groceries in the truck
when it arrives In Base

From Rules 21 and 8, we know what it means to be In Base

From Rule 19, we know what happens to Cargo the robot loses contact
with (Rule 11 defines Cargo)

In "Star Trek II:  The Wrath of Khan", Spock and Kirk note that Khan
is handicapped by thinking two-dimensionally

In good engineering, you want to reduce variability in order to get
reliable outcomes.  In the case of the Robot Game, the team wants to
reduce variability caused by referee decisions and actions.  There are
many ways that the team can reduce referee variability, including by
removing the need for a decision, or by communicating and alerting the
referee to impending situations.

I've had a private communication with Scott Evans, the Game Designer,
about a related situation.  He commented, "However, Rule 21, Bullet 5
is unclear when considered near Bullets 1, 2, and 3 of the same rule."

Rule 28 tells us that private communications are not binding on anyone.

Rule 21, Bullet 5 tells us that "Objects are ruled on independent of
each other,..."

The word "object" is not defined in the Rules.  By Rule 3, "it should
be taken literally whenever possible."  The other three bullets of
Rule 3 are also pertinent to this discussion.

We have a rule that provides guidance about what to do if the referees
have done all they can to rule correctly, yet the answer’s still
unclear.


The Bottom Line:
I have an opinion about what should happen in the case of a stray
banana, and I've already started to share it with the referees at the
tournaments that I am participating in.  Your results may vary.  As a
small consolation, surprises and the anticipation leading up to the
disclosure of a mystery are considered enjoyable by many people.


Steve Scherr
Your Referee Obscuror

On Tue, Nov 1, 2011 at 9:18 PM, Sonya Shaver <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> If ONE banana falls out of the yellow truck when bringing it back to base,
> what would happen?
>
> Thanks,
> Sonya in Harrisonburg
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