The egg drop challenge is a common fixture in STEM classes. Students are tasked with designing a cushion around an egg that prevents it from cracking when dropped from a height.

EGG DROP DESIGN COMPETITION -- Sunday at 2 p.m. Ages 8 and up. Create a container using only a piece of paper and rubber band to protect an egg when dropped 24 feet from the museum's second-floor ...

Scientists from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology studied the best way to drop a chicken egg to prevent it from cracking – vertically, or on the side. Now, we may finally have an answer.

After dropping 60 eggs from each of three different heights — 8, 9, and 10 millimeters — onto a hard surface, the authors saw that, on average, eggs dropped vertically broke at lower drop heights.