Science fiction movies often portray robots as man hunters bent on destruction and world domination. But a robot built by a group of local students isn't lethal at all, although it did nearly dominate at a recent world competition.
 
The robotics team based at Central Magnet School recently brought home second place honors after competing at The BEST World Competition in Orlando, Fla.

The competition – the title of which stands for Boosting Engineering Science & Technology – pits teams against each other that have placed high in regional competitions. Central's team earned a spot in the competition after placing second in a regional competition held at Auburn University.
 
"We sort of got beat in the last three rounds at the BEST competition," said team member Josh Walker, who is junior from Oakland High School. "But we were a very good team."
 
Walker explained that all teams at the competition had to be nearly flawless in order to win, and the Central team came very close.
 
To prepare for the competition, the team designs, builds and learns to remotely control a robot that is made from wood, plastic and electrical components. The team spends endless hours practicing how to maneuver the robot and learning how to use it to move packages on an obstacle course.
 
This year's robot, Commodore, was the brainchild of student Paul Robertson, a junior from Riverdale High School, who says his primary role is conceiving the design and construction of the robot.
 
"A few of our designs came from our experience from last year. We also looked at other teams' designs and borrowed from theirs. Everyone does that – most teams do," Walker said, adding that he can now recognize what region a robot comes from by simply looking at it.
 
Last year, Rutherford County's team, which at the time was based at McFadden, placed third in the BEST competition. The team moved to Central this year when the school became the first Rutherford County magnet school to have an emphasis on math and science. The team is comprised of 65 students mainly from Central although there are a few others from Oakland, Riverdale, and Blackman high schools.
 
The team's coach and sponsor is Central teacher Marc Guthrie, who says the program is important because it gives the student's hands-on experience and creates excitement for potential science-related careers.