Discuss “Young teams dominate this year's Mobot race”

Wheels, or sometimes feet, propel them; skirts of trash bags hang from their sides. They move of their own accord, making the hours of work that go into their production worthwhile — or tragically wasted. They are mobots (mobile robots), and every year crowds come to watch new robotic vehicles cooked up by the students and affiliates of Carnegie Mellon.

This year, the entries were sparse. Ben Brown, a member of the robotics faculty and the Mobot Committee, noted that in past years there had been as many as 20 entrants. Among the undergraduate, open, and exhibition classes, there were only 10 entrants, and of these, three teams never showed. The undergraduate class awards cash prizes for first, second, and third place. The open class is...