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GM is apparently experimenting on Nj roads with life like dummies behind the wheel.
Yup!
Whether it is the distracted SoccerMom clutching a cell phone to her ear while veering her massive Infiniti SUV all over the road, or whether it is the kid passing on the shoulder of I-287 in his rusted-out Honda Civic with a "fart can" exhaust, or whether it is one of the many other varieties of brain-dead drivers nowadays, we have an incredible number of people on the road who are no more useful than a dummy behind the wheel.
we have an incredible number of people on the road who are no more useful than a dummy behind the wheel.
I had to laugh yesterday when I was listening to 101.5 and the topic was "Are you one of those people who still can do the lost arts of driving?" The "lost arts" were parallel parking, changing a tire, and driving a stick. Lost arts!? You have no business being behind the wheel of a car if you can't do those three things! Driving a stick I could see maybe getting a pass on since they become more and more rare as the years go by, but parallel parking and changing a tire!?
I would actually argue that the more you know about how a car actually works, the better driver you are. Someone who just sees a car as a "mystery machine" that you put gas in taht magically moves down the road when you push a pedal can't possibly grasp properly controlling such a machine.
The kinds of things that trucks and vehicles in the construction/agriculture industry are typically used for: Pulling (and backing up with) trailers, pulling stumps, extricating other vehicles, pushing other vehicles/objects, backing up to loading docks/into tight spaces, etc... I suppose that there could be a future where people zip around in little "commuting pods" that just get them back and forth but that there would still be manual control work vehicles available?
I was mostly just being a smartarse, because I do 32 miles a day each way myself, but here's a thought. One would assume that these vehicles will be governed to the posted speed limit of whatever roadway they are traveling on, assuming that conditions (rain, snow, traffic volume) do not require traveling slower than the limit. If that's the case, a lot of folks (like me) will see their commute time increase quite a bit. I travel Route 31 from a few miles north of I-78 to Ewing every day between 6:30 a.m. and 7:30 a.m. As long as it's not raining, etc...there is no earthly reason that I can't travel 70-75 MPH from High Bridge until just before the Flemington Circle, and after the Flemington Circle to where 31 and 202 split. If I'm governed to the 50 MPH speed limit on those stretches, I'll see my hour commute grow by 10-15 minutes.
i dont think anyone suggested 100% elimination of any and all manually operated vehicles. so dont worry, trucks will still exist to pull out stumps. you are also referring to a tiny % of automobile miles when compared to all the truck & car miles that could be handled without a human driver.
perhaps with more driverless cars the speed limit could be raised. also, i think it could reduce traffic so you may be able to go the speed limit more time rather than sitting in traffic. it could be a problem if they did in fact extend the commute time but i do believe it shouldnt.
perhaps with more driverless cars the speed limit could be raised. also, i think it could reduce traffic so you may be able to go the speed limit more time rather than sitting in traffic. it could be a problem if they did in fact extend the commute time but i do believe it shouldnt.
That is a valid point. One of the major bottlenecks in my commute home is where Route 31 goes from two lanes to one in Flemington. I often wonder if traffic would move faster if everyone resisted the urge to fly up the empty right lane until it ends and then attempt to merge left again.
Here's another point to ponder with driverless cars: Driverless cars will not be able to go anywhere without GPS-conceivably they'll be able to rely on their sensors at least part of the time for navigation through tunnels and other covered roadways/parking areas, but you can't get from point A to point B without GPS routing. This means that anytime the car is moving your movements can be monitored via the GPS satellite constellation. Essentially, you will not be able to drive anywhere, at any time without the government knowing where you've been, where you're headed, etc... It's not like a cell phone or a dashboard GPS unit you can simply turn off. The government could also conceivably restrict the movement of driverless cars by turning off certain satellites. For that matter, an enemy of the United States could tamper with or destroy GPS satellites and effectively clog the highways with cars that are now useless and can't go anywhere.
In short, there is a certain amount of personal liberty which goes along with driving, some of which is going to be lost when driverless cars go mainstream.
This means that anytime the car is moving your movements can be monitored via the GPS satellite constellation. Essentially, you will not be able to drive anywhere, at any time without the government knowing where you've been, where you're headed, etc...
they already know..smartphone...cell tower triangulation..etc.. Besides who cares if they know where you have been.
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It's not like a cell phone or a dashboard GPS unit you can simply turn off.
Sure you can, just get a regular car with no gps if you are concerned.
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For that matter, an enemy of the United States could tamper with or destroy GPS satellites and effectively clog the highways with cars that are now useless and can't go anywhere.
If they tempered with the gps, clogged highways is the least of your worries.
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In short, there is a certain amount of personal liberty which goes along with driving, some of which is going to be lost when driverless cars go mainstream.
Every technology advance means giving up some of that "liberty", the internet made your personal letters/mails available. The smartphone/cellphones made your calls/location traceable. Google/amazon made your research/shopping available. Credit cards made your spending/financial traceable. /shrug
The question is are the benefits outweigh the negatives, and in each case the answer is a resounding yes....except credit cards, it adds no benefit but to push the lower income class further into debt and enrich the banks.
Every technology advance means giving up some of that "liberty", the internet made your personal letters/mails available. The smartphone/cellphones made your calls/location traceable. Google/amazon made your research/shopping available. Credit cards made your spending/financial traceable. /shrug
The question is are the benefits outweigh the negatives, and in each case the answer is a resounding yes....except credit cards, it adds no benefit but to push the lower income class further into debt and enrich the banks.
Got it, so anytime liberty is compromised, its OK as long it makes things more convenient. I suppose you're a supporter of stop and frisk and NSA spying as well? Those two things certainly make stopping crimes more convenient for the authorities and the people who would affected by them.
Got it, so anytime liberty is compromised, its OK as long it makes things more convenient. I suppose you're a supporter of stop and frisk and NSA spying as well? Those two things certainly make stopping crimes more convenient for the authorities and the people who would affected by them.
i have no opinion on those two issues you stated, because there is no accurate data (available to the public) to indicate whether they are effective or not. If they indeed stopped significant terror attacks and/or criminals then yes, otherwise no.
but i see what you are doing here, you are trying to convolute the discussion by tangling in those hot button social issues. When in fact the point of the discussion is about technology advancement that bring significant improvements also has a tradeoff on giving up some of your privacy. The mere fact you are on the internet posting means I am right and you are willing to give up some of your "liberties" for the benefits of technology.
As you have the freedom to not have a computer and live unconnected to protect your "liberties", yet you chose not to do that. That makes your views contradictory to your own actions.
i have no opinion on those two issues you stated, because there is no accurate data (available to the public) to indicate whether they are effective or not. If they indeed stopped significant terror attacks and/or criminals then yes, otherwise no.
That's my point. In your opinion, as long as the deprivation of civil liberties is beneficial to the greater good, then it's OK. You're certainly not alone in this line of thinking. There are plenty of folks out there who feel that stifling free speech, taking away the right to self defense, the right of people to be secure in their papers and possessions, etc...is OK as long as it makes them safer or benefits them in some way. I'm just presenting an opposing view.
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Originally Posted by newdude05
The mere fact you are on the internet posting means I am right and you are willing to give up some of your "liberties" for the benefits of technology. As you have the freedom to not have a computer and live unconnected to protect your "liberties", yet you chose not to do that. That makes your views contradictory to your own actions.
I suppose that's partially true, but there is a big difference between posting on the internet anonymously (yes, I'm aware that I have an IP address traceable to me, etc...) and having my movements tracked across the country along the potential to be stopped at any point by the jamming or blocking of a signal from a satellite.
Here's another point to ponder with driverless cars: Driverless cars will not be able to go anywhere without GPS-conceivably they'll be able to rely on their sensors at least part of the time for navigation through tunnels and other covered roadways/parking areas, but you can't get from point A to point B without GPS routing. This means that anytime the car is moving your movements can be monitored via the GPS satellite constellation. Essentially, you will not be able to drive anywhere, at any time without the government knowing where you've been, where you're headed, etc... It's not like a cell phone or a dashboard GPS unit you can simply turn off. The government could also conceivably restrict the movement of driverless cars by turning off certain satellites. For that matter, an enemy of the United States could tamper with or destroy GPS satellites and effectively clog the highways with cars that are now useless and can't go anywhere.
In short, there is a certain amount of personal liberty which goes along with driving, some of which is going to be lost when driverless cars go mainstream.
the government already tracks where you are at all times via your cell phone (how many people are turning theirs off while driving?). on top of that, more and more traffic lights, stand alone sites and cop cars are being outfitted with cameras which track every car that passes by them. most people think they are red light cameras and if you look into it they say they are for traffic management but they are obviously tracking everyones location.
so unfortunately the concept of being able to travel without big brother knowing about it is already compromised. the driverless cars would help but its not going to make much difference as more and more cameras are places all over to monitor people.
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