<html xmlns:v="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:vml" xmlns:o="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" xmlns:w="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:word" xmlns:m="http://schemas.microsoft.com/office/2004/12/omml" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-html40"><head><meta http-equiv=Content-Type content="text/html; charset=us-ascii"><meta name=Generator content="Microsoft Word 14 (filtered medium)"><style><!--
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</o:shapelayout></xml><![endif]--></head><body lang=EN-US link=blue vlink=purple><div class=WordSection1><p class=MsoNormal>Google and Stanford have shown that controls technology is now sufficient to make a car drive itself in traffic at normal speeds. Here’s your chance to work your mind, think deeply and be a techno-prophet by really thinking through the question of how this will change how we drive and how we live.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>I would say the three technologies have had the biggest impact on our lives are computers, internet and cell phones. I expect self-driving cars will be the fourth biggie, and perhaps displacing cell phones for third place in the list of huge changes.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>Impacts: it allows cars to have vastly lower overall performance if the human is out of the loop. If a car is programmed to go no faster than the speed limit ever, then there is no need to have the capability of going faster than that. All else being equal, the weight of a car scales as the square of the top speed, so cars become dramatically lighter, and more fuel efficient.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>We could have bathrooms in our cars. That would be cool.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>Roads would need to be smoother, since the robo-car would not be as likely to avoid road irregularities. They will not swerve to miss holes.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>Once market penetration takes hold and there are more robo-cars than human operated cars on the road, the humans might be tempted to drive very aggressively. Reasoning: the robo-cars would unquestioningly yield to them. The human in the robo-car would scarcely notice that his is constantly being cut off by aggressive assholes, since he might be in back in the bathroom reading his tablet. Driving aggressively doesn’t accomplish much, since most of the cars on the road would be going right at the speed limit.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>Eventually: way fewer accidents. Robo-cars do not get distracted, they don’t text, they don’t get drunk or stoned, they don’t get pissed off and aggressive. They just drive, faultlessly. It isn’t that hard to do really.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>Although trips generally will take a little longer, they become more predictable. So if you need to leave two sigma ahead of average, the standard deviation for any given trip goes down.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>What else? This is your chance to peer into the future and record your musings for future generations to ridicule or marvel at your wisdom.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>spike<o:p></o:p></p></div></body></html>