Actually, as I read things, it seems it was a tractor towing a trailer across
his path and he went under the trailer and was probably decapitated at that
point. Not a nice way to die, but probably quick. The first crash I imagine
incapacitated the car’s defence systems, too. I’m thinking that Stuart is right
that an attentive driver might have seen the tractor/trailer. There again…
The tractor driver mentioned that Harry Potter was playing in the car when he
got to it, but Tesla say it can’t have been as a movie on the in-car screen,
though it might have been sound-only. [or on another screen?]
Anyway, I’d rather be like my grandfather and die peacefully in my sleep; not
screaming in terror like his passengers.
Cheers,
Terry
From: Stuart Burnfield
Peter said:
a.) Do we know a human driver would have avoided this collision?
It's hard to know for sure but it sounds like the answer is probably yes.
Despite the sleazy, deceptive, blame-the-victim wording by Tesla's Mouth of
Sauron, it's hard to imagine Mr Brown or even a minimally attentive driver:
1. Not noticing a trailer swerving in front of him and cutting him off
2. Continuing to drive, "leaving the road, striking a fence, crossing a field,
passing through another fence and finally hitting a utility pole about 100 feet
south of the road"
b.) Automated cars are never going to overcome the laws of physics,
particularly if less than predictable, non-communicating humans are driving in
the opposition direction at say,100 kms, and suddenly swerve to the other side
of the road.
True.
c.) "Wait till they start aging ?" That's what they already say about human
drivers over the age of 75, I believe.
Well this could eventually (once the technology is good enough) be a plus for
both learner drivers and aging and increasingly impaired drivers. Autodrive
cars could assist learners and inexperienced drivers to deal with unusual and
dangerous conditions. They could also ease the transition to non-driving for
older drivers as they gradually become less capable behind the wheel.
--- Stuart
