Quinn+Abrahams+Vaughn+Go+Fix+It

Quinn Abrahams-Vaughn November 20, 2014 Sustainability Problems Go-Fix-It



 In this class we have seen the huge amounts of oil to get ourselves from point A to point B. We also spend billions to maintain and expand our driving infrastructure. In a world where the population is going to grow to 9 billion in 2050, we are going to need more cars to get all of those people to their destinations. At the same time, our worldwide infrastructure is insufficient, in China last year there was a traffic jam that lasted 9 days. At that point health issues and other personal problems also occur. So how do we get more people to more places with fewer resources and saving everyone time in the processes? The solution is to mandate that all vehicles become self-driving in the near future. The effects of self-driving cars on society will be swift and effective. The first noticeable change will be a dramatic reduction of traffic collisions which would save large amounts of the $900 billion that we lose as a result of collisions. Once a large majority of cars on the road are self-driving, we shall begin to see other benefits. If cars aren’t getting into accidents we will see automakers begin to build lighter cars because they won’t need to protect against these common events. By reducing the weight of the car, will be able to go more miles on the same gallon of gas. Other fuel savings will come from cars always taking the most efficient route and from cars only accelerating and decelerating at the optimal rates. But the largest savings in fuel will come from cars communicating with each other, being able to follow the car ahead of them at distances that all but eliminate drag from air. We can also increase parking space without building any more parking lots, because large amounts of spots sit unused all day, your car would drop you off and then go park in the best spot by itself. These effects together could reduce CO2 emissions by 95% in a decade. What are people doing right now to implement these solutions and what are the steps that will get this done? Currently four states and the District of Columbia have laws legalizing self-driving cars, and other states are considering provisions to do the same. At the same time, many groups are getting into the self-driving game. Google has a fleet of cars that have driven over 700,000 miles with no moving accidents. Tesla Motors recently released an automated mode that doesn’t drive the car for you but will change lanes on demand and keep you in your current lane. This is building off of technology that Mercedes and Volvo have been rolling out, such as self-braking cars. There was even a kid in northern Europe who made his car self-driving by attaching a bunch of cameras to the outside. So let us get people out of the drivers out and our new computer overlords in.

=Bibliography = Blincoe, L. J. (2010, May). //The economic and societal impact of motor vehicle crashes.// Washington, DC: National Highway Traffic Saftey Administration. CNN Wire Staff. (2010, August 23). //Epic traffic jam in China leaves drivers stuck for 9 days//. Retrieved from CNN: http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/asiapcf/08/23/china.traffic.jam/ Jonathan Walker, K. C. (2014, Nov 12). //Robots Don’t Drink and Drive//. Retrieved from Rockey Mountain Institute Outlet: http://blog.rmi.org/blog_2014_11_12_robots_dont_drink_and_drive Jones, W. (2014, Nov 18). //Self-driving Cars: Saving Lives AND Energy//. Retrieved from IEEE Spectrum: http://spectrum.ieee.org/cars-that-think/transportation/self-driving/selfdriving-cars-saving-lives-and-energy Julia Pyper, C. (2014, September 15). //Self-Driving Cars Could Cut Greenhouse Gas Pollution//. Retrieved from Scientific American: http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/self-driving-cars-could-cut-greenhouse-gas-pollution/ National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. (2014, May 28). //New NHTSA Study Shows Motor Vehicle Crashes Have $871 Billion Economic and Societal Impact on U.S. Citizens//. Retrieved from NHTSA: http://www.nhtsa.gov/About+NHTSA/Press+Releases/2014/NHTSA-study-shows-vehicle-crashes-have-$871-billion-impact-on-U.S.-economy,-society S-W., C. (2014, Nov 3). //The Cost of Traffic Jams//. Retrieved from The Economist: http://www.economist.com/blogs/economist-explains/2014/11/economist-explains-1 //<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">Tesla Model S “D” adds AWD: Self-driving Auto-Pilot //<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">. (2014, Oct 9). Retrieved from Slash Gear: http://www.slashgear.com/tesla-model-s-d-adds-awd-self-driving-auto-pilot-09350117/#disqus_thread

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">1. Full citation.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;"> Julia Pyper, C. (2014, September 15). //Self-Driving Cars Could Cut Greenhouse Gas Pollution//. Retrieved from Scientific American: http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/self-driving-cars-could-cut-greenhouse-gas-pollution/

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">2. Where does the author work, what else has s/he written about, and what are her/his credentials?

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;"> Julia Pyper works for Greentech Media, she focuses her journalism on the climate effects of technologies including the continued development of electric airplanes. She got her undergraduate degree from McGill University and her masters from Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">3. What is the main topic or argument of the text?

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;"> The main argument is that self-driving cars could drastically cut greenhouse gasses.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">4. Describe at least three ways that the main topic or argument is fleshed out.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;"> First it talks argues that we would see a 2 to 4% reduction in oil usage over the first two years. Secondly it presents a smart parking model that reduces the time looking for a spot by 21%. Finally it presents a vehicle-to-vehicle communication system that will make the roads safer and more efficient by allowing cars to drive closer together.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">5. What three quotes capture the critical import of the text?
 * 1) <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">1. Los Angeles County, Calif., introduced a traffic signal synchronization program to improve the throughput of vehicles that resulted in saving 31.3 million hours of travel time, 38 million gallons of fuel and 337,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide per year.
 * 2) <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">2. A recent report by the Intelligent Transportation Society of America projects that so-called intelligent transportation systems (ITS) could achieve a 2 to 4 percent reduction in oil consumption and related greenhouse gas emissions each year over the next 10 years as these technologies percolate into the market.
 * 3) <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">3. According to the Department of Transportation, vehicle-to-vehicle communication has the potential to help unimpaired drivers avoid up to 80 percent of vehicle crashes.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">6. Explain how the argument and evidence in the text supports your research focus.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;"> This is one arm of the argument that I am making about why we need self-driving cars.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">7. List at least two details or references from the text that you have used in your presentation and wiki post.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">1. Full citation.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;"> Jonathan Walker, K. C. (2014, Nov 12). //Robots Don’t Drink and Drive//. Retrieved from Rockey Mountain Institute Outlet: http://blog.rmi.org/blog_2014_11_12_robots_dont_drink_and_drive

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">2. Where does the author work, what else has s/he written about, and what are her/his credentials?

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;"> Jonathan Walker is a senior associate at the Rocky Mountain Institute where he works as an engineer to reduce energy and CO2 from transportation and other complex systems.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">3. What is the main topic or argument of the text?

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;"> The main argument is that we can reduce traffic accidents and carbon emissions by using self-driving cars.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">4. Describe at least three ways that the main topic or argument is fleshed out.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;"> His first argument is that smarter cars could end traffic deaths in about 10 years. He then proposes a method about which we could deploy this system by having neighborhoods become automated vehicle zones that would force people to adapt. Finally he talks about how close we are to this reality with large amounts of investments being made in this area.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">5. What three quotes capture the critical import of the text?
 * 1) <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">1. Emerging technology from America’s brightest minds can end unnecessary driving deaths in 10 years.
 * 2) <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">2. In addition, traffic congestion that would be alleviated by AVs costs each car-owning American [|$1,700 per year], or about $350 billion for the country.
 * 3) <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">3. What if the same solution that could eradicate drunk driving and texting while driving could also get U.S. cars off oil and reduce vehicle CO2 emissions by up to 95 percent //<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">within the next decade //? In addition to being far safer than human drivers, AVs will also be far more energy efficient.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">6. Explain how the argument and evidence in the text supports your research focus.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;"> This was my starting point for this presentation. It offered a wide array of issues solved while providing depth that could be used as the framework for my argument

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">7. List at least two details or references from the text that you have used in your presentation and wiki post. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">That we could potentially reduce 95% of emission by using self-driving cars <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">That automated vehicles would save Americans $1700 a year.