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Why is it at all quite obvious? How is arguing for being careful “such a stupid argument it’s really just not worth anyone’s time to entertain”? Someone in thi

Why is it at all quite obvious? How is arguing for being careful “such a stupid argument it’s really just not worth anyone’s time to entertain”? Someone in this discussion has an insane amount of blind faith in technology which here literally killed a pedestrian, and it’s not the people who are arguing for just consequences.

ApolloFortyNine 9y ago
Are you arguing that a machine does not have better reaction times than a human being? Are you arguing that a machine can fall asleep, drink and drive, panic in a high stress situation? Aren't you the same person who called for holding the developer liable for writing software with a bug? Are you accusing the developer of promising something that is impossible (not hitting a pedestrian in a crosswalk?) or simply implementing it wrong? It's worth pointing out that we have no idea yet who is at fault in this accident. It could easily be someone who simply walked out in front of traffic when they weren't paying attention.
- Erlangolem 9y ago
  The answer to your first “question” of course is that it depends on the machine, how it’s built, programmed, and the context of operation. Machines can have much faster reflexes, or they can freeze.
- Sholmesy 9y ago
  "Are you saying X" is a pretty aggressive way to frame your argument. The above poster seems pretty clear that it is NOT obvious that cars will necessarily drive safer than humans on average, in the same way it is NOT obvious that we will ever have General Artificial Intelligence. These are very complicated problems, and the machines are currently (significantly) worse than human drivers, so I think it's fair to question the argument that "everything will work out eventually"
  - rout39574 9y ago
    I think the idea that self driving cars "may not ever be" safer than human drivers is ludicrous, even fatuous. We set an abysmally low bar for safety. I think that is why the very assertive "Are you saying..." is appropriate.
    - Sholmesy 9y ago
      Maybe you're right, progress is inevitable. But humans always overestimate the rate of progress, and think we will be living in some amazing futurescape in the next 10 years.

ApolloFortyNine 9y ago

Are you arguing that a machine does not have better reaction times than a human being? Are you arguing that a machine can fall asleep, drink and drive, panic in a high stress situation? Aren't you the same person who called for holding the developer liable for writing software with a bug? Are you accusing the developer of promising something that is impossible (not hitting a pedestrian in a crosswalk?) or simply implementing it wrong? It's worth pointing out that we have no idea yet who is at fault in this accident. It could easily be someone who simply walked out in front of traffic when they weren't paying attention.

Erlangolem 9y ago
The answer to your first “question” of course is that it depends on the machine, how it’s built, programmed, and the context of operation. Machines can have much faster reflexes, or they can freeze.
Sholmesy 9y ago
"Are you saying X" is a pretty aggressive way to frame your argument. The above poster seems pretty clear that it is NOT obvious that cars will necessarily drive safer than humans on average, in the same way it is NOT obvious that we will ever have General Artificial Intelligence. These are very complicated problems, and the machines are currently (significantly) worse than human drivers, so I think it's fair to question the argument that "everything will work out eventually"
- rout39574 9y ago
  I think the idea that self driving cars "may not ever be" safer than human drivers is ludicrous, even fatuous. We set an abysmally low bar for safety. I think that is why the very assertive "Are you saying..." is appropriate.
  - Sholmesy 9y ago
    Maybe you're right, progress is inevitable. But humans always overestimate the rate of progress, and think we will be living in some amazing futurescape in the next 10 years.