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This will sound patronizing, but I ask this earnestly - how many ML pushers in this space actually drive? I say this because in my personal tech circle, the gu

This will sound patronizing, but I ask this earnestly - how many ML pushers in this space actually drive? I say this because in my personal tech circle, the guys I know most convinced autonomous cars are around the corner are literally the guys who do not drive. One is an unlicensed and within a decade of retirement, convinced he'll be able to use self driving cars by (early) retirement so he doesn't have to learn.

ghaff 3y ago
There are a ton (or at least some) people who live in cities post their undergrad who are comfortable with continuing some combination of living with their city-centric life and leaning on friends/partners a bit and using Uber. I literally could not have taken my first engineering job had I not had a car and been able to drive--and, indeed, would not have been able to go on many interviews. Had to go to remote job sites and, in any case, would have been that weird guy if I couldn't just rent a car and drive. I could live in a city today and mostly remote work but I'd be very restricted in who I could reasonably visit and the activities I could partake in both locally and on vacation.
- steveBK123 3y ago
  On the coasts its a weird reverse class signifier in a way. Only someone of enough means to live in a HCOL city and afford to pay for Ubers could survive into their 40s with no ability to drive. Knowing how to drive even in a city, because you might occasionally need to is a far more normie middle class thing. I'm on a work trip in a HCOL city running $80/day in Ubers. If I was in a more cheapskate company they'd probably had made me rent a Hertz and drive myself for the week rather than blow $500 on Ubers. Knowing I'd never be put in that situation by an employer is another class signifier.
  - ghaff 3y ago
    Of course, in the scheme of things, you're maybe spending a couple hundred dollars more on the Ubers? That's nothing for many (as you say higher class) positions. I spend around $400 round trip on a car to the airport on my home end. Parking is expensive and I've also had issues. Some combination of prices and convenience have in my experience shifted the norms though. I'd have reflexively rented a car in past times for a routine suburban business trip by air. Today, I'll spend at least a few minutes considering whether I sort of need a car for convenience/personal activities or whether Ubers would just be prohibitively expensive. I'd add that the inability to drive closes off a lot of options. I regularly do a lot of personal activities that wouldn't really be practical without being able to drive. It's not so much urban but rural activities.

ghaff 3y ago

There are a ton (or at least some) people who live in cities post their undergrad who are comfortable with continuing some combination of living with their city-centric life and leaning on friends/partners a bit and using Uber. I literally could not have taken my first engineering job had I not had a car and been able to drive--and, indeed, would not have been able to go on many interviews. Had to go to remote job sites and, in any case, would have been that weird guy if I couldn't just rent a car and drive. I could live in a city today and mostly remote work but I'd be very restricted in who I could reasonably visit and the activities I could partake in both locally and on vacation.

steveBK123 3y ago
On the coasts its a weird reverse class signifier in a way. Only someone of enough means to live in a HCOL city and afford to pay for Ubers could survive into their 40s with no ability to drive. Knowing how to drive even in a city, because you might occasionally need to is a far more normie middle class thing. I'm on a work trip in a HCOL city running $80/day in Ubers. If I was in a more cheapskate company they'd probably had made me rent a Hertz and drive myself for the week rather than blow $500 on Ubers. Knowing I'd never be put in that situation by an employer is another class signifier.
- ghaff 3y ago
  Of course, in the scheme of things, you're maybe spending a couple hundred dollars more on the Ubers? That's nothing for many (as you say higher class) positions. I spend around $400 round trip on a car to the airport on my home end. Parking is expensive and I've also had issues. Some combination of prices and convenience have in my experience shifted the norms though. I'd have reflexively rented a car in past times for a routine suburban business trip by air. Today, I'll spend at least a few minutes considering whether I sort of need a car for convenience/personal activities or whether Ubers would just be prohibitively expensive. I'd add that the inability to drive closes off a lot of options. I regularly do a lot of personal activities that wouldn't really be practical without being able to drive. It's not so much urban but rural activities.