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> There is no possible way to confuse these two actions. This is obviously an overstatement. Any two regularly performed actions can be confused. Sometimes (wh
by cjbprime 1y ago
> There is no possible way to confuse these two actions.
This is obviously an overstatement. Any two regularly performed actions can be confused. Sometimes (when tired or distracted) I've walked into my bathroom intending to shave, but mistakenly brushed my teeth and left. My toothbrush and razor are not similar in function or placement.
- bigDinosaur 1y agoIf someone confused their steering wheel for the brake you'd probably be surprised - there are indeed errors that are essentially impossible for a competent person to make by mistake. No idea about the plane controls, though.
- globular-toast 1y agoEven in modern "fly by wire" cars the steering wheel and brake pedal have an immediate effect. They are essentially directly connect to their respective control mechanisms. As far as I understand both of the plane controls on question just trigger sequences that are carried out automatically. So it's more like firing off the wrong backup script than scratching the wrong armpit.
- eptcyka 1y agoThe only two production cars on sale where the steering wheel is mechanically decoupled from the wheels are the cybertruck and a variant of the Lexus RX.
- account42 1y agoEssentially impossible is not the same as impossible. We already know that an improbably sequence of events took place because a plane crashed which is highly unusual.
- burnt-resistor 1y agoEven humans have fixed action patterns. Much behavior is barely under conscious control.
- vishnugupta 1y agoIf I were to apply OPs assertion to your actions it’s like brushing your teeth with razor. I guess that’s what they meant.
- cjbprime 1y agoNot really, though. They're both (retracting the gear, and cutting off fuel) just toggle switches, as far as your brain's conscious mechanisms go. Doing them both on every flight dulls the part of your brain that cares about how they feel different to perform. (I'm not strongly arguing against the murder scenario, just against the idea that it's impossible for it to be the confusion scenario.)
- russdill 1y agoNeither is a toggle switch and the gear lever is incredibly conspicuous: https://www.aerosimsolutions.com.au/custom-products/olympus-digital-camera-2/ https://www.aerosimsolutions.com.au/custom-products/olympus-... This would be like opening your car door when you meant to activate the turn signal.
- cjbprime 1y agoI meant philosophical toggle switches, not physical ones. The gear can go between down and up. The fuel can go between run and cutoff. Given enough practice, the brain takes care of the physical actions that manipulate those philosophical toggles without conscious thought about performing them.
- Mawr 1y agoThat's just your brain associating the bathroom with the act of brushing your teeth, and therefore doing it automatically upon the trigger of entering the bathroom. It bears no resemblance to the accidental activation of a completely different button. The other poster's correction: "it’s like brushing your teeth with razor" is apt. Touching the fuel cutoff switches is not part of any procedure remotely relevant to the takeoff, so there's no trigger present that would prompt the automatic behavior.
- cjbprime 1y agoNow I'm trying to remember if I've ever picked up my razor and accidentally begun tooth brushing motions with it. Probably! More relevantly, you seem to me to be unduly confident about what this pilot's associative triggers might and might not be.
- bapak 1y agoGood analogy. Things I do every day in front of the mirror, but I occasionally attempt to squeeze some soap on my toothbrush. Or I have to brush my teeth and I find my beard foamed up. Or I walk out of the shower after only rinsing myself with water.
- ninkendo 1y agoI've definitely put shaving cream on my toothbrush before.
- mnahkies 1y agoNot a bathroom one, but the number of times I've tried to pay for public transport with my work/office fob is mental. Generally happens on days where I'm feeling sharper than average but also consumed with problem solving
- interestica 1y agoIt depends on how that person internalized and learned the behaviour. We store things differently.
- uwagar 1y agothis bathroom thing and various similar scenarios happens to me when im on weed.
- russfink 1y agoGenuinely curious - could heavy marijuana use cause confusion between landing gear and fuel cutoff? Or some other drugs? (Wondering if they screen pilots for alcohol before they board an aircraft.)
- 1970-01-01 1y agoTechnically an overstatement but not by much. Correctly restated, its highly unlikely these actions were confusing pilots. It's as if you mistook flushing your toilet twice when instead you wanted to turn on the lights in your bathroom.
- cjbprime 1y agoI don't agree with the "twice". A frequently performed manipulation like the fuel cutoff (usually performed after landing) collapses down to a single intention that is carried out by muscle memory, not two consciously selected actions.
- 1970-01-01 1y agoYour opinion is valid but definitely doesn't align with any evidence.
- panxyh 1y agoWhat a shallow, copy-paste response. His statement was about a certain, obviously real tendency in general, existence of which is reasonable to assume there is enough research about. He objected not to the unlikelihood of an accidental manipulation, but to the potential flaw in your comparison (which was at best a valid opinion).
- 1970-01-01 1y agoCan you elaborate on why you think I copied and pasted my response? There is no evidence of it existing anywhere other than my cerebrum: https://www.google.com/search?q=%22Your+opinion+is+valid+but+definitely+doesn%27t+align+with+any+evidence.%22 https://www.google.com/search?q=%22Your+opinion+is+valid+but... I think you're misarticulating my argument.
- account42 1y agoWell if we are going by "unlikely" equals "didn't happen" then we can conclude that the plane didn't crash.
- fatata123 1y ago[dead]