Challenges - Inside Baseball Technology, Labor, and ART

The chief of the British mail service has caught quite a bit of flack for her excitement about driverless trucks and drones. Labor responded harshly, not with actual facts about such technology, or with complaints about loss of jobs, but with brouhaha about the many challenges before driverless vehicles will be ready to roam the streets.

Personally, I think labor would be better off directly expressing its deep concern about jobs than attacking a high-ranking civil servant.  Like the trains and cars of the last two centuries, the driverless industry will vastly impact the next one. Labor should best concentrate on education and retraining for new jobs rather than vitriol.

Sensory limitations of driverless "eyesight"

The New York Times has a nice article that simply explains current obstacles to the widespread use of self-driving vehicles. Specifically, the article discusses what a vehicles "eyes" or sensors must "see" and be programmed to respond to. And, as the article points out, there will be surprises - and accidents - no matter how refined the technology. Most likely, far fewer accidents than with human drivers.

The article has an artistic focus as well, but, to be frank, it did not inspire me.

Now here is art

I  happen to like the look of cute rounded-rectangular driverless pods or bots or whatever you want to call the emerging class of self-driving vehicles, but there is a new shape on the horizon. A triangle, specifically a triangular self-driving bike that requires a human to pedal, but not to navigate. I'm thinking reading or watching a movie while pedaling and the techno-gizmo part of the tricycle decides where to turn and where to stop. Oh, and these are meant for bikeshare programs.

Very cool.

Pretty design counts

Google has a fun side and it is currently being expressed on the sides of its driverless cars. Cute designs resulted from a contest in California. Skyline, nature, people. So un-boring.

Outside design is not the only part of the driverless future that inspires. One writer talks of living in a driverless Winnebago, roaming around, sleeping while in traffic, not needing to be place specific. We can return to the nomadic lifestyle, but with our house vehicles always with us.