Essay Available:
Pages:
7 pages/≈1925 words
Sources:
6
Style:
MLA
Subject:
Literature & Language
Type:
Essay
Language:
English (U.S.)
Document:
MS Word
Date:
Total cost:
$ 25.2
Topic:
Research paper. Autonomous vehicles. The objective of this essay is to write and support an argument
Essay Instructions:
The objective of this essay is to write and support an argument. In other words, you must select a problem related to technology, progress, or another idea, and propose a researched solution, or you must take a position and argue your stance on that particular topic. You could argue either the positive or negative effect of a particular technology’s impact on relationships by focusing on a specific type of relationship or specific interactions — i.e. parent/child interactions, internet dating, teenage use of social media, cyberbullying, etc.
Essay Sample Content Preview:
Student Name
Course
Instructor
Date
Autonomous vehicles
This essay highlights the social dilemma faced by the programmers of the autonomous vehicles in relation to safety issues. The problems resulting from the use of cars have prompted the need to change how transport is managed and apply ICT and intelligent systems to manage the transport system. One of the solutions is smart transportation which is based on a balance of taxonomy, regulation, and corporation. One of the components of intelligent transportation is driverless cars. These vehicles are expected to operate within cooperative networks, communicate with each other, consider the context and conditions and relieve the driver of the effort. The cars have the potential to reduce traffic congestion, accidents, fuel, and consumption. However, they have to choose between two evils. The vehicles have to decide whether to run over pedestrians and save the passengers or to sacrifice themselves and the occupants and save the pedestrians. Hence, when programming decision-making based on moral principles, the manufacturers have to choose between self-interest and the public good.
The idea of driverless cars came to light in 2007 when scientific advances allowed teams to compete in the DARPA Challenge (Bonnefon et al. 1). The event provided a real test for autonomous vehicles to operate in urban settings. Since then, companies like Google, Volvo, GM, Ford, Tesla, and many others have invested in research to build fully driverless cars. It is clear that the automobile industry will change more drastically in the next 20 years that it has in the last 100 years (Muoio 1). For a long time, cars have remained reasonably simple with a combination of human and mechanics. However, the introduction of GPS technology, high definition cameras and, infrared and radar scanning have resulted in a game changer car. The combination of these technologies has enabled the development of advanced cars which are capable of operating even within the cities.
It is fascinating to imagine how the world will look like if all the cars are fully automated. Firstly, traffic accidents will reduce drastically. It would be much safer to use the roads. Road accidents are the eighth leading cause of death in the world today (Norheim et al. 243). About 90% to 95% of these accidents are due to human error like drunk driving and distraction (Bener et al. 500). Further, the economic cost of road accidents is high. The absence of human error while driving would lead to much safer journeys. Once driverless cars become commonplace in the streets, it is expected that accidents will reduce by about 90% (Chan 213). Additionally, autonomous vehicles will reduce traffic congestion. Automated vehicles can eliminate stop-and-go waves which result from human driving behavior. Under normal conditions, human drivers create the stop-and-go traffic even where there are no bottlenecks and other disruptions. The ability of the autonomous vehicles to pack closer together would allow more cars on the road and short traffic times. In addition, the vehicles would increase lane capacity and increase expressway travel speeds by more than 20%. The vehicles could also lead to a higher vehicle throughput rate on the existing roads.
Furthermore, driverless cars would lower fuel consumption (Wadud et al. 4). The technology would facilitate more smooth acceleration and deceleration than a human driver can achieve. As the frequency of crushes reduces, the manufacturers can make much lighter vehicles which would require less fuel to operate. Also, these vehicles would provide transport accessibility for older adults and people with disabilities. It would be easier for these individuals to access these vehicles and commute to work, visit a doctor and see family members. Still, travel time and transportation costs will reduce. The vehicles would reduce the time lost in congestion which also cuts down on fuel consumption. The elimination of drivers and law enforcement officers saves costs.
While autonomous vehicles present numerous benefits to the society, they raise ethical issues. It is essential to consider the ethical problems which may arise. A case scenario by Lin (70) may assist to demonstrate ethical dilemmas with autonomous vehicles. An autonomous vehicle may have two alternatives. While on high velocity, the vehicle may have to swerve on the left and kill an eight-year-old girl or veer to the other side and knock an 80-year old grandmother. Since the vehicle is on high velocity, failure to swerve to either side would lead to the death of both the girl and the grandmother. Hence, it swerving on either side appears as the most viable option. However, the choice brings a serious dilemma. Some would think that striking the grandmother would be the lesser evil. The girl is young and could grow up to become anything, whereas the grandmother has had a full life. While it is undeniable that the life of the grandmother is as precious as that of the girl, there are reasons to save the girls. However, either choice is ethically incorrect. While designing the autonomous vehicles, the engineers must take into consideration such possible scenarios.
Sometimes, the programmers may have the best of intentions while designing the algorithms controlling the autonomous vehicles. For instance, the algorithm operating the vehicle may adjust the buffering space it allocates the pedestrians depending on the district. The algorithm may determine the buffering space after analyzing data from civil proceedings in the particular area. While this is an efficient way for the algorithm to control the behavior of the vehicle, it may have adverse effects on the outcomes of the pedestrians. It could be that the fewer settlements were because the individuals injured were from poor neighborhoods. As a result, the algorithm would end up punishing the poor by minimizing buffering space and risking their lives. It is essential to note that the intentions of the developers may be good. The developers could have envisioned that where the liability claims are high, the algorithm needs to increase the buffer distance to avoid more claims.
It is essential to determine the extent of the autonomy for the driverless vehicles. For an autonomous vehicle, there must be a balance of control of the human and the robot and how that co...
Course
Instructor
Date
Autonomous vehicles
This essay highlights the social dilemma faced by the programmers of the autonomous vehicles in relation to safety issues. The problems resulting from the use of cars have prompted the need to change how transport is managed and apply ICT and intelligent systems to manage the transport system. One of the solutions is smart transportation which is based on a balance of taxonomy, regulation, and corporation. One of the components of intelligent transportation is driverless cars. These vehicles are expected to operate within cooperative networks, communicate with each other, consider the context and conditions and relieve the driver of the effort. The cars have the potential to reduce traffic congestion, accidents, fuel, and consumption. However, they have to choose between two evils. The vehicles have to decide whether to run over pedestrians and save the passengers or to sacrifice themselves and the occupants and save the pedestrians. Hence, when programming decision-making based on moral principles, the manufacturers have to choose between self-interest and the public good.
The idea of driverless cars came to light in 2007 when scientific advances allowed teams to compete in the DARPA Challenge (Bonnefon et al. 1). The event provided a real test for autonomous vehicles to operate in urban settings. Since then, companies like Google, Volvo, GM, Ford, Tesla, and many others have invested in research to build fully driverless cars. It is clear that the automobile industry will change more drastically in the next 20 years that it has in the last 100 years (Muoio 1). For a long time, cars have remained reasonably simple with a combination of human and mechanics. However, the introduction of GPS technology, high definition cameras and, infrared and radar scanning have resulted in a game changer car. The combination of these technologies has enabled the development of advanced cars which are capable of operating even within the cities.
It is fascinating to imagine how the world will look like if all the cars are fully automated. Firstly, traffic accidents will reduce drastically. It would be much safer to use the roads. Road accidents are the eighth leading cause of death in the world today (Norheim et al. 243). About 90% to 95% of these accidents are due to human error like drunk driving and distraction (Bener et al. 500). Further, the economic cost of road accidents is high. The absence of human error while driving would lead to much safer journeys. Once driverless cars become commonplace in the streets, it is expected that accidents will reduce by about 90% (Chan 213). Additionally, autonomous vehicles will reduce traffic congestion. Automated vehicles can eliminate stop-and-go waves which result from human driving behavior. Under normal conditions, human drivers create the stop-and-go traffic even where there are no bottlenecks and other disruptions. The ability of the autonomous vehicles to pack closer together would allow more cars on the road and short traffic times. In addition, the vehicles would increase lane capacity and increase expressway travel speeds by more than 20%. The vehicles could also lead to a higher vehicle throughput rate on the existing roads.
Furthermore, driverless cars would lower fuel consumption (Wadud et al. 4). The technology would facilitate more smooth acceleration and deceleration than a human driver can achieve. As the frequency of crushes reduces, the manufacturers can make much lighter vehicles which would require less fuel to operate. Also, these vehicles would provide transport accessibility for older adults and people with disabilities. It would be easier for these individuals to access these vehicles and commute to work, visit a doctor and see family members. Still, travel time and transportation costs will reduce. The vehicles would reduce the time lost in congestion which also cuts down on fuel consumption. The elimination of drivers and law enforcement officers saves costs.
While autonomous vehicles present numerous benefits to the society, they raise ethical issues. It is essential to consider the ethical problems which may arise. A case scenario by Lin (70) may assist to demonstrate ethical dilemmas with autonomous vehicles. An autonomous vehicle may have two alternatives. While on high velocity, the vehicle may have to swerve on the left and kill an eight-year-old girl or veer to the other side and knock an 80-year old grandmother. Since the vehicle is on high velocity, failure to swerve to either side would lead to the death of both the girl and the grandmother. Hence, it swerving on either side appears as the most viable option. However, the choice brings a serious dilemma. Some would think that striking the grandmother would be the lesser evil. The girl is young and could grow up to become anything, whereas the grandmother has had a full life. While it is undeniable that the life of the grandmother is as precious as that of the girl, there are reasons to save the girls. However, either choice is ethically incorrect. While designing the autonomous vehicles, the engineers must take into consideration such possible scenarios.
Sometimes, the programmers may have the best of intentions while designing the algorithms controlling the autonomous vehicles. For instance, the algorithm operating the vehicle may adjust the buffering space it allocates the pedestrians depending on the district. The algorithm may determine the buffering space after analyzing data from civil proceedings in the particular area. While this is an efficient way for the algorithm to control the behavior of the vehicle, it may have adverse effects on the outcomes of the pedestrians. It could be that the fewer settlements were because the individuals injured were from poor neighborhoods. As a result, the algorithm would end up punishing the poor by minimizing buffering space and risking their lives. It is essential to note that the intentions of the developers may be good. The developers could have envisioned that where the liability claims are high, the algorithm needs to increase the buffer distance to avoid more claims.
It is essential to determine the extent of the autonomy for the driverless vehicles. For an autonomous vehicle, there must be a balance of control of the human and the robot and how that co...
Get the Whole Paper!
Not exactly what you need?
Do you need a custom essay? Order right now: