Technology As Substitute For Attention
from the the-machine-that-goes-bing dept
Some places are trying to cut down on people being distracted by talking on their cell phones while they drive by banning it, but these efforts are largely fruitless. Now, a guy from the West Coast thinks he can help the problem by making phones beep when they come within 300 feet of a traffic light -- an idea he came up with after being hit by a car while crossing the street for the second time. The idea is to have GPS-equipped phones have a software map storing the location of traffic lights in a particular area, then sounding the beep when it comes within a certain proximity to one. It's unclear how this would be helpful in areas without traffic lights, or in areas where the lights are densely packed, like many urban environments. Consultants that the guy has hired think it's a wonderful idea, but it's hard to see any carriers or insurance companies giving it the green light.
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I have a better idea...
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Re: I have a better idea...
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Re: I have a better idea...
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No Subject Given
firstly if you have gps why bother with the traffic lights - just detect how fast you are moving.
Secondly - (and some of these negate my above argument) what if you are the passenger? on a bus? walking along the sidewalk near the lights?
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Re: No Subject Given
Good question.
> on a bus?
You could view it as an opportunity to STFU and stop annoying your neighbours on the bus, of course :]
> walking along the sidewalk near the lights?
Just because you're a pedestrian doesn't absolve you of responsibility to be aware of your environment, nor does it grant you the right to sail out across tarmac oblivious to, and inconveniencing, those who've paid for the right to use it. (You still have the right to kill yourself by walking out in front of a car, and to expect the driver to sue for damage caused, of course.)
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What if?
What if people didn't have the constant urge to talk on their cell phones!
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No Subject Given
Yah – distracting drivers as they approach intersections – that is going to make the world safer.
I though the problem of using your phone whilst driving was that it was distracting? How is it, that using the phone to distract you will not cause the same problem?
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No Subject Given
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Did any of you prev posters think maybe...
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What happens to the pedestrian?
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LOOK BOTH WAYS BEFORE YOU CROSS THE STREET
Sure, cell phones are distracting, but that is to the driver - what distracts the pedestrian from looking both ways as soon as he enters the intersection.... hmmm. let me day dream about that for a few minutes and I'll get back to you when I'm done [while my attention is someplace else, I choose to cross a busy street without paying attention and I am plowed down... gee, how could that be 100% my fault? TWICE!!!]
Look both ways when you cross the street,
Left and right, what do you see?
If no cars are coming, you're safe as can be.
Look both ways, look both ways.
I have some friends who live down the road
And that's where I go to play.
They live close, I can walk, but before I can go,
Mommy and Daddy say.
Look both ways when you cross the street,
Left and right, what do you see?
If no cars are coming, you're safe as can be.
Look both ways, look both ways.
I like to walk to the store where I know
They have candy and bubble gum.
I hold Mommy's hand when we cross at the corner
And I hear my Daddy say.
Look both ways when you cross the street,
Left and right, what do you see?
If no cars are coming, you're safe as can be.
Look both ways, look both ways.
We like to ride on our bikes all the time,
We go fast and we go pretty far.
We don't take chances, we always look twice,
So that we don't get squashed by a car.
Look both ways when you cross the street,
Left and right, what do you see?
If no cars are coming, you're safe as can be.
Look both ways, look both ways.
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Re: LOOK BOTH WAYS BEFORE YOU CROSS THE STREET
It is perfectly reasonable for me to assume that if the walk light is up and traffic has a red light, I am not going to be hit. But apparantly to the drivers as long as there is no cop around red lights are for suckers. For 8 years I have watched this get worse, almost every state has a law "Pedestrians have the right of way in crosswalks."
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Re: LOOK BOTH WAYS BEFORE YOU CROSS THE STREET
Be a defensive pedestrian. Part of doing so is to pay attention to your environment, just as the topic of this article states... and stop relying 100% on technology (but this should just go without saying).
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Misguided
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Another bleeping patent
Did I say how I recently tripped over a "wet floor" warning sign, left behind when the floor was long dry?
A better idea is to change the lights to red and keep them red until all drivers switch off their 'phones. Or get lynched. Quick, patent it!
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Re: Another bleeping patent
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