Automated Car Crash

Well, it was bound to happen sooner or later. A Tesla automated car crash earlier this week brings new questions to the viability of these self-driving cars.While human error is something we've grown to accept and be relatively comfortable with, not that it's good or beneficial, but rather we accept the fact some drivers can be horrible and they're going to cause a car crash. Some drivers, however, are really good and don't cause car accidents. The expectation for computers and cameras is perfection, and perfection this week was a failure.

One of the greatest things about humans is our creative problem-solving ability. While a computer may say that "X" is the best solution to avoiding a traffic collision, a human can (doesn't mean he always will) find a solution completely off of the spectrum that the computer wasn't even aware of. At least, for now, computers and cameras follow programming and a set of rules. We as humans don't always follow the rules, sometimes to our detriment, but also to our benefit as well. If anything this latest crash sparks questions about the supposed safety upgrade that will reduce human error. Granted it's only one crash but the expectation and hype surrounding these cars are that they're a godsend and infallible. Maybe we should lessen our expectations.The truth of the matter is we probably shouldn't have any expectations this early on. While the idea is nice and sounds great on paper, the thought of computers and cameras taking over something that is so instrumental in so many lives and experiencing even the smallest failure reinforces peoples belief that we're just not ready for this technology. Make no mistake the technology will continue to advance, but much like a cell phone in the nineties, it took a while for the market to perfect and market that technology on a large scale. These vehicles will be even more complicated than a cell phone, not to mention being responsible for the safety of its passengers.