Automobile Racing & the driverless car...
 

By the end of this decade, we will have cars that drive themselves.

Technology comes like a thief in the night...when you least expect it, change comes.

Will people go in the future to car racing when eventually it will become a "talent" none of us will posses?

As a computer programmer, I will never willingly sit in a driverless car.

There are literally tens of thousands of scenarios that would need to be accounted for. The first driverless cars will probably account for a few hundred. An "oversight" in the program means that people will die every time certain situations are encountered--or the cars just stop in place because they can't figure out what to do. They will either die in a flame of controversy or be jokes.

I dunno... There are software engineers that are probably more sophisticated than you (and certainly me). I'm willing to bet that the insurance rates (determined by accident rates) will push most of the driving population into driverless cars.

Regarding the OPs question... Why not? Their skills will seem even more impressive to the non driving population! :D

My niece is on Google's team that is working on it. That kid is freaky smart.

Cars with drivers do a good job of doing the above alreadyy. ^^

:p

As an engineer, I can tell you in the 15 years I have been one, I have never met a programer that had a real engineering degree(electrical, nuclear, mechanical, civil, chemical).

A paralegal is not an attorney...a nurse not a doctor...a programmer is not an engineer.

^I know for a fact, because I've met many of them, that the majority of the men and women leading the development of Google's driverless car technology are real engineers (or were at some point, with a degree from a prestigious program) like the ones you mentioned.

I beg to differ... Professional Engineers are a subset of engineers in general. Furthermore, I find it laughable that you would imply that the work these guys are doing is somehow beneath that of a PE/PEng.

Will they also fly, like Popular Science keeps promising us?:p

Given the way the driver-less cars are promoted I don't doubt that in the near future people will watch the races on a game console. It will be a virtual race to be "green." Just different companies will bring their virtual car to a virtual race track. Real racing with human drivers with fuel and tires and real cars will deemed not worthy of the effort.

If the cars are driverless, then what is the point in the owning the car? If you don't care how it drives, and you just want to be transported, then doesn't it makes sense just to let someone else deal with the ownership issues?

Driverless cars will be the future of public transport.

driver-less cars will be safer, more practical and easier to use then normal cars in less then 50 years. i for one look forward to the day. no more texting drivers, no more drunk drivers etc etc ... our roads will be far safer, and have less congestion.

driving will still be a thing, in the same way that riding horses is still a thing.

nothing to fear.

I'm certainly not looking forward to the days of the driverless car. I actually ENJOY driving. Making the car do it for me would take away all the fun.

As long as it is running on a MS operating system, we have nothing to worry about.

Can I get one of these on the dashboard?
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...f6/HAL9000.svg

Exactly! The ownership model will change dramatically. Automobiles currently represent a HUGE investment for many people... Especially when you consider that it sits idle for >90% of the time!

I for one welcome a future in which I can shag my wife on the way home from church.

as do i, but driving a car for fun is not in danger of going away.

riding horses for fun didnt go away when cars were invented no?

On a different note...

I think this could totally revolutionize auto racing as we know it.

Ideally, once the "bugs" are worked out, a computer programmed car would be the fastest on the track and aside for mechanical failure, never make a mistake...right?

If this "vacuum" scenario could be created, it would be amazing to put a computer controlled car or a number of them on a track and let the humans chase/compete with them!

See if and or how badly they would get beat by humans...

Now that's funny - my nomination for one of the quotes of 2014.

This!

I drive a mindnumbingly boring 20 miles each way on flat straight freeway five days a week to get into work (45-60 minutes each way).

If there was anyway I could jump on a train and do that I would be on it like flies on dooky.