SoylentNews is people
SoylentNews
If you think it is okay to talk to your car infotainment system or smartphone while driving or even when stopped at a red light, think again. It takes up to 27 seconds to regain full attention after issuing voice commands, University of Utah researchers found in a pair of new studies for the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety.
One of the studies showed that it is highly distracting to use hands-free voice commands to dial phone numbers, call contacts, change music and send texts with Microsoft Cortana, Apple Siri and Google Now smartphone personal assistants, though Google Now was a bit less distracting than the others.
The other study examined voice-dialing, voice-contact calling and music selection using in-vehicle information or "infotainment" systems in 10 model-year 2015 vehicles. Three were rated as moderately distracting, six as highly distracting and the system in the 2015 Mazda 6 as very highly distracting.
"Just because these systems are in the car doesn't mean it's a good idea to use them while you are driving," says University of Utah psychology professor David Strayer, senior author of the two new studies. "They are very distracting, very error prone and very frustrating to use. Far too many people are dying because of distraction on the roadway, and putting another source of distraction at the fingertips of drivers is not a good idea. It's better not to use them when you are driving."
(Score: 1, Interesting) by Snotnose on Monday October 26 2015, @12:31AM
I'm sorry, but when I'm stopped at a red light it doesn't really matter what I do. When that light turns green I'm instantly in drive mode again. I don't need 24 seconds to get my act together. If it takes you that long I suggest you learn to use the bus system.
IMHO, that real hazard is farking with the buttons and dials on modern cars. I got a new stereo last year. Push the volume knob and you can select from several menus. Ok, whatever. Except a couple months back I was on the freeway, went to adjust the volume, hit a bump, and voila! I'm now in menu mode, no idea how to get out of it without looking at it, the volume is way too loud (I'd switched from radio to USB, USB is a lot louder for some reason), I'm doing 80 on the freeway. Fortunately I can turn it off from the steering wheel, which I did. Turned it back on and the volume knob was once again a volume knob.
Don't get me started on the climate control mess.
When the dust settled America realized it was saved by a porn star.
(Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Monday October 26 2015, @01:05AM
It's because of global warming.
(Score: 4, Insightful) by Gravis on Monday October 26 2015, @01:20AM
I'm sorry, but when I'm stopped at a red light it doesn't really matter what I do. When that light turns green I'm instantly in drive mode again. I don't need 24 seconds to get my act together.
fantastical! anecdotal evidence that completely ignores their testing methodology!
you deserve a gold metal for bullshit! :)
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday October 26 2015, @01:51AM
Don't get me started on the climate control mess.
I agree, it's all just a hoax!
(Score: 5, Insightful) by lentilla on Monday October 26 2015, @04:45AM
I'm sorry, but when I'm stopped at a red light it doesn't really matter what I do.
Brother, you are profoundly mistaken.
Leaving aside the study we are discussing (which finds significant and continued distraction after interacting with infotainment systems), here is an incomplete list of reasons why it very much matters what you do when stopped at a red light:
Additionally, I have observed two behaviours very common to those that aren't paying attention:
Humans are not computers. We do not have complete situational awareness. If you choose to pilot a machine weighing more than a tonne and capable of maiming or killing someone in an instant, it is your responsibility to pay attention 100% of the time. There are no excuses.
If it takes you that long I suggest you learn to use the bus system.
No. It is you that must take the bus.
IMHO, that real hazard is farking with the buttons and dials on modern cars.
Thankfully, I can agree with you on that part. A radio with a knob works rather well.
Please don't be a distracted driver - no matter how awesome you are. Even if you are awesome, many are not - and we don't want to encourage them, do we? I realise that it's inconvenient. It is; however; the price we pay for the convenience of driving a motor vehicle. Like you say, there's always the bus.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by frojack on Monday October 26 2015, @05:53AM
The study induced as much distraction as it tried to measure.
Equipment festooned all over the windshield, dash, and console, creepy dudes breathing down the drivers neck from the back seat, and cameras waving around on plastic pipes. Really?
You over state your case.
No, you are mistaken. I've always had this sig.
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Monday October 26 2015, @08:43AM
Man, that is a much better post than my own. Unfortunately, the average distracted driver won't bother to read or heed either of our posts. Like GP, they'll just ASSume that they are the exception to the rule.
(Score: 2) by Snotnose on Monday October 26 2015, @02:24PM
I already do all that automatically when the light turns green. I'm not one of those idiots that focuses only on the light, when it goes green they act like they're at the drag strip. Light turns green I look both ways so I avoid the idiots pushing the yellow, avoid the slow pedestrians, etc.
A neat trick. Usually you can see the light on the cross street. When it goes yellow is a good time to get a head start into green light mode.
When the dust settled America realized it was saved by a porn star.
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Monday October 26 2015, @08:37AM
I can't help wondering just what your level of awareness is while you drive. The vast majority of "drivers" on the road are sadly lacking in awareness. People often look at the trunk/tailgate and rear window of the car ahead of them, and that's all they see for minutes at a time. Cars changing lanes ahead and behind are very peripheral, if noticed at all. If you are one of those people, then yeah, maybe you are can switch modes between texting and driving in less time than the study indicates.
Funny thing, I've never seen a motorcycle rider fiddling around with a cell phone while riding. A rider's level of awareness is almost always far higher than someone driving a cage. A rider is looking over the car ahead, he's looking over the car behind, he's intensely aware of vehicles changing lanes, he is watching parked cars, cross traffic, he's aware of what is loaded on the trucks near him, and so much more.
Truck drivers generally have a pretty high situational awareness, though they often fall short of motorcyclists. They see an entirely different world than most motorists. Any good truck driver is using his mirrors as much as a motorcyclist - he KNOWS what is behind him, and beside him.
The typical motorist just doesn't give a damn. He's inside of a cage, protected from the elements, protected from noises, listening to the stereo, and actively searching for distractions from his long, boring drive.
As a motorcyclist, AND a truckdriver, I am perfectly aware that it DOES TAKE TIME to shift mental gears. Distractions are - well - DISTRACTING! Glancing at a billboard with a scantily clad female has meant losing track of the fast moving car coming up from behind. Eyeballing the nearly naked female passing on the left can mean not noticing the cop in the median until it's to late to slow down. (NOTE: most cops will let the girl in the family car pass by 20 mile over the speed limit, to nail either a truck or motorcycle going 15 mph over)
What IS your situational awareness like? Can you survive a day on the road, with a target painted on you, and every damned fool with a key actively trying to kill you? If not - then maybe you're not qualified to judge what a proper level of awareness is.
(Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Monday October 26 2015, @10:47PM
This! I'm a former motorcyclist who survived being hit by a woman who ran a stop sign while distracted. My situational awareness was outstanding compared to most drivers. It was literally a skill that I worked on constantly. But it didn't matter because I didn't see it coming until it was too late to react. These days I'm just a regular driver but I still use those same skills. Last year I put one of the kids through drivers ed but I used a private company rather than the school. She did very well and scored high on the tests but I felt she still wasn't as road aware as she needed to be. We talked about it a lot and I ended up teaching her how to think like a rider. This past summer I had her study and prepare for her motorcycle endorsement as if she were going to pursue it, just to give her a different perspective. The results were incredible. She is now extremely aware of road conditions and other drivers. Her ability to scan for risks has made her a much better driver. Motorcycle safety training should be part of every drivers ed course. Period.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by el_oscuro on Tuesday October 27 2015, @12:12AM
I learned to "drive" on a motorcycle. As a result, I automatically assumed every drive was out to kill me. Even in NM where the drivers are pretty good and polite. Now that I live in DC where every driver is actually batshit insane, that assumption has saved my life.
Back in my motorcyling days, I would be cautious stopping behind a big truck as motorcycles don't have reverse gears. So I would stop a few car lengths behind to ensure I could get out of the way in case the truck started backing up.
Fast forward to a few years ago. I haven't rode a bike in a decade but my old habits remain. I am in my S-10 stuck behind a garbage truck that is stopped in the middle of the road, completely blocking it. The driver is delivering a bill to a house or some shit like that. I see him get back into the truck and assume he'll be on his way in a few seconds.
Instead he slammed it into reverse taking up those 2 car lengths in a few seconds. I slammed it into reverse myself, checking if anyone was behind me. Fortunately no one was and I backed up, trying to get out of the way.
Not fast enough. Even with my truck backing up, the ass end of that garbage truck hit it with enough force to smash the bumper, grill, radiator and stove pipe the hood, all while I was still in reverse trying to escape. Finally, flooring it I was able to escape off to the side while he kept backing up another 30 feet or so before wondering if he hit something.
The jackass said he couldn't see my S-10 "because it was so small". If he had bothered to look behind him before getting into the truck he would have seen me just fine.
SoylentNews is Bacon! [nueskes.com]
(Score: 2) by Snotnose on Tuesday October 27 2015, @12:54AM
I can't help wondering just what your level of awareness is while you drive. The vast majority of "drivers" on the road are sadly lacking in awareness. People often look at the trunk/tailgate and rear window of the car ahead of them, and that's all they see for minutes at a time.
I speed. I do 80 on the freeway, usually the speed limit + 10 MPH on other roads. I average a ticket every 10 years, which implies I'm very good at spotting cops before they spot me.
I always know what's around me. If something happens and I suddenly need to change lanes I almost always know if that lane is open or occupied without looking. People who have no clue of what's around them drive me nuts. These are typically the idiots with hands at 2 and 10, keep a 2 second buffer from the car in front of them, and have no clue that people are passing them on the right and tailgating them with horns blaring and middle fingers in full display.
When the dust settled America realized it was saved by a porn star.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 27 2015, @07:03AM
Holy shit! People like you terrify me...
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Tuesday October 27 2015, @07:09AM
Why? He gets a ticket in a decade, why should he be scary? Because he lives in a different world than you do? Because he is ALIEN?!?! Perhaps you are xenophobic.