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"If you have a gut response to a story, you are not responding to something new ..you are really responding to a story you were told when you were six or seven…"
- Samuel R. Delany
 |
| Driverless Car | ||
| A car that drives itself; an autonomous vehicle. |
John Poorson, inventor, was inspired by an all-to-common circumstance:
"And that is just one more reason why the average human being should not be allowed to drive such a powerful machine!" he mused to himself. "it has taken the combined intelligence of all the scientists of modern time to perfect the automobile and yet it is sold to and driven by any moronic fool who is able to gather together the few dollars necessary to buy a secondhand one."
Now, let's see what he created in response to this incident.
The glancing blow from the recklessly driven automobile had spun him into the gutter, but had injured little except his pride and his clothing.
| "I want to show you something new in the way of an automobile."
"Nothing new about this," laughed Babson, scornfully. "One of our best and most familiar models." "How about the steering wheel?" "Where is it?" "I do not need one. Sit down and make yourself comfortable. Now watch me. We are going into traffic..." |
| From The Living Machine,
by David H. Keller. Published by Wonder Stories in 1935 Additional resources -
|
Just think of the advantages of the self driving car!
As far as I know, this is the first reference to the idea of an autonomous automobile.
Compare to the Automatic Control Car from Arthur C. Clarke's Imperial Earth.
Old people began to cross the continent in their own cars. Young people found the driverless car admirable for petting. The blind for the first time were safe. Parents found they could more safely send their children to school in the new car than in the old cars with a chauffeur.
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Additional
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More Ideas
and Technology from The Living Machine
More Ideas
and Technology by David H. Keller
Tech news articles related to The Living Machine
Tech news articles related to works by David H. Keller
Driverless Car-related
news articles:
- A Baker's Dozen Of Autonomous Car-Related Revolutions
- Google Should Name Roads After Science Fiction Authors
- Baby Boomers Will LOVE Autonomous Cars (Trust Me!)
- Tesla's To Eye Future With New Sensors?
- Sex In Driverless Cars? Updated With Video!
- Cruise Autonomous Car Drives Aimlessly For An Hour
- Autonomous Waymo Jaguar I-PACEs In San Francisco
| Seoul Self-Driving 42dot Bus Unveiled |
| Electric Jet Boats From Enevate and Sealence Collab |
| Alcohol-Sensing Cars - NTSB Catches Up With Philip K. Dick (1963) |
| Tianjin Solar Vehicle From Hanergy (2022) Looking Like Heinlein's (1940) |
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'LET ME TELL YOU HOW MUCH I'VE COME TO HATE YOU SINCE I BEGAN TO LIVE.'
'...a rolled-up sheet of a thin, dark metal strange to them.'
'... his contract with Space Industries required him to work summers in their orbital factory complex.'
'Space-weather men had been placed at their disposal...'
With each successive print, our model needed to incorporate more structural ingredients to minimize print failures.
'... Wendis stared thoughtfully at the brilliant lines on the spectroscope screen.'
'A special spot-wavex scrambler also caused his televised image, in the area immediately about his lips, to mouth the vowels and consonants beautifully.'
'... it was as if the upper part had been removed, like a cut deck of cards.'
Sumomo will get those office workers into good shape!
