Logan O'Leary: Outside Reading 1

As cars slowly become more autonomous, I started to read more about them and the possible impacts they can have on the future. There are six levels of autonomy, with level 0 being the standard with everything being controlled by humans, to level 5 where there is no human intervention needed in any situation. This is an important thing to consider because it can have a major impact on the safety of drivers, the economy, and the environment. In theory, safety will increase as the levels of self driving increase. These vehicles will be able to react much faster than humans can and will not make maneuvers that can put others in danger like a human would. The economic effects are more unclear. These vehicles will allow people who may be unable to drive to commute to stores and possibly work, but it will also remove many people from the work place like truck and taxi drivers. Finally there is the effect on the environment. As self driving cars become more popular, it is likely that the average number of miles driven per year will increase. This means that there could be a negative impact on the environment if gasoline still powers a majority of cars at the time. In my opinion, I think these cars are a good thing but we should take some precaution when ushering them in, so as to slowly replace jobs and move toward more sustainable energy sources in order to have the best impact on the future.