Travis In Austin

That is pretty much it, very close anyway.

That is technically possible right now, an interlock device that would require an access code, just like a cable box, that would allow the car to be started for the length of time insurance is purchased for. 15/30/5 is incredibly low, but they keep low limits to try and keep more people insured, you bump the minimums less people can afford to pay for it, more become uninsured, which requires the rest of us to make sure we have maximum limits on UM/UIM, med pay and/or PIP if your state/insurer offers it. It is also possible today to have devices instaled in vehicles, for less than $100, that will not allow you to start a car with alcohol in your system. The threshold could be selected by whomever, DOT, legislature, etc. It could be .04, .07, .08, etc. It requires a breath sample before you start the vehicle. For more money it can be done by skin sensor. We could very easily automate insurance compliance and DUI/DWI prevention. Why don't we?

Remote piloting has significant lag times that make it unsuitable for commercial passenger flight. The main problem is that you still have the problem of the remote pilot having a meltdown, or being coerced into a terrible act. A three person flight crew with a mandatory two people present at all times would avoid some of this. In the Egypt Air crash, the captain was able to return to the cockpit and his seat but the copilot kept pushing down on the yoke as the captain tried to pull up which resulted in a split elevator, one side trying to dive, the other the opposite. I think the captain didn't even consider that his copilot was trying to kill everyone. He kept asking questions about power, etc. all the way down. There are protocols to avoid this, you simply say "my aircraft" and if he won't let go you smash his head in with a flashlight.

That might be Egypt Air (990?), in which one pilot who was alone in the cockpit began Islamist chanting and dove the plane into the Atlantic, in a horrifying similarity to German Wings. I was thinking of LAM Flight 470 in 2013 which crashed in Namibia. That investigagation determined it to be intentional. I don't know if they ever were able to determine the motive as to why. Travis

I am pretty familar with AF 447 crash and can say that was pretty much stupidity, arrogance and the problems with digital fly by wire and side stick,instead of dual, controls. A transcript of that VCR is set forth in this article http://www.popularmechanics.com/flight/a3115/what-really-happened-aboard-air-france-447-6611877/ I don't know about conspiracies, but there has been studies and discussions about cockpit communications and dynamics for years about how the human mind can get in a closed loop that ignors training and experience. It is the field of cognitive science and here is an excellent article/chaptet as that field relates specifically to commercial aviation safety. The studies Dr Norman cites date back as far as the 80s and 90s. Thirty seconds to realize the pilot is dead, best case, as long as never realizing and crashing because you are afraid to question your boss. That is why these investigations and things to be learned are crucial. http://www.jnd.org/dn.mss/chapter_16_coffee_c.html It seems like we had a flight a year or two ago where the pilot went crazy or suicidal?

Brings up an interesting question, because technically you're supposed to pay royalties when you play covers, and you're supposed to have a mechanical license when recording. Curious as to if she does this. Also curious as to how bad Prince would flip out if she did one of his songs. For a video, like YouTube, you don't need a mechnical license, you need a synchronization license. Most publishers have entered into agreements with Youtube by agreeing to share a portion of advertising revenues. That is why you are not supposed to be able put your own ads on a copyrighted song, Youtube automatically puts an ad on any copyrighted song and splits that money with publisher at a prearranged rate.

15 year old Desiree Bassett playing on stage with Barry Goudreau. https://youtu.be/d4QsW7MgMkc

Market share. So is there money in that? For some there is. http://www.wikihow.com/Earn-Money-on-YouTube http://www.businessinsider.com/richest-youtube-stars-2014-3 I looked at the wikihow, which confirmed my understanding, you make money by allowing ads. But you cannot use ads on material which is copyrighted.

Market share. So is there money in that?

Musically she is incredibly average. Is she talented? Maybe, but not enough to even be a street performer yet. With voice lessons, a lot of hard work, maybe. It doesn't meet the definition of exploitation. She is classified as a Youtube personality, What the heck is that?

I couldnt imagine what it would be like to be the guy that has to dig through the wreckage to pull the black box out. They are in the tail section which generally remains intact as was the case here with one of them. I am sure it wasn't a pretty site and I sure wouldn't want to have to do it. God rest their souls.

Any science to go with that, or just religion? Dave He's not making any larger leaps than you are. It is one thing to discuss and debate the technology, capabilities, pros, cons, etc.. but it is another when you claim to know time lines and how it will be implemented and accepted by society. How any technology fits into a culture can be full of surprises. I wish I had more time. This could be fun.

Living in an astronaut neighborhood I have been told reliably the shuttle, like the FB117, and B2 are not flyable without computers. The computers provide a pilot with an illusion of stability that is entirely produced by the machine to allow them to steer it as they normally do. RB-72 may be normally entirely unmanned, as well as the B3. I will certainly agree this is a whole other ball game than a ground vehicle. As for take off and orbit...never have seen a hand on the controls. Dave The shuttle was most definitely digital fly by wire, but the computer does not assist with stability control as in the case of the F-117 and B-2 which are flying wings and inherently unstable and probably incapable of routine manual flight on a sustained basis just like Northrop's original flying wing was. No liftoff has been done manually by any rocket, not Mercury, Gemini or Saturn/Apollo. They didn't even have computers to get into orbit initially. The first living thing into space was a dog, our first living thing was a chimp. Getting up requires no automation at all, just escape speed, it is the getting back that is the hard part. The shuttle did have an autoland system available but it was never certified for use, and never used. Deviations in orbit had, at times, a man at the controls. For example, docking, every docking operation with ISS was completely manual. The Space Shuttle was never capable of automonus "flight" nor was it meant to be, the landing gear had to be lowered by the actual flick of a switch. My source is Ret. Col. Gregory Johnson, pilot on two shuttle missions (pilots don't land it, the commander does, but have to be able to do so) who was a classmate of mine at UT in a management course. The B-3, if made, will most certainly have flight controls (a stick), and two seats for people to sit in. Whether they will actually sit in it remains to be seen. It won't even be nuclear capable initially if it is built. The X-37B is a pretty much autonomus spacecraft, so we are capable of doing so but have chosen not to in the case of manned spaceflight.

"Volvo's system is what's considered Level 3 autonomous driving. That is, able to navigate along a given road safely all by itself. Level 4 is the sort of system Google is working on, where you can punch in an address and then curl up in the back seat for a bit of a nap if you like. Volvo pledges to lease 100 of these Level 3 cars to the citizens of Gothenberg in 2017. (Other cities should come soon after, with LA and Shanghai mentioned as high-value targets.) Google, too, hopes to have its system on the roads by the end of the same year, but with no automotive partners announced it's not difficult to be skeptical." Well if I had bothered to read down, I would have seen the above quote. They are leasing them? Why? Technology and cost reduction will make them obsolete is less than 3 years? The guy from Delphi said it would be transitional, and he belives a majority of Level 4 cars on the road will be abiut 2050, I can easily see that, assuming they can get price down to what an average consumer can afford and is willing to pay.

Except for the landings. EVERY Space Shuttle landing was made by a human, disengaged from computers, starting at least 25 miles out. There were too many variables for a computer to handle a dead stick landing of an aircraft having the glideslope of a brick (-20 degrees nose down attitude, begin pitching up at 2,500' AGL,roughly 6 times steeper than a commercial airliner). It would have been too costly and taken too long to develop. How much will the Volvo be? What level of automation are they striving for by 2017?

All the St Augustine around here thrives on full sun. Just don't let it get crunchy from lack of water and it'll grow like crazy. From Texas A&MA number of cultivars have been developed: 'Captiva' - released in 2007. Developed by the University of Florida for its resistance to the southern chinch bug[7] and its dwarf profile, which requires less mowing. 'Floratam' - released in 1973. Resists the viral infection St. Augustine decline (SAD) and the chinch bug. Not as cold- or shade-tolerant. 'Floratine' - released in 1959. Has a darker color and finer texture. Tolerates lower temperatures and needs less mowing. 'Palmetto' - released in the mid-1990s. A smaller, lighter green grass. 'Raleigh' - released in 1980. Tolerant of cold, but susceptible to insects and disease. 'Sapphire' - released in 2004. Selected from Australia for its dark blue-green leaves and purple stolons and rapid lateral growth. 'Seville' - released in 1980. Similar to 'Floratam', but with a finer texture. 'Texas Common' - Most similar to the natural species, it has fallen out of favor due to its susceptibility to the incurable SAD virus.

I will be in London for a few days before venturing to the white cliffs of Dover and then Normandy. Good thought! There is a dealer/Jubilee owner in the UK, not sure if he is in London though.

Spoken like a man who's never watched a world rally race. I would much prefer michelle Mouton driving me than a computer. She's a bit dried out and crusty by now..... For me, for mixed or pure off road, I'd love to ride shotgun with Sebastien Loeb..... or even Ivan Stewart. Well that is probably true, so old and crusty that she now runs World Rally for FIA. She drove in Group B, a class that at the end had over 500 hp but driver and spectator deaths led to the ban on Group B and they are now running at what, 300hp in WRC?

That's what I thought….trade in the B&K for P37s. Guys that pull down 7 digits don't have WAF in their vocabulary. LoL, without exception, every person I know who is married that makes 7 digits has WAF to consider, and the necessity for WAF is directly and exponentially proportional to the amount of money earned. However, what WAF may be varies from individual to individual, and may have nothing to do with what the wife likes or would choose, but rather, is often related to what she believes will make him the happiest. I know a doctor on here whose wife ordered him Jubilees as a surprise for Christmas. I know another doctor on here who has owned LaScalas, WMW, other pro equipment, Lascalas, and Jubilees, and his wife also bought him a pair of McIntosh tower array speakers. I know another doctor on here that owns KHorns, is quoted in the PWK biography, and has been a long, long time happy listener with vinyl and tape for sources. If you can get him/her an nearby easy listen to jubes, he probably won't even be interested in B&W. If he wants more plug and play, get him a listen to some Khorns properly set up in a similar size room he is looking at.

I think the head guy at Delphi is pretty realistic about when a fully automated model will be available to the public and he sees more of a transition. http://www.cthreereport.com/connected-car-council-member-profile-john-absmeier-director-of-delphi-labs-silicon-valley-delphi-automotive/

I agree with that model whole heartedly. But the automakers won't and so it would have to be government run or subsidized, which is socialization, which freaks people out here. We have a private version in Austin, Cars2go which I have seen in tge Metroplex, it is relatively expensive. Perfect for high-rise dweller that has everything they need close by and needs it for occasional journey here or there, but they charge by minute and Uber might even be cheeper.

I have had St. Augustine for years, and had to revitalize what previous people have done. Previous posts have addressed how I solved my problems. I took photos and brough them down to a local St. Augustine dealer with a soil sample. Between the fungas that causes brown spot, white grubs, and needed to spread organic material, it became emerald green. Organic is much better than fertilizer, St. Augustine you can burn very easily. What you see in your photos could easily be from over fertilization as soil. It doesn't look like white grubs to me, but that is an easy check. The grubs chew the roots and you grab a piece and if it pulls out real easy it is crubs. It it is brown and still has good healthy roots than brown spot. That fungus spreads everywhere. If you dont mow it yourself it can be carried from a mower used on previous guys lawn. You will save time and headaches by taking a lot of digital photos and going down to the local sod seller. If it is grub damage you are going to need new sod anyway.

I figured it out now. Well, you are certainly right about Iceland being way different. Here you typically have to be either driving or operating. So there you could be at home, clearly drunk, go out to get something out of your car, like a CD and they can get you for DWI?

Well, and then there is that.

As I said before, the technology has been demonstrated and in place since the late 90s. It is a matter of cost. Safety doesn't sell, never has and never wwill to the average consumer. Why are there now three point safety belts for every occupant position in a vehicle? Because of federal law mandating it. How much are the initial AVs going to cost? Apparently the cost of a Tesla S. Here is an article from last year discussing cost as a factor in the demand for AVs and in terms of sales. The head guy on automation from Delphi is quoted. http://m.fastcompany.com/3025722/will-you-ever-be-able-to-afford-a-self-driving-car The article also touches on a very important study just done every year, the average cost of a car. The average price of a car now exceeds the average income earnet in the US can afford. The technology will not take off until they can get the price down to being what the average new car buyer can afford through price, incentives like tax credits or subsidies, and/or state or federal mandates, but probably a combination thereof. It will most certainly happen, Ford will offer it in 2017, and a small percentage will buy it. More will buy it if you can use HOV lanes with it, and still more will buy it with a tax credit. 10, 20, 30 years? It is all a function of price and public policy makers (read legislators).