Negative Possibility and Self-Driving Cars

Probably Not Like This

As a father of an about to start driving teenager (and yes, I'm mostly mentioning this to freak out the colleagues who remember her from take your very small daughter to work days), I've been watching the advent of self-driving cars with strong interest. The eldest has a troublesome commute to her high school, so we've been eagerly awaiting her milestone day, and the subsequent test. While it will be a while before she turns that into solo trips, it's all in an easy to understand process, the same as driver less driving. But while I eagerly dream of a day when I can set and forget my commute and get in an extra half hour of sleep or work, and feel good about the blind and elderly adding to their quality of life, not to mention never paying for parking again...

Well, not so much with those about to drive. Skepticism towards the technology abounds, along with when it might actually be ready and operational, or having trust that it could ever be better than your own eyes and feet.

This makes no sense, right? The generation that can't ever put down their phones is unwilling to give up the wheel. Maybe it's just a matter of them not having enough experience with soul-deadening commutes, or that they are too tied up in the idea of how easily their tech freezes or fails. But honestly, we put our lives in the hands of technology on such a routine basis, from air traffic controllers to traffic lights, from medical records to food safety, from electrical grids to combustible fuels. But since we don't think about those things, and we do think about robot cars, well, fear.

Intellectually, we know this is a whiff. In our lifetimes, we're likely to regard driving cars in the same way that we look at doctors prescribing cigarettes, or never leaving the home without a hat. But in the short run, driving still represents freedom, independence, and lots of other things best sold in a car commercial.

There's also this: as a species, we are all-in for negative possibility, especially when the tech is new. Take a look at your Internet of Things feed, and I bet it's rife with security concerns. (Along with hackers shutting down your self-driving car.) If a loved one tells you about their new romantic interest, you stare them down hard for flaws. You'll never be more on your guard than the first time you try a new restaurant, or more focused then when you eat something you've never eaten before. Especially if it doesn't look a lot like something else you've eaten.

And with that, folks, I'm also hitting the road. It's time for some true time off, complete with significant road miles to coincide with the kids' spring break. Probably the last one where the eldest won't take the wheel for some part of the journey, too. Feel free to read up on the backlog of M&AD posts -- we're up to nearly 150 pieces in the archives! -- and drive safe. We'll be back in April.

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