re: How not to put computers in control -- Toyota as runaway machines

[Dave Farber <dave () farber net>]

Begin forwarded message:

> From: Dan Gillmor <dan () gillmor com>
> Date: March 10, 2010 11:18:49 AM EST
> To: dave () farber net
> Subject: Re: [IP] How not to put computers in control -- Toyota as  
> runaway machines

> The writer below pointed to yesterday's CNN piece, which the news  
> channel ran incessantly during the day. He was right to note that  
> the problem is poor risk procedures, but that's not the message the  
> public got from the CNN report. The channel had video it could use,  
> and it used the video the way TV news loves fires and car chases.  
> This was putrid journalism, and more of the same from an industry  
> that absolutely refuses to give the public any information about  
> relative risk.
>
> Just once, I'd like to see a journalism organization take a few  
> minutes to do a calculation on how likely anyone of us may be --  
> assuming the extremely unlikely worst case with available data -- to  
> be in an accident caused by machine-caused sudden acceleration on  
> any given car trip. You'd imagine, based on the coverage, that  
> you're seriously risking your life every time you go to the store  
> when the real odds of something going wrong are, what, one in 50  
> million or so?
>
> Again, I don't doubt that there are problems with computer controls  
> in vehicles (not just Toyota), and that Toyota has handled this  
> situation poorly at best. The sooner we have kill switches for all  
> vehicles that operate with any amount of drive-by-wire systems, the  
> better. I fear that will occur long before we have responsible  
> journalism.
>
>
>
> Dan
>
> > > The absence of a clearly labeled, directly acting with no  
> > > intermediate
> > > computer control, fail-safe, zero delay, emergency power off (EPO)
> > > switch, which is mandatory for machines that can cause an injury  
> > > if not
> > > halted immediately, is becoming obvious:
> > >
> > > http://www.cnn.com/2010/US/03/08/california.runaway.prius/index.html?hpt=T2
> > >
> > > Toyota's problem is not the computerization of cars -- the problem  
> > > is
> > > not following well-established risk procedures when putting  
> > > computers in
> > > control.



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