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The current transportation system in the United States has flaws, but it is going to have major changes in the near future that will make for faster, safer, and more environmentally friendly travel. The biggest thing that is going to change is the shift to electric vehicles, rather than fuel based. This will lead to a better air quality in cities, reduce cost of operation for consumers, and reduce the risk worldwide of oil spills and other issues caused from the extraction of petroleum for fuel. Many of these vehicles– and eventually all these vehicles– will be self driving/ autonomous, which will lead to a decreased number of driver impaired deaths, as well as make traffic more efficient, thus reducing commute times. There are plans for exciting things such as tunnels, magnetic levitation trains, and hyperloops, that will make commutes even faster, and give some people a cheaper alternative than flying in some cases. All of these things will make for a better way to get around, both for people, and our planet.

My paper connected with my presentation in the way that the arguments from my paper were shortened down and portrayed in simple terms in my presentation. I liked how in the presentation I was able to display a GIF image to show how autonomous traffic would work, as it is somewhat hard to picture it just off of reading it. Overall, the paper and presentation gave off the message that the transportation system in the United States is going to change a lot in the near future, and I went into detail as to why, and what it is going to look like once it changes.

Hyperlink (video of my presentation): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=82lfP-6IPiM

The following is a rough outline of how I will be structuring my paper:

Opening Paragraph:  Introduction, giving a backbone to what I will be talking about/ a little background info to transportation in the united states and where we are at today

Thesis (end of first paragraph): Talk about the issues with the current system (environmental, reliance on so many individuals to be responsible/alert, traffic) and how the transportation system in the United States is going to have some drastic changes in the next decade or two.

Next set of paragraphs: Environmental arguments. Counter arguments being about how it is not that bad in the United States because of regulations.

After that: Explain and go into further detail on the reliance of many individuals to be responsible. I will bring up issues like drinking and driving, falling asleep at the wheel. Counter arguments will be about how autonomous vehicles aren’t fully independent yet, but I will address this.

Last argumentative paragraphs(s): Traffic issues and facts that will be solved in the future. Counter arguments about how people will lose the thrill of driving.

Final paragraph before conclusion: Talk about some exciting things being developed and put into work, as well as some things that are being talked about.

Conclusion: Sum up arguments, restate thesis.

Question to address: What did you learn from Laura’s presentation about mashups/ user-generated content that may help you in our class or in your other academic pursuits? Did she challenge your thinking? Did she offer you advice you will use?

I found Laura’s presentation very fascinating. It was strange at one point when she was zooming in on google maps and ended up zoomed in right where I could see my house and high school, where two bodies were found nearby. The whole presentation style she used with the media sources was very fascinating and I had tried to do a similar style when I made a road trip video from a trip I took two summers ago. I will most definitely be using the google maps features she showed us. She did not necessarily change my way of thinking but she certainly brought me back and re-lit my passion for crime podcasts. I liked her advice of doing your own investigations in libraries when you can not find enough information on the internet, and I think I will do this at some point in my life.

The copyright/copyleft presentation was informative and interesting, and I am glad we had it. It will help me in my careers as a programmer, and especially help me with my hobbies. I have been doing 3D design and music production work on the side with some friends and have worried about copyright issues, but TradeMark cleared some of those things up. The thing he told us where he put terms on his album stating you can’t listen to it, to avoid a lawsuit from someone who heard it and tried to sue him, was genius. My thinking was challenged on a few things I was unsure about, and after the presentation was over I was happy with what I had learned.

The argument I want to present is that a future with self driving autonomous cars and other means of transportation will be safer, more time efficient, and more sustainable for our environment.

Main source for argument:

Mazur, C., Offer, G., Contestabile, M., & Brandon, N. (2018). Comparing the Effects of Vehicle Automation, Policy-Making and Changed User Preferences on the Uptake of Electric Cars and Emissions from Transport. Sustainability,10(3), 676. doi:10.3390/su10030676

Questions to address: What did you learn from Scott Cantor’s presentation about History of Internet 2.0 that may help you in our class or in your other academic pursuits? Did he challenge your thinking? Did he offer you advice you will use?

Scott Cantor’s presentation was educational. I had not learned about the Cloud Act before hearing him talk about it, and I read on eff.org afterwards to learn more about what he was talking about. Learning about eff.org and its resources may help me in the future when I begin web development further down the road when I am more into my CSE major. He did challenge my thinking on the importance of internet safety and privacy, but I personally will not take the steps he talked about to better make myself private. I am fine with my information (aside from financial and personal identification info) regarding searches and social media being public.

I will post my sources that I have chosen to work with for my project here as I find them:

Mazur, C., Offer, G., Contestabile, M., & Brandon, N. (2018). Comparing the Effects of Vehicle Automation, Policy-Making and Changed User Preferences on the Uptake of Electric Cars and Emissions from Transport. Sustainability,10(3), 676. doi:10.3390/su10030676

^^ found through google scholar with full text at: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/10/3/676/htm

I intend to use this source to discuss multiple reasons why electric and autonomous vehicles are practical for sustainability in the future. The source discusses multiple subjects from the current emission levels of transportation, to what effects self-driving cars would have, to big picture issues like policy-making and societies changing preferences on maintaining their cars.

Wiedemann, K., Naujoks, F., Wörle, J., Kenntner-Mabiala, R., Kaussner, Y., & Neukum, A. (2018). Effect of different alcohol
levels on take-over performance in conditionally automated driving. Accident Analysis and Prevention, 115, 89-97.
doi:10.1016/J.AAP.2018.03.001

^^ found through OSU library catalog at: https://journals.ohiolink.edu/pg_200?::NO:200:P200_ARTICLEID:352249136

I will use this source to talk about the safety benefits that self driving cars will bring to us. I will describe parallels to our modern transportation world and what is deemed safe, smart, and not safe. The source talks about the effect of different alcohol levels when it comes to taking over an autonomous vehicle when it is not able to drive autonomously anymore (which happens under certain conditions, whether it be a back road or bad weather). While this is an issue today, in the future when autonomous programming and sensing has advanced to where no human level backup is required, the issues of DUI’s and OVI’s could be a thing of the past (at least in the realm of autonomous vehicles).

De Bruyne, J., & Werbrouck, J. (2018). Merging self-driving cars with the law. Computer Law & Security Review: The
International Journal of Technology Law and Practice, 34(5), 1150-1153. doi:10.1016/J.CLSR.2018.02.008

^^ found through OSU library catalog at: https://journals.ohiolink.edu/pg_200?::NO:200:P200_ARTICLEID:354633707

I will relay this source with the previous one once I read more into it. It discusses the laws that will come along with self-driving cars. I am hoping to strengthen the case that DUI’s and OVI’s will be reduced or even eliminated with this, but I need to reed more into it to see how I am going to relate the two sources. There is a lot of security and computer law that is being discussed regarding what will be the new standard once these vehicles are a norm.

In Grammelis, P., & Global Conference on Global Warming. (2016). Energy, transportation and global warming.

^^ebook found with OSU library catalog at: http://osu.worldcat.org/title/energy-transportation-and-global-warming/oclc/951809350&referer=brief_results

I will use this source to talk about the current issues with our transportation systems and discuss the environmental and energy practically reasons behind why electric and alternative power vehicles will take over in the future. The source talks about the impact of transportation on energy and global warming, so I should be able to utilize this source fairly well. The source takes an in depth look at global warming, but I will merely skim the surface of it to make the point I am trying to make, but not omit any important things discussed.

“Cars, Trucks, Buses and Air Pollution.” Union of Concerned Scientists, 2018, www.ucsusa.org/clean-vehicles/vehicles-air-pollution-and-human-health/cars-trucks-air-pollution#.XBLF91xKhPY.

I will use this source to talk about the problem of air pollution with our current transportation vehicles. The source is from the union of concerned scientists. The article talks about how cleaner air is on the way thanks to the adoption of electric vehicles.

Baggaley, Kate. “Elon Musk’s Hyperloop Dream May Come True – and Soon.” NBCNews.com, NBCUniversal News Group, 11 Mar. 2018, www.nbcnews.com/mach/science/elon-musk-s-hyperloop-dream-may-come-true-soon-ncna855041.

I will use this source towards the end of my paper to talk about what some very new things that are going to be happening in the near future that not a lot of people may know about; specifically about hyperloop/maglev trains in the United States. The source comes from NBC news which most people have heard news from.

Newcomb, Alyssa. “Elon Musk Says His First Tunnel Will Open in December.” NBCNews.com, NBCUniversal News Group, 22 Oct. 2018, www.nbcnews.com/business/business-news/elon-musk-says-his-first-tunnel-will-open-december-n922726.

My last source, similar to the previous one, will be used toward the end of my paper to talk about new things that will be changing our transportation system that most people do not know about. I will talk about Elon Musk’s tunnels he just built under Los Angeles, that he plans to expand to more places in the future.

The topic I want to do my research project on is where the future of transportation is headed. I initially wanted to just do it on electric and self driving cars, but I wanted to take a step back and look at the bigger picture since there are so many things going on (although I will focus in on changes in the automotive industry).

I chose to interview two experts in the field. One has a little less than 10 years of experience in transportation (not specifically electric vehicles, but they said they gained plenty of exposure to them), and the other person works in alternative transportation. They chose to remain anonymous. I split the responses so each answered half.

My 10 questions are:

1. What is stopping the electric car market from overtaking the industry?
2. Are electric cars really better for the environment, since charging them uses a good deal of power from power plants?
3. Do you see the gasoline combustion engine being eliminated in the near future for mainstream transportation, and if so, when (roughly)?
4. I noticed some cities have compressed natural gas powered buses. How do these compare to old school buses used for public transportation in regards to efficiency and environmental impact?
5. Are there any exciting new means of transportation planned in the next few years?
6. If you have heard of Elon Musk’s plans to open tunnels for transportation that were built underneath Los Angeles, what are your thoughts on it?
7. Do you think transportation will look much different in 10 years that it does today? If so, what will be the main difference?
8. Do you think autonomous vehicles (such as self driving cars, whether they be networked or sensor based) will be a practical solution for traffic? (kind of a broad question, since there is so much room for growth and it is not on a large scale yet).
9. How does the USA compare to other countries in terms of developing better transportation?
10. The car was invented less than a century and a half ago, and we have come very far since then. Have you seen a lot of growth since you have worked within transportation? If so, what has been the most exciting thing to you?

Answers:

1. Charging time is a huge limiter. Some buses need to be on the road for almost the entire day. Electric charging mid day is possible but costly to purchase and maintain. There’s a lot of interest however and municipalities are testing this.
2. It depends where you get your electricity from. If your power mix is all coal, then no. Otherwise, generally yes.
3. I’m all but certain we will still see lots of ICE vehicles for the next 20 plus years.
4. I believe CNG is “cleaner” burning – less particulates released to the air.
5. Electric first-mile last-mile options will be a game changer, where they can take off successfully.
6. It will sure be costly. Not a realistic option for most cities, you need a very high ridership, very limited stop corridor. It’s tough to compete with buses here, intercity Highway traffic is too low.
7. Autonomous vehicles will change everything about how our roads operate. We will need less parking, and there will be less car ownership. There will still be the issue of congestion if everyone is cruising around in single occupant vehicles.
8. See above. Autonomous vehicles will be a double edged sword. The main cost of a trip is the person driving. They will reduce the cost of single occupant vehicle travel and take transit riders off buses, increasing congestion. Cities will have to build wider roads (which we know doesn’t work, no one wants to be Detroit), or find ways to convince people to engage in mass transit and/or share their AV ride with other people. On the positive side, they could be a great as a first mile last mile solution for low ridership bus routes (ie through suburban or rural areas).
9. North America in general is lacking here. Compared to European cities our transportation systems provide no flexibility and cater only to automobile use, in many cities multimodal options are seen as something for only those in poverty and not a healthy/financially smart choice.
10. I’m too new to the field for this. From my perspective cars have caused a lot of harm that the average person isn’t aware of. They are great tools but we have overused them.