SPARE PARTS
Manual assists and automatic responses from the automotive world
Dummies always male The Average American Guy was the crash
test dummy that had been used for de- cades, the product of long held resistance by automakers from having to consider gender differences in car design. A number of regulators have battled to get laws passed on testing regulations so they allow for the size of a petite woman. Beginning in 2011, it will be required that automakers use petite female crash dummies in auto- motive crash tests. This just goes to show that there is still gender inequality debates happening all around the world. Source: Stuff.co.nz
Tattle tail
Devices attempting to stop distracted drivers have reached new and very public heights. A new device developed at an Indian university, not only blocks the driver's device but automatically sends a message to the nearest digital traffic sign displaying the number plate of the distracted driver and sending those details to the police. The device also sends out a warning sound so passengers know if their driver is attempting to send a sneaky text. Source: Wired.com
Going, going, gone It was a lucky day for one Trademe buyer when
he snapped up a BMW for $1. The tidy 1994 BMW 320i was supposed to be listed on Tr- ademe with a $1 reserve but was instead listed for $1 buy now and was snapped up by a very lucky shopper. Stadium manager Mike Nokes,
stated that you could only laugh about it, and will, and is a firm believer in a fair auction price. Moral of the story, it's not always too good to be true, sometimes it is that good! Source: Stuff.co.nz
Curiosity Licence Only 20 people world wide are licensed to drive the Rover that was sent to Mars. These
20 have had to train for years to excel in this mentally gruelling task that demands a special temperament and skill set. Unlike the popular vision of Rovers seamlessly gliding over intergalactic boulders with the ease of a joy stick, the Rover drivers spend days crafting computer code to guide the robot. A single slip-up could turn the mission into a $2.5 bil- lion catastrophe. The risk and stress is worth it, as short of becoming astronaut, it is the ultimate form of space exploration. Source: Dailycamera.com
Car-jam devices for bad drink-drivers
In a clamp down against drink-driving, new devices are available in New Zealand to help stop accidents. The devices will stop a car from starting if there is alcohol on the driver's breath. Drivers with repeat drink-driving convictions will soon have the option of paying $150 a month to have the device installed in exchange for a shorter disqualification sentence. Source: New Zealand Herald
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