The first stage involves getting sensor data and doing some rudimentary analysis of it, which we'll say takes an amount of time t1. The second stage is the sensor fusion that coalesces the sensor data and tries to resolve conflicts and bad data, and does so in an amount time t2. The third stage is the updating of the virtual world model, which is a representation of the self-driving car's surroundings and existing situation, and we'll say that this updating takes an amount of time t3. The fourth stage is the AI action plan that needs to be formulated, such as the different scenarios about how to avoid the pedestrian, and we'll say that this stage takes an amount of time t4. The fifth stage consists of issuing commands to the driving controls of the car, and we'll say this takes an amount of time t5.

Can AI learn ethical precepts on its own? Aristotle famously stated that educating the mind without educating the heart is no education at all. You could interpret that insightful remark to suggest that learning about ethics and moral behavior is keenly vital for humankind. In the classic nature versus nurture debate, one must ask how much of our ethical mores are instinctively native while how much is learned over the course of our living days. Toddlers are observant of fellow humans and presumably glean their ethical foundations based on what they see and hear. The same can be said of teenagers. For open-minded adults, they too will continue to adjust and progress in their ethical thinking as a result of experiencing the everyday world. Of course, explicitly teaching someone about ethics is also par for the course. People are bound to learn about ethical ways via attending classes on the topic or perhaps by going to events and practices of interest to them. Ethical values can be plainly identified and shared as a means to aid others in formulating their own structure of ethics. In addition, ethics might be subtly hidden within stories or other instructional modes that ultimately carry a message of what ethical behavior consists of. That's how humans seem to imbue ethics. I realize such a question might seem oddish. We certainly expect humans to incorporate ethics and walk through life with some semblance of a moral code. It is a simple and obvious fact.

Considering the rather unique use case for self-driving cars entailing a pregnant wife giving birth ... [ ] while in a moving car and with her husband at the wheel (and he catches the baby). Please find a comfortable and cozy place to relish this heartwarming account. A worried husband was rushing his pregnant wife to the hospital in their car when all of a sudden the baby seemingly decided it was time to arrive into this world. The woman began to give birth to the newborn girl, doing so while in the passenger seat next to her frantically driving hubby. Amazingly, the woman maneuvered in her seat to face backward, had her back propped against the dashboard, with her knees pressing against the seat she was just in, and voila gave birth to the eager newborn. As a astonishing double dose of amazing, the husband reached out with one hand (keeping the other hand on the steering wheel) and managed to catch the baby during the birthing process. And, yes, all of this took place while the car was zipping along on the highway as the pair were stridently trying to reach the hospital for a more conventional birthing process. The husband afterward noted that his wife was quite composed throughout the in-car experience. We might also provide some accolades for the husband in his double-duty role as a frenzied driver and birthing assistant. The baby girl, named Rebecca by her doting parents, happily is doing quite fine and all is well.

Traversing blind curves is troubling for human drivers and can be equally dicey for AI self-driving ... [ ] cars. Think about the last time that you found yourself driving a particularly treacherous blind curve. Indeed, I realize that even the mere act of thinking about such an alarming encounter can be traumatic, so no need to reflectively linger on that reenactment in your mind. Go ahead and change your thought patterns to something less stressful such as mulling over the latest online cat videos or perhaps that delicious scoop of ice cream you recently consumed. Meanwhile, let's have a heart-to-heart serious talk about blind curves. When first learning to drive, few newbies are specifically instructed about blind curves. Sure, there might be discussions about what to do when reaching an especially sharp curve, but the whole conundrum of dealing with a sharp and blind curve is not necessarily resolutely covered. You see, a blind curve denotes that you cannot readily see what is up ahead on the roadway. In contrast, a sharp curve could potentially be completely visible and you can discern what lies on the other side of the driving maneuver. The trickiness about blind curves is that you never know what you are going to get, just like that proverbial and infamous box of chocolates.

Difficulties in left lane usage are common and exasperating. I'm referring to those darned drivers that sit in the left lane nearly forever, cruising leisurely along without a seeming care in the world, backing up traffic as they do so. You've undoubtedly been stuck behind such a driver. It is exasperating, infuriating, and altogether makes you want to bust a gasket. They get into the left lane and occupy the lane as though it is owned by them. On top of this, they decide to be the unofficial determiner of the allowed speed for the rest of nearby traffic. For example, even though the posted speed limit might be 65 miles per hour, the left lane hog will opt to go at say 55 miles per hour. There are lots of frequently cited reasons or excuses for this type of behavior. One claim is that they are going at the safest appropriate speed. This is based on the logic that the posted speed is the maximum allowed speed, which is not necessarily the safest allowed speed. Indeed, the driver's handbook clearly states that you should never assume that the posted speed is the speed that you are to be driving at.

Do you know what will happen if you honk your car horn at an AI self-driving car? It used to be that honking a car horn was quite customary and an expected element in the act of driving. Indeed, when I first learned to drive, the driver training class included a brief segment devoted to the use of the car horn (yes, that used to be a normal part of learning to drive). We were mindfully instructed on the use of a car horn. For example, we began by employing the horn in a delicate fashion such as lightly tapping the horn to generate some casual and modestly alerting toots. We also were later taught to lean on the horn and generate an ear-shattering blast, just in case an outstretched use of the car horn was warranted. All told, the notion was that you needed to know how to use your car horn for a wide variety of circumstances. The horn was integral to driving a car. Akin to knowing how to steer, speed up, slow down, and the rest, you likewise should be versed in the use of the car horn.

People are increasingly getting onto those banned no-fly types of lists, which could happen with ... [ ] self-driving cars too. People keep getting banned for doing the darndest and seemingly dumbest of acts. Oftentimes getting banned for the rest of their entire life. You might have heard or seen the recent brouhaha in major league baseball when a spectator in Yankee Stadium seated above leftfield opted to throw a baseball down onto the field that then struck the Boston Red Sox player Alex Verdugo in the back. He was not hurt, but you can imagine the personal dismay and shock at suddenly and unexpectedly having a projectile strike him from behind, seemingly out of nowhere. Turns out that Alex had earlier tossed the same baseball up into the stands as a memento for a young Red Sox cheering attendee. By some boorish grabbing, it had ended up in the hands of a New York Yankees fan. Next, after some hysterical urging by other frenetic Yankees to toss it back, the young man did so. Whether this act of defiance was intentionally devised to smack the left-fielder is still unclear and it could have been a happenstance rather than a purposeful aim.

What is culture eating today, let's find out if it is going to be AI self-driving cars. As many headlines will ostensibly tell you, culture is apparently quite hungry and always eating someone's breakfast, lunch, or dinner. That's a bit of a tongue-in-cheek commentary, but the expression that culture is eating something comes up quite a bit. The general emphasis is that culture will tend to intercede in whatever the matter consists of. Furthermore, culture will rule the day when it comes to whether the matter of focus will succeed or falter. I'd dare say that this is a kind of viral saying that rolls off the tongue and enchants the imagination. We are dutifully fascinated when told that one thing can overtake another.

When you get onto the freeway, you are essentially entering into the matrix. For those of you familiar with the movie of the same name, you'll realize that I am suggesting that you are entering into a kind of simulated world as your car proceeds up the freeway onramp and into the flow of traffic. Whether you know it or not, you are indeed opting into playing a game, though one much more serious than an amusement park bumper cars arena. On the freeway, you are playing a game of life-and-death. It might seem like you are merely driving to work or trying to get to the ballgame, but the reality is that for every moment you are on the freeway you are at risk of your life.

MacGyver-like savviness is needed for AI, including self-driving cars. Who or what is a MacGyver, you might wonder? Well, most people have heard of MacGyver, the TV series and main character that manages to always find a clever means to extricate himself from some puzzling predicament, using his wits to devise a solution out of rather everyday items. Fans know that he carries a Swiss Army knife, rather than a gun, since he believes that using his creativity and inventiveness will always allow him to deal with any untoward circumstance (the knife is handy when you need to defuse a bomb, or when you need to take apart a toaster and reuse its electronics for a completely different purpose and ultimately save your life accordingly). Turns out that you don't necessarily need to have ever seen the show or watched any YouTube clips and yet still nonetheless might know what it signifies to be a "MacGyver" in dealing with a thorny task (it has become part of our lexicon of speaking).