Philosophers: Which device would result in fewest automobile accidents?
Wednesday, December 28th, 2011 at
5:38 pm
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Tagged with: air bags • google • ken hamblin • metal spikes • safety belts • script type • steering wheel • text javascript • wheel
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A new device that can raise alarm to warn the driver of faults in driving not only by himself but also by others on the road may help in keeping the accident rates to bare minimum.
From philosophical point of view, accidents are the modifications that substance undergo, but that do not change the kind of thing that each substance is. Accidents only exist when they are the accidents of some substance. Examples are colors, weight, motion. For Aristotle there are 10 categories into which things naturally fall. They are
* Substance, and
* Nine Accidents:
o Quantity,
o Quality,
o Relation,
o Action,
o Passion,
o Time,
o Place,
o Disposition (the arrangement of parts), and
o Rainment (whether a thing is dressed or armed, etc.)
All these distinctions are basically logical, but in a sense they reflect the structure of reality. One never finds any substance that we experience without some accidents, nor an accident that is not the accident of a substance. Every dog, for instance, has some color, place, size. Nevertheless, it is obvious that what a dog is is not the same as its color, or its size, etc.
Spikes for sure. They would encourage careful driving, and the resulting fatalities and injuries would lessen the amount of traffic on the streets, further lessening accidents. Bravo to this Ken Hamblin!
Seat belts and airbags are designed to reduce the severity, not the frequency, of accidents. So the spikes probably would be more effective in that respect.
Keep in mind, however, that not all accidents are caused by carelessness. And even where carelessness is the cause, the driver who is injured may not be the one who was careless. The spikes may reduce the number of crashes, but they would certainly increase significantly the number of fatalities.
I think the seat belts and air bags can reduce probable injury that can result from automobile accidents, and the spike?
I doubt it would do much to prevent the accidents from happening.
In my opinion none of the devices you have mentioned could be considered useful for reducing the number of automobile accidents that occur, because none of them address the causal factors that are the root of automobile accidents.
You only mention things that will increase or decrease probable injury during an accident, not things that would reduce the probability of accident occurrence.
hahah definatly the sharp metal spikes. …good lord.
The shoe leather sedan. <}:-})
In all seriousness, I think having sharp metal spikes mounted at the center of the steering wheel would make for some VVERRRYY careful drivers- thus less accidents.
Philosophically speaking, the best device to prevent auto accidents would be one that prevents people from getting into cars and driving them.