Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Mike Ey, Microsoft HoloLens designer, killed in hit and run

kirotv.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

81–90 of 227 posts

Re: Mike Ey, Microsoft HoloLens designer, killed in hit and run

#81

Post by egor598 »

sfeng wrote: post #30
egor598 wrote: post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Of course the majority of stupid people will be outside of America (statistically speaking), the world is huge, you stupid :-), in comparison with your 'Murica! But I am inclined to believe that the ratio of stupid people in 'murica might as well be higher than in the rest of the world.

> you stupid :-) Obviously he was making the exact same point you are, but because he makes it with some subtlety, he's the dumb one? In any case, there's no real evidence that Americans are significantly less smart than members of any other country: http://www.photius.com/rankings/national_iq_scores_country_r... All countries are made up of people, and all people are basically the same.

No he wasn't (who can justify this "the majority of stupid human beings are not American", that's just plain fucking stupid and wrong. And there were no subtlety, unless calling most of the people outside of 'murica stupid is considered oh, so fucking subtle. And I never intended to say that Americans were less smart than members of any other country...

Re: Mike Ey, Microsoft HoloLens designer, killed in hit and run

#82

Post by spike021 »

astrodust wrote: post #65
spike021 wrote: post #55

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My thought is that if you have the money to spend on multiple drinks, then you should be able to spend at least one drink's cost on Uber, Lyft, etc.

Either a drink is super expensive where you are, or Uber is very cheap. Hanging out at a place within walking distance of home really is the best bet. Sadly a lot of American cities don't seem to have bars anywhere near where people live, unlike European ones where you can throw a rock from your window and hit a pub.

Last week I took Uber late at night one mile in a downtown area near where I live. It cost about $6 USD. Usually a beer is about $5-8 in that area.

But I agree, it depends quite a bit on distance between where you are and your destination.

Re: Mike Ey, Microsoft HoloLens designer, killed in hit and run

#83

Post by zo1 »

itl12 wrote: post #36

Very sad story. RIP. How is it that the driver lived (allegedly doing 100) and even managed to run away from the scene? What vehicle was he in? :/

I came here wanting to know the same thing. I'm not exactly clued-up on accidents and cars, etc. But it seems highly odd that one can just die from being rear-ended by a car (even if it's going 100)? The only thing I can think of is that the breaks were on, so his body/head whip lashed forward badly or something.

Anyone have any other theories about this sad event?

Re: Mike Ey, Microsoft HoloLens designer, killed in hit and run

#84

Post by mahyarm »

Chevalier wrote: post #29
oflordal wrote: post #8

Säd. Coindidentally the same happened to one of the Oculus founders. http://techcrunch.com/2013/06/01/oculus-vr-co-founder-andrew...

Not that it's any more or less tragic, but I've always been astonished that Silicon Valley is so car-dependent. We've concentrated the most brilliant minds in the world in this small area... and then force everyone to pilot two-ton bullets to pick up groceries? Not all workers can demand decent living conditions, but you'd think the competitive draw for workers in Silicon Valley would entice company towns to, I don't…

It's the USA that is car-default. SF, NYC & Chicago are the exceptions, and they have their own special kind of problems too.

Re: Mike Ey, Microsoft HoloLens designer, killed in hit and run

#85

Post by varelse »

mahyarm wrote: post #84
Chevalier wrote: post #29

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not that it's any more or less tragic, but I've always been astonished that Silicon Valley is so car-dependent. We've concentrated the most brilliant minds in the world in this small area... and then force everyone to pilot two-ton bullets to pick up groceries? Not all workers can demand decent living conditions, but you'd think the competitive draw for workers in Silicon Valley would entice company towns to, I don't…

It's the USA that is car-default. SF, NYC & Chicago are the exceptions, and they have their own special kind of problems too.

We've created a national infrastructure that IMO nearly requires driving to be a civil right. That sucks. But I really don't have an answer to this problem when proposals to address this are either voted down or end up ridiculously over budget.

Re: Mike Ey, Microsoft HoloLens designer, killed in hit and run

#86

Post by Chevalier »

Turing_Machine wrote: post #73
Chevalier wrote: post #40

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Cars are very UNSAFE, for the record. [1] Self-driving cars will be better... but autonomous cars are SUCH an intellectually lazy progression from the status quo that I hope they won't happen. Rather than autonomous cars, we should be focusing on Taleb's antifragile solutions like walking and biking. This means the design of dense housing and walkable streets, and the removal of two-ton bullets that massacre children…

"Rather than autonomous cars, we should be focusing on Taleb's antifragile solutions like walking and biking." Let me guess: you're in your 20s-30s and in perfect health, that you live in an urban environment, and that you don't have a family to shop for.

Just to clarify, are you implying here that elderly, infirm, or underage people benefit from car dependence?

Because...

Re: Mike Ey, Microsoft HoloLens designer, killed in hit and run

#87

Post by dragonwriter »

Chevalier wrote: post #40
drzaiusapelord wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Cars are pretty safe, but I'm always a little shocked that we don't have governors built into cars with sane limits. How is it even possible to do 100mph and why should that speed be allowed? Cars should top off at 75. Not to mention, why are cars dumb machines? If someone is going crazy fast in an area where there is no safe way to decelerate, then the car should not allow that speed to be reached. Freeway speeds sh…

Cars are very UNSAFE, for the record. [1] Self-driving cars will be better... but autonomous cars are SUCH an intellectually lazy progression from the status quo that I hope they won't happen. Rather than autonomous cars, we should be focusing on Taleb's antifragile solutions like walking and biking. This means the design of dense housing and walkable streets, and the removal of two-ton bullets that massacre children…

> Rather than autonomous cars, we should be focusing on Taleb's antifragile solutions like walking and biking.

Self-driving cars are an enabling technology for lower-cost, more-readily-available, on-demand transport, which is a wedge to dismantling the car-ownership-necessary society, which itself is a route to get to public support for community planning that better supports walking and biking as primary modes of transport for able citizens for tasks for which they are suitable, with automotive transport as a secondary form for situations and individuals for whom walking/biking are not suitable.

The two approaches are complementary, not opposed.

Re: Mike Ey, Microsoft HoloLens designer, killed in hit and run

#88

Post by zo1 »

icebraining wrote: post #62
VLM wrote: post #47

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This article is being flooded with weird anti-car hate. Yet, my car is perfectly safe and can only kill someone in a hit and run at 100 MPH if, and only if, I get drunk first. Given that I don't drink very much and then only at home (a sixer lasts me about a season, sometimes half a year) that means my car is incredibly safe and will almost certainly never kill anyone. Odd how there's no anti-alcohol hate here on HN,…

I agree, it's the drunk's fault. But that's irrelevant if you're trying to stop people from getting killed, instead of just trying to assign blame. What matters is what we can do about it, and pushing for a reduction in car usage is an effective way of reducing vehicular manslaughter. Being drunk is not the only way to kill someone while driving at 100mph. As someone who was in a car when the steering wheel simply st…

"What matters is what we can do about it, and pushing for a reduction in car usage is an effective way of reducing vehicular manslaughter."

Let me play a bit of devil's advocate here. Where are you going to draw the line? All too often I see people talking about reducing this, preventing that, etc. However, everyone does so with all sorts of weird convenience and funding constraints/caveats, effectively reducing the problem to "how far can we take this before it becomes too inconvenient/expensive for us".

I say, if you want to prevent/fix something, do it. Throw money/laws at the problem until it goes away or is near-zero. I genuinely used to say that, and believe in it. These days, with my eventual political beliefs, I hope it gets taken seriously so we can all realize the futility in it. Like grasping a balloon in a fist.

Re: Mike Ey, Microsoft HoloLens designer, killed in hit and run

#89

Post by timthorn »

powertower wrote: post #74
timthorn wrote: post #54

Earlier quoted context omitted.

10000?! The UK, with a population of approximately 1/4 that of the USA and more liberal alcohol laws, had ~260 deaths from drink driving in 2013. Rampant might not be the right word, but something isn't right. (Source: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachm... )

The number of cars in the US is something like 10 times of the number of cars in the UK. Also you have to consider a bunch of other variables such as the difference in the traveling distances between work, home, and play. And take into consideration things such an increase of X in volume of traffic might increase deaths by kX. With k being 2 or 5 or 10. And then the gap narrows.

Fair point - so taking the proportion of road deaths related to drink as the measure instead (which should control for your points to a great recent), 31% of US deaths are drink related, compared to 15.2% in the UK. (according to https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachm...).

Not the 10x difference, but still 2x.

Re: Mike Ey, Microsoft HoloLens designer, killed in hit and run

#90

Post by BHSPitMonkey »

melling wrote: post #37
jstalin wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not to minimize drunk driving deaths, but it's hardly "rampant." About 10,000 people are killed each year in drunk driving accidents in the US. 30,000 a year die from falls. http://responsibility.org/drunk-driving/drunk-driving-fatali... http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr64/nvsr64_02.pdf

A fall is an accidental death. When someone chooses to get behind the wheel of a car after drinking, they are intentionally making a bad choice. Getting to near zero drunk driver deaths is attainable once we change behavior. That's the acceptable number.

Because changing human behavior is such an easy task, especially changing the behavior of people who are already intoxicated...
Post reply on HN