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Bruce Schneier published an article in Wired called I’ve Seen the Future, and It Has a Kill Switch. I agree with his basic premise - it’s a dangerous idea to include a kill switch in a networked device. It’s difficult to keep a determined cracker out of a well-defended network. It’s ludicrous to design a device that can disabled by remote control.

OnStar call representatives can bring a stolen vehicle to a slow and gentle halt by remotely disabling the car’s fuel system. Information Week article called Stop Thief!.

So how long will it take before someone tries to shut down an OnStar vehicle, just to show they can do it?

Andrew Grove, a co-founder of Intel and the man who coined one of my favorite concepts, the strategic inflection point (SIP), is rallying corporate and government support for electric cars in the US. He realizes that Americans are reluctant to buy an all-electric vehicle, however:

While car makers have been developing plug-ins, Grove says the nation should consider ways of retrofitting the 80 million low-mileage pickups, sport utility vehicles and vans on the road to make them capable of running on both gasoline and electric power.

Giving these vehicles “dual fuel” functions would be similar to changes made in other technologies. DVD players, for example, were often combined with VCR tape players when they were first introduced to help consumers make the transition.

See this Associated Press article titled Ex-Intel head pushes electric cars for more details.

Related articles and pages on billso.com

• Strategic inflection point
• 12 November 2007: I want a better television - but it’s not ready yet
• 7 March 2007: Microsoft vs. Google

Several blind people live near our home, and sometimes they cross in front of our driveway. I’m always patient, as it’s obvious to me that they are listening for engine noise.

Before I saw this article in the Honolulu Star-Bulletin, I hadn’t realized that blind people cannot hear gasoline-electric hybrid cars at crosswalks. I’m ashamed to say I had never thought of it, even though I owned a Honda Insight for two years.

Most hybrid automobiles shut down their gasoline engine at a full stop, and some models, like the Toyota Prius, can use their silent electric engine at low speeds. There’s no gas engine noise to warn blind pedestrians of an approaching vehicle.

The American Council of the Blind has proposed a research study, to be conducted by the US Department of Transportation. The research would determine if an indicator noise could be added to hybrid cars to help the blind hear the vehicle. Crosswalk signals now include an audible signal, to help local governments comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). A Federal solution is vastly preferable to local and state regulation. In the past, the Federal government has mandated other safety features for automobiles, including air bags, brake lights and seat belts. Audible signals for the blind could be combined with for backover avoidance technology that is designed to warn drivers of children and objects behind their reversing vehicle.

Perhaps Neil Young can write the warning song, and test it on his electric 1959 Lincoln Continental convertible.

Image courtesy of Aaron Gustafson through a Creative Commons license.

Updated 6 June 2008, 10:26 HST: New Scientist posted an article about this issue yesterday, along with this YouTube video.

More drivers and pedestrians crank their music to high volume to drown out traffic noise. Sadly, this means that police sirens sometimes go unheard.

Enter the Federal Signal Rumbler, a siren that uses two subwoofers and new sonic patterns. These articles from Wired and Gizmodo have more information, and two YouTube videos provide examples of these bone rattling sirens.

I’ve also posted an MP3 file here.

The deep tones in these videos are the Rumbler in action. I hope you don’t hear one this Memorial Day weekend. Stay safe!

I enjoy reading June Watanabe’s Kukua Line column in the Honolulu Star-Bulletin. Sometimes she runs an auwe section where anonymous readers point out shameful behavior they have witnessed.

Wednesday’s column featured a Honolulu firefighter from the Nimitz station who was seen raising the US and state flags while he was out of uniform. HFD personnel are supposed to wear an HFD shirt, along with pants and shoes. He wasn’t wearing a shirt, but he was wearing rubber slippers. Auwe!

The firefighters from the Beretania station are always properly dressed to raise and lower the flags at Fort Street Mall by my office.

Thursday’s column was a two-for-one deal with an initial item about vulgar vanity license plates that slipped past the state’s application process. Auwe!
There was another story about a man who parked his car at a stoplight by Central Middle School to buy a plate lunch. He parked in the center lane of the Pali Highway. That’s a big auwe!

The Web has spawned a legion of sites devoted to reporting rude behavior. Some Craigslist users post their auwes on the rant and rave board for their city. There are sites devoted to rude drivers, restaurant patrons, employees, and other topics.