Tag: safety

RANT! How dumb are the oil companies?

RANT! How dumb are the oil companies?

I am sure that you have heard of the current oil leak in the Gulf of Mexico.  If you haven’t, here is a link – please come back after you have caught up with current events.

I am just aghast at how stupid these companies are. Current reports are that they didn’t install an “acoustic switch” on the well. From NewsInferno:

The Deepwater Horizon oil rig that exploded last week was not outfitted with a safety device that might have prevented the massive oil spill now nearing the U.S. Gulf Coast. The device, known as an acoustic switch, is a last-resort protection against underwater spills, and is required by regulators in Norway and Brazil. Unfortunately, the U.S. has no such regulation for oil wells operating off of its shores.

According to a report in The Wall Street Journal, an acoustic switch is a remote control device that a crew can use in an attempt to trigger an underwater valve that shuts down a well that’s damaged. The switch is meant as a last resort, as the primary shut-off systems almost always work on wells when they are out of control. It can be triggered from a lifeboat if an oil platform has to be evacuated.

According to the Journal, U.S regulators did consider requiring the acoustic switch on offshore wells, but drilling companies resisted because of its cost, and questions about its effectiveness. To be fair, the switches have never been tested in real-world situations, only simulations. U.S. regulators also maintain they are prone to causing unnecessary shutdowns.

Are these guys just plain stupid.  Didn’t they see Jurasic Park where the pessimistic mathematician, Ian Malcolm, talks about if something can go wrong then it will go wrong?

BP AND ITS KIN SHOULD HAVE BACKUP SYSTEMS FOR THE BACKUP SYSTEMS THAT ARE BACKING UP THE BACKUP SYSTEMS.  IF THEY DON’T HAVE 6 FOOLPROOF WAYS OF TURNING OFF A BROKEN WELL THEN THEY SHOULDN’T DRILL!

RANT! Software needs to be stupid

RANT! Software needs to be stupid

I have ranted that software needs to be stupid before. I am not suggesting that software should not work effectively, in fact, quite the opposite.  I just don’t think that software should make assumptions about what I want and it definitely should not override my common sense.

I mention this because I just read about Safe Driving Systems Corporation.  I cannot think of a dumber idea (I know that they have competition so they aren’t the only ones with a dumb idea).

At first blush, their idea has merit. Software that will detect if you are moving at driving speeds and turn off the ability to call and/or text. This may sound great if you are a driver, but what about if you are a passenger? Does this mean that the teenager in the back seat can’t text to her BFF? Even a person that normally drives will occasionally be a passenger therefore they would need to be able to turn the software off.

The counter-argument to this, of course, are companies that install this on phones that are provided for their delivery drivers. They put this on to prevent liability problems. But is this really necessary? Does it take an intrusive piece of software to provide professional drivers with common sense?

And if they software could be turned off because the user was a passenger, doesn’t that mean the driver with no common sense would be able to turn off the software to text his buddy about the cute girl in the red Toyota that he just passed?

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