It’s been strongly suspected in the past few years that women are currently watching horror, SF, fantasy and other genres movies and shows more than men do.
Well, now it turns out that some of them may be taking these stories a little too literally as they seem to exhibit a certain level of anxiety when asked about cars that drive themselves, and one has to wonder what nightmarish scenarios they’re envisioning for the not too distant future of our roads.
A recent survey has revealed that women are much less likely than men to be interested in purchasing one of Google Inc’s self driving cars. In addition to this, the survey also showed that millennials are much more excited about the technological advancement than other, older generations.
A survey conducted online by the NerdWallet over the course of two (2) days – May 12 and May 13 – had more than 1.000 United States citizens (1.028 to be exact) answer questions. Participants were all adults, at least 18 years of age.
When the researcher took a look at the results they saw that neither women nor men trusted Google’s smart vehicles entirely, however women were still much more concerned about safety issues than men.
Statistically speaking, 55 percent (55%) of women who participated in the survey did not trust that the self-driving cars are safe, while only 37 percent (37%) of men said the same thing.
When asked if they would let a child on their own to be driven around by one of Google Inc’s cars, only 6 percent (6%) of the participants answered yes. Presumably, the other 94 percent (94%) imagined the start of the AI apocalypse and the enslavement of the human race.
Ironically enough, Amy Danise, the insurance editor at Nerdwallet, even points out that the safety of the driverless cars is one of their main selling points. She theorizes that the general public may not believe yet that the technology will cut down on accidents.
On the opposite end of the road there are the insurers. Dave Phillips, a spokesman for State Farm gave an interview assuring that insurance companies, including State Farm, are fully embracing the technological advancement.
He was quick to point out that scientific studies have already proven how most current accidents in the United States happen due to human error – research conducted by the University of Michigan’s Mobility Transformation Center has found that 93 percent (93%) of the fatal crashes on our roads happen because of error in judgment made by the driver.
He also added that not only will Google Inc’s self driving cars drastically reduce the number of accidents, they will also reduce the consumption of energy.
The details of the NerdWallet survey results are that 63 percent (63%) of men and 64 percent (64%) of women believe Google’s smart vehicles will be much too expensive, 37 percent (37%) of men and 55 percent (55%) of women believe they will be unsafe, 44 percent (44%) of men and 23 percent (23%) of women believe they will make driving less fun, 31 percent (31%) of men and 23 percent (23%) of women are afraid the cars are going to collect too much information about their driving habits
Only 35 percent (35%) of participants said that they liked the though of self driving cars someday reducing insurance costs.
When it comes to the age of participants, 44 percent (44%) of people 60 years of age and older said that they were unable to find anything they liked at the driverless cars, while only 26 percent (26%) of participants between the ages of 18 and 29 could say the same thing.
Image Source: newyorker.com
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