Are Current Technological Advances Truly Advancing Our Standard of Living?

[RonL]

Another good effort "snubbed"

If your really serious about fuel economy, this should have your attention.

http://www.segway.com/puma/

GM has (or had) a joint venture with DEKA/Segway.

 

[chayced]

Not sure what qualifies this as a good effort. It was a golfcart that uses segways existing technology.

Sure golf carts get good fuel economy, but if people really wanted to trade comfort and versatility for fuel economy we would see golf carts swarming in every major city.

Not a big loss in my opinion.

 

[Topher925]

What advantage does one of these things have over a regular bicycle?

 

[RonL]

I suspect it has zero turn radius, automatic balance, enclosure if desired or needed, a reclined comfortable sitting position, two person capable, and if the price is not crazy I would be a serious prospect.
I would be scared to death in traffic but there has to be a start somewhere.
It's not just a lot smaller than some of the things out there now.

I just paid $500. for an electric lawn mower and love it, I have an electric bicycle, and am working toward an electric drive for my Ranger or F350 trucks.

I'm old enough to remember being laughed at when showing up at a jobsite with one of the first Bobcat skid loaders in tow.

I believe Dean Keaman is like some people in past history, just a little ahead of his time.

Ron

 

[chayced]

I can understand things that advance our standard of living as a society, but sadly most of the recent technological advances seem to be steps backwards.

A prius for example gets great gas mileage in the city, but when used for any significant duration on the highway it is the same as a comparable sized conventional car and heaven forbid if you speed in it. For the price it seems a step forward for some limited uses, but it is a step backwards for all the others. It is a car that people don't want, but most of the people buying it don't realize this yet.

Solar power is another example. When it becomes cost effective it will be a step forward, but right now it is just a novelty to help people feel better about themselves while getting less compared to conventional power generation. The most notable exception to this is solar powered hot water/radiant heating.

Wind power is yet another example. It's great if you live on a wide open space with lots of wind, but anything else and you are paying for the novelty not for actual power.

I would gladly get an electric car if it would fit the requirements for my lifestyle while at the same time cost me less money, but right now they don't. So I'll continue to drive my ten year old car that gets 30mpg. The market is cruel, but it does separate the advances from the failures so long as the failures are not rewarded by external forces.