If you thought self-driving cars were for irresponsible millennials who can't be bothered to watch where they're driving, apparently people in the 50s thought the idea was just peachy-keen!
http://spectrum.ieee.org/cars-that-think/transportation/self-driving/watch-general-motors-hilarious-1956-movie-on-smart-roads
Warning: Video contains Seussian rhyming, spontaneous musical scenes, mention of pre-digested steak, and almost enough 50s to hit your daily exposure limit.
Apparently the cars were going to work like line-following bots, except you'd have to go through some silly calibration procedure every time you engage the self-driving mode for some reason (seriously, an analog electrical system should have no problem doing this at the flip of a switch). Note that these cars would have had no idea where they're going and had no self-braking. This was basically a primitive lane-following system. What could possibly go wrong?
One thing it did get right was OnStar. It's there.
Giant AFX cars. That's what we need.
So in the future traffic isn't a problem because most people have either been killed by nuclear fallout or they just can't afford a Firebird II.
bgkast
UltraDork
5/13/15 3:57 p.m.
In reply to David S. Wallens:
Good thing too, or that traffic control fellow would be very busy!
I'm a little disappointed the car didn't have replicators...
Pfft. GM thought they'd make good cars in the 70's. This really IS fiction!
Just goes to show 1) there ain't nothing really new under the sun and 2) bad ideas never really die.
After burner kicked in 'yo.... not! That car look painfully slow for a gas turbine.
David S. Wallens wrote:
So in the future traffic isn't a problem because most people have either been killed by nuclear fallout or they just can't afford a Firebird II.
Haha I had the same thought when I saw those retro-futuristic highways running through what's otherwise a Mad Max hellscape. Looks like a rather dystopian future...and it sure doesn't help their case that apparently all the survivors are white people 
