How's My Driving? Ask My Car

BAD EXPOSE IDEA UNDERSTAND D MAGNITUDE YEAR DROWSINESS CRASH NOT EVEN LIKELY TASK CD

   Using gadgets while you're ___ can be a very ___ thing, but an expert ___ automotive distractions says using ___ gadget that watches you ___ you're driving can be ___ very good thing.

   "People ___n't always understand the degree ___ distraction they may be ___ themselves to ... so the ___ is to help people ___ that distraction by providing ___ with feedback," says John ___ Lee.

   Lee outlines the ___ of the problem: More ___ 40,000 people die every ___ in motor vehicle crashes ___ research indicates that failures ___ attention - including distractions or ___ - probably played a role ___ most of those crashes.

   ___ and near-crashes are ___ three times as likely ___ happen when the driver ___ performing a complex task ___ related to driving (such ___ dialing a phone or ___ texting) and twice as ___ during a moderately complex ___ (such as inserting a ___), Lee reported. As new technologies are introduced, the list of potential distractions keeps getting longer.

   Of course, most drivers overestimate their own abilities: In one survey, 88 percent of the respondents judged themselves to be safer than the average driver.

   So how does watching the driver help? Lee's method was to install a special camera system that saves video snippets for the 10 seconds before and after every abrupt movement on the road.

   After the feedback sessions, the number of events triggered by risky drivers declined 89 percent, Lee said, and the rate of risky driving remained low even six weeks later.

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Have fun....and take care! 254 JUN-2009