Hacker NewsMay 13, 2024
Amazon's self-driving taxi Zoox under investigation by US after rear-end crashes
https://apnews.com/article/amazon-autonomous-vehicle-investigation-crashes-zoox-45c53600710407bc6f82b0a855c46e12
#ycombinator #Self_driving_cars #Transportation_technology #Road_safety #General_news #WA_State_Wire #CA_State_Wire #NV_State_Wire #Trending_News #California #Accidents #Business #Technology #U_S_news #U_S_News
Amazon's self-driving robotaxi unit Zoox under investigation by US after 2 rear-end crashes

Amazon’s self-driving robotaxi unit is being investigated by the U.S. government’s highway safety agency after two of its vehicles braked suddenly and were rear-ended by motorcyclists. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said in documents posted on its website Monday that it will evaluate the automated driving system developed by Zoox. Both crashes happened during the daytime hours. The agency confirmed that each vehicle was operating in autonomous mode before the crashes. In one crash a motorcyclist suffered minor injuries, and a Zoox driver reported minor injuries in the other. Zoox says it's cooperating in the investigation.

AP News
 Hacker NewsApr 27, 2024
Dozens of deaths reveal risks of injecting sedatives into police detainees
https://apnews.com/article/investigation-police-use-of-force-sedation-injections-demetrio-jackson-621909ba7491abc2af8ad2e33ba3415b
#ycombinator #Medication #Health_disparities #Associated_Press #General_news #Domestic_News #MN_State_Wire #OH_State_Wire #TX_State_Wire #FL_State_Wire #CO_State_Wire #CA_State_Wire #AZ_State_Wire #NH_State_Wire #Lethal_restraint #WI_State_Wire #NV_State_Wire #AP_Investigations #U_S_news #Wisconsin #Health #Colorado_Springs #Race_and_ethnicity #Altoona #Science #Eau_Claire #Race_and_Ethnicity
Dozens of deaths reveal risks of sedating people restrained by police

An investigation led by The Associated Press has found that the practice of giving sedatives to people detained by police has spread quietly across the nation over the last 15 years, built on questionable science and backed by police-aligned experts. The injections are given by medical personnel during police encounters. The investigation shows how a strategy intended to reduce violence and save lives has resulted in some avoidable deaths. While sedatives were mentioned as a cause or contributing factor in a dozen official death rulings, authorities often didn’t even investigate whether injections were appropriate in the 94 deaths identified by the AP over a decade. About half of the 94 who died were Black.

AP News
 Hacker NewsApr 23, 2024
Work begins on a $12B high-speed rail line between Las Vegas and Los Angeles
https://apnews.com/article/high-speed-train-vegas-los-angeles-brightline-595913ff2fa3d9001fb89bfab4e6c4d2
#ycombinator #Los_Angeles #California #Las_Vegas #Miami #Pete_Buttigieg #General_news #IL_State_Wire #GA_State_Wire #MA_State_Wire #TX_State_Wire #DC_Wire #FL_State_Wire #CA_State_Wire #NC_State_Wire #Travel #MO_State_Wire #NV_State_Wire #Transportation #U_S_news #Business #Arts_and_entertainment #Entertainment
Construction to begin on high-speed rail between Las Vegas and Los Angeles

A $12 billion high-speed passenger train line between Las Vegas and the Los Angeles area has started construction. U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg joined Brightline West company officials on Monday to hammer commemorative yellow rail spikes at the site of terminal due to open in 2028 just south of the Las Vegas Strip. The company plans to build track in the median of Interstate 15 to a Rancho Cucamonga, California, commuter rail hub connection to Los Angeles. Trains would whisk past at speeds comparable to Japan's bullet trains. A Brightline sister company operates a train about two-thirds that fast between Miami and Orlando.

AP News
 Hacker NewsApr 6, 2024
Citizen scientist has measured Rockies snowfall for 50 years
https://apnews.com/article/citizen-scientist-snow-rocky-mountains-drought-water-3a4e053d7db9be3eb22aa6809eab57c0
#ycombinator #Weather #WY_State_Wire #ID_State_Wire #CO_State_Wire #CA_State_Wire #UT_State_Wire #NM_State_Wire #AZ_State_Wire #NV_State_Wire #Climate_and_environment #Science #Lifestyle #Colorado_River
Citizen scientist measured Rockies snowfall for 50 years. Two new hips help him keep going

As snow hydrologists fan across the western U.S. to measure peak snowpack this spring, citizen scientist Billy Barr will be measuring snow — as always — at 9,500 feet outside his cabin in the remote mountain town of Gothic in central Colorado. This is Barr’s 50th year logging snowfall amounts there. Researchers regularly reference his trove of data as they study a watershed that feeds the Colorado River. Two recent hip replacements let Barr carry on his field work longer than he expected. Now 73, he plans to keep measuring snowfall but is unsure who would fill his shoes when he retires.

AP News