Most accidents are caused by human error, simply because our brain cannot process as many inputs nor maintain attention for as long. Thus, autonomous vehicles will eventually make our roads safer.

However, people trust human drivers more than autonomous vehicles, reveals a new study published in the magazine Risk Analysis. This bias is called blame attribution asymmetry.

Risk analysis

Semi-autonomous vehicles (semi-AVs), which allow humans to supervise driving and take control of the vehicle, are already on the road. However, when there is an accident, we are inclined to think that the fault the machine or the vehicle manufacturer had it before the human driver.

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Researchers led by Peng Liu, associate professor at the School of Management and Economics at Tianjin University, conducted experiments to measure participants' responses to hypothetical semi-AV shocks. When a crash was caused by a vehicle's automated system, participants assigned more blame and responsibility to the automation and its manufacturer and indicated that the victim should be compensated more, compared to a crash caused by a human driver.

They also judged that the crash caused by automation was more severe and less acceptable than one caused by a human, regardless of the severity of the crash.

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Liu and his colleagues call this bias against automated systems blame attribution asymmetry. It indicates the tendency of people to overreact to shocks caused by automation, possibly due to the higher negative affect, or feelings and emotions, evoked by these shocks. Negative emotions such as anger can amplify attributions of legal responsibility and blame.

To change people's negative attitudes about semi-AVs, Liu maintains that "public communication campaigns are very necessary to transparently communicate accurate information, dispel public misconceptions, and provide opportunities to experience semi-AVs." .

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The news

We are more likely to blame a vehicle's autonomous system than its human driver when there is an accident

was originally published in

Xataka Science

by
Sergio Parra

.

Tobacco use kills more than 8 million worldwide each year and can cause cancer, heart disease, lung disease and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, as well as affecting fertility.

However, even though we are talking about such a serious health problem, the information, education and all the campaigns that are carried out, In 20 years, tobacco consumption among young people has barely been reduced in 40% of the countries in the world..

A health problem

Tobacco use among adolescents and children is a crucial problem, since most adult smokers begin in adolescence or childhood. Despite an overall reduction in cigarette consumption over the past 20 years, nearly 1 in 5 boys (17.9%) and more than 1 in 10 girls (11.5%) worldwide used tobacco at least once in the last month between 2010-2018, according to a new study published in The Lancet Child & Adolescent Health.

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Smoking prevalence was highest in the Western Pacific region for children (17·6%), with Tokelau having the highest prevalence of 49.3%. The European region had the highest prevalence of smoking among girls (90%), with a prevalence of 23.7% in Bulgaria and 23.6% in Italy.

In the study, there was a variable prevalence of cigarette smoking and use of other tobacco products in different regions, which is believed to be due to differences in the way tobacco control measures are implemented and monitored. For example, Uruguay has been at the forefront of tobacco control, with a complete ban on tobacco promotion and advertising and strict pictorial health warnings. As a result, cigarette consumption decreased by 17% every 10 years (from 20.1% in 2007 to 8% in 2014).

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The prevalence of use of any tobacco product was two to three times higher in 15-year-olds than in 13-year-olds in most countries. Peer pressure, the desire to experience new things, and the ability to buy cigarettes could explain this trend. As explained Bo Xi, from Shandong University, China, and lead author of the study:

Cigarette smoking may have decreased in most of the countries in the study, but there are still large numbers of young people who smoke. The fact that in many countries, the prevalence of non-cigarette tobacco product use is higher or as high as the prevalence of cigarette use shows us that there is still much work to be done. The need to strengthen tobacco control efforts, including specific policies for different tobacco products and a focus on health education for adolescents globally, is more important than ever.

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The news

In 20 years, almost half of countries have failed to reduce tobacco consumption among young people

was originally published in

Xataka Science

by
Sergio Parra

.