Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, April 27, 1990 TAG: 9004270975
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A4 EDITION: EVENING
SOURCE: TRACY VAN MOORLEHEM STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Top scholars from the Roanoke Valley Governor's School for Science and Technology were invited to attend the event along with their physics teacher, Fred Hoffman.
Hoffman received the invitation and chose students on the basis ofacademic merit and interest shown in a recent class unit about science and technological issues of transportation.
"These students are sitting in a nice place; they are going to be the ones to help make changes for their generation," Hoffman said. He said the experience was an excellent chance for the students to see how their math and science skills will be utilized in the real world.
The conference featured speakers and exhibits about "smart car"and "smart road" technology, currently being studied at Tech for possible use linking Roanoke and Blacksburg.
Hoffman said the students were surprised that teams of specialists work on the technology because of its interdisciplinary nature.
"They thought it would be about technology, not people interacting with technology," he said. "It's important for students to see the need for cooperation as well as different specialties."
The students enjoyed the conference, but came away with healthy skepticism, Hoffman said.
"Some of this is going to be a good thing," said Nicole Roberts, a senior from Franklin County High School. "But we have the problem of fuels to take care of first. I think it's a problem of priorities."
Jeff Baker, a senior from Botetourt High School, believes the current plans are a little unrealistic. "I think they understated the human factor," he said. "They eventually hope to have cars that drive themselves. There are a lot of stubborn people out there."
He added that implementation will take a long time. Since most people won't rush out to buy a $200,000 "smart car," he said, he considers it a waste to have "dumb cars" driving on "smart roads."
Clayton Hodges of Franklin County High School was surprised that the program didn't include any opponents of the "smart road" plan, which is expected to cost $117 million for a six-mile demonstration stretch between Blacksburg and Interstate 81 near Ironto. "It's not viable economically,." he said.
But skepticism aside, the students said they were impressed by the technology displayed by General Motors, Ford and Motorola, especially the "smart cars," which included such options as computer monitors, brake control sensors and infrared cameras to enhance night vision. The cars could also be set on a cruise control based on distance between cars instead of speed, so if the car in front slowed down, the "smart car" would too, automatically.
by CNB