Autoblog

Traffic jams and exhaust linked to autism, brain cell damage

Zach Bowman — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 16:30:00 EST

Filed under: Etc., Safety

A new series of health studies may have discovered a link between vehicle exhaust and a range of ailments, including autism, Alzheimer's Disease and more. The Wall Street Journal reports that scientists around the world have conducted studies investigating the impact of exhaust fumes on families living close to highways. The researchers are quick to point out that the results are still circumstantial at this point, but that doesn't make their findings any easier to live with. For example, children who live in areas affected by high levels of emissions typically score lower on intelligence tests than their peers and are more prone to depression, anxiety and attention issues.

Then there are the autism rates. Researchers found that children born to mothers living within 1,000 feet of a major roadway in Los Angeles, Sacramento or San Francisco were twice as likely to be born with autism regardless of factors like race, gender or family education level. In Mexico, the studies found that exposure to exhaust can cause a type of brain swelling similar to what Alzheimer's patients endure.

It doesn't get much better for those of us who are occasionally trapped in traffic jams. The studies found that breathing in high-traffic areas for just 30 minutes can cause increased brain activity in the areas responsible for personality and decision making. Head over to The Wall Street Journal for a look at the full report.

Traffic jams and exhaust linked to autism, brain cell damage originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 10 Nov 2011 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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And the winner for most congested European city is...

Noah Joseph — Thu, 16 Jun 2011 09:00:00 EST

Filed under: Europe

The trouble with European cities is that most of them were laid out long before the advent of the automobile. Little wonder, then, that nearly all of them suffer from terrible traffic congestion. But which is the most jammed of all of them?

Brussels. The Belgian capital is also the seat of NATO, the European Union and countless other international organizations. And this year it's been rated as the most congested city in Europe. Traffic in the UK is hardly any better with three cities listed in the top 10 - second only to France, which features four.

The ratings were conducted by TomTom. The GPS company compiles data from individual units once they're connected to the internet for updates, and calculates how much time was spent citing in traffic jams. Big Daddy is watching, but at least he can give us some useful information once in a while.

And the winner for most congested European city is... originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 16 Jun 2011 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Science Behind Traffic Jams

John Neff — Sat, 05 Mar 2011 14:33:00 EST

The Science of Traffic Jams - Click above to view infographic

Nothing will ruin a pleasant drive quicker than the sight brake lights coming towards you on the highway. Miles ahead, someone or something has spooked the bejeezus out of traffic and now you're about to pay for it with your free time. The mighty flow of America's highways is about to be plugged by you and a couple hundred of your closest strangers.

The next time a traffic jam's iron grip has you in its clutch, you can at least take heart knowing that scientists have figured out why they happen and who's to blame. Follow the jump for this latest infographic on the Science of Traffic Jams by our friends at Car Insurance Guide, and tell us in the comments if knowing really is half the battle.

Click to view The Science Behind Traffic Jams infographic...

[Source: Car Insurance Guide]

Continue reading The Science Behind Traffic Jams

The Science Behind Traffic Jams originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 05 Mar 2011 14:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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China's 60-mile long traffic jam ends

Zach Bowman — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 16:31:00 EST

Filed under: China, Etc.

Here's a little ray of sunshine if you happen to be traveling on the G110 expressway in China. The massive, 60-mile long traffic jam that reportedly cropped up due to road maintenance between Beijing and Zhangjiaku has all but evaporated. NBC News decided to get down and dirty by heading up the afflicted highway to see the mayhem for itself, only to find that the Chinese government had successfully dissipated the clog.

From what the news agency found, the G110 is popular among truck drivers hauling coal from illegal mines in the countryside into Beijing. There are plenty of larger, quicker roads to get goods in and out of the capital, but those highways are heavily monitored and charge drivers based on their load and the distance they travel. Until just recently, the G110 didn't have those hassles.

But after traffic began to go stack up, the government quickly erected a series of toll booths and weigh stations to keep an eye on what's going and coming through the area. For now, traffic is flowing freely along the road, even though the original roadwork isn't set to wrap up until mid September.

[Source: NBC News | Image: AP Photo/Alexander F. Yuan]

China's 60-mile long traffic jam ends originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 25 Aug 2010 16:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Microsoft launches new Clearflow traffic avoidance system

Jonathon Ramsey — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 09:03:00 EST

Filed under: Technology, First Drives

Eric Horvitz is the president of the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence, as well as being an AI researcher at Microsoft. When stuck in traffic one day in Seattle, he asked his nav system to reroute him via side streets, and the result was worse than being stuck on the highway. That incident turned into four years of research and data collection on traffic patterns to create the Clearflow traffic avoidance system for Microsoft's web portal-based Live Search Maps.

The point of Clearflow is to provide accurate route information that gives you the best chance to avoid traffic on highways and on the side streets. By logging data from 16,500 trips over 125,000 miles, Microsoft engineers came up with algorithms to predict traffic flow on highways and adjacent streets, the latter of which can be even more crowded than the main arteries.

Using the data collected in Seattle, along with the results from highway sensors, the system works for 72 cities, and can "predict congestion based on time of day, weather and other variables like sporting events." Clearflow went live Thursday, April 10, with the choice to "Choose route based on traffic".

[Source: New York Times]

Microsoft launches new Clearflow traffic avoidance system originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 14 Apr 2008 09:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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VIDEO: Traffic jam shockwave recreated in experiment

Jonathon Ramsey — Fri, 21 Mar 2008 10:28:00 EST

Filed under: First Drives

Click above to watch video

Shockwave traffic jams -- the kind where you slow down and speed up (with others behind you doing the same thing) -- have finally been recreated in a controlled environment (woo-hoo!). Theories about the causes of traffic jams have been computer modeled before, but here hasn't been a live demonstration of how a body of traffic goes from highway speeds to a dead stop -- for no apparent reason -- until now.

A team of Japanese scientists put 22 cars on a circular track and told them to drive about 20-MPH. Sure enough, a few laps in, uneven gaps appeared between the cars. Then a group of cars got bunched up. The people at the back of the bunch sometimes had to come to a stop. The car at the front of the bunch would lurch away... only to rejoin the back of the bunch on the other side of the circle.

Now that the phenomenon has been recreated in "lab" conditions, the greatest minds of our generation can get to fixing it. Or, not really, since the cause of shockwave jams is conclusively shown to be -- tada! -- human error. Some folks just can't go with the flow when traffic needs it most. So while fixing human error might not be on the cards, at least there's some hope now for traffic jams. Watch video of the artificial shockwave traffic jam after the jump. Thanks for the tip, Ben!

[Source: New Scientist]

Continue reading VIDEO: Traffic jam shockwave recreated in experiment

VIDEO: Traffic jam shockwave recreated in experiment originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 21 Mar 2008 10:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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