People in developed countries all over the world have come to see automobiles as the preferred way to travel. They allow independence: point to point transportation without having to rely on others to get where we want to go, to do what we want to do. Long range travel and short range travel can be undertaken whenever one desires, either alone or with other people. Citizens of the modern world must often wonder how people ever lived without automobiles. To think that human beings once traveled everywhere by foot or on horseback is not just a humorous idea to reminisce; it is foreign concept that would not allow the social and business culture of today to exist.
It is almost as foreign a concept that early automobiles were driven by steam. The challenge of steam engines was making them small, but still powerful enough to provide enough power to move more than themselves. In addition, these engines burned coal, a messy, inefficient fuel.1
With the invention of the internal combustion engine came a long line of innovations around the world that led us to the automobiles we enjoy today.
Along the way, automobiles have become an essential part of life for many people in the United States. Their operation and usefulness have also become commonplace; something most people take for granted, without any knowledge of the years of innovation that led to the automobiles we enjoy today.
Dangers of Driving
With the convenience of driving comes many risks. Automobiles are heavy, powerful objects moving at rapid rates. When they collide with each other or other objects, enormous unfavorable forces come into play. The composition of the human body is not designed to fend against mishaps that can occur with such machi...
... middle of paper ...
... and the General Estimates System (Washington, DC: <http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/pdf/nrd-30/NCSA/TSFAnn/TSF2001.pdf>) i. [back to text]
4. Inventor Profile: Nils Bohlin, 2002, National Inventor’s Hall of Fame, 28 Feb. 2004, <http://www.invent.org/hall%5Fof%5Ffame/179.html>. [back to text]
5. Technical Recruitment, 2004, Volvo, 28 Feb. 2004, <http://www.volvocars.us/_Tier3/AboutUs/Technical+Recruitment/>. [back to text]
6. Volvo Safety Center, 2004, Volvo, 28 Feb. 2004, <http://www.volvocars.us/_Tier2/WhyVolvo/Safety/SafetyCentre.htm>. [back to text]
7. Volvo Saved My Life, 2004, Volvo, 28 Feb. 2004, <http://www.volvocars.us/_Tier2/WhyVolvo/Safety/VolvoSavedMyLife.htm>. [back to text]
8. Autoliv, Inc, 2003, Illustrations, 1 March 2004, <http://www.autoliv.com/Appl_ALV/Download.nsf/pages/libraryillustrations>. [back to text]
Automobiles have been apart of not only American, but worldwide life for more than 100 years. The 1920’s was a period in which the use and production of them became very prevalent and mass produced like no other time before. Automobiles began to be make life easier, and increasingly more productive in just about every way. The Great Gatsby is a book in which automobiles were owned by almost every character; without the automobiles characters such as Gatsby, Tom, Daisy, and even Nick would not be able to get to the city in which they called “West and East Egg” from their suburban mansions on the outskirts of town. Intriguingly, the way their cars looked differed greatly from others of the time that showed their power,
The image of a self-propelled vehicle dates back around the early thirteenth century. Europe is the birthplace of the automobile, but it was adopted by America. Roger Bacon had a vision of cars being made without animals so they can be at astonishing speeds and maneuverability . About three hundreds years later, Leonardo Da Vinci rejuvenate Bacon's idea with hopes of creating a military vehicle. His idea was transformed into the modern day tank. The first step in making a self-propelled vehicle was taken by Nicholas Joseph Cugnot. He was an eighteenth century French artillery officer. "In 1769 he built and ran a three-wheeled carriage mounting a steam engine of his own design, with the idea that it might be used for pulling guns"2. It was very clumsy vehicle that was shot into the air when it reached the top speed of three miles an hour. Cugnot's vehicle provided almost no improvement of the horse. In the early years of the nineteenth century an American and British duo had began an automotive experiment. Richard Trevithick, a British engineer, and American genius, Oliver Evans created a workable but crude vehicle propelled by steam3. This early experiment was an improvement, but the railroads and stagecoach companies joined together. With this new combining of forces the new steam vehicle, the Orkuter Amphibolos, was brought down.
In the July 1997 issue of Commentary, James Q. Wilson challenges the consensus among academia’s finest regarding the automobile in his bold article, Cars and Their Enemies. Directed towards the general public, his article discredits many of the supposed negatives of the automobile raised by experts, proves that the personal car is thriving and will continue to thrive because it meets individual preference over other means of transportation, as well as presents solutions to the social costs of cars. Wilson emphasizes that no matter what is said and done in eliminating the social costs of the automobile, experts are not going to stop campaigning against it.
This radical idea of the automobile permeated throughout America with most, if not all credit renowned to Henry Ford. Observed as a technological mastermind, Ford commenced experiments involving machinery from the time he was adolescent to launching his career working at the Edison Illuminating Company. He examined internal combustion engines and gasoline buggy ideas eventually resulting in removing himself from Edison’s company and his introduction in the emerging automobile industry. Following in 1903, he established the Ford Motor Company, which expeditiously became a leader in the automotive industry and would gain extensive wealth within only a few decades. While other manufacturers strove to produce automobiles to be extravagant and luxurious predominantly for the wealthy, he immensely focused on efficient mass production of durable, affordable vehicles for the expanding middle-class market.
The automobile had changed America in many ways since it has been created in the early 1900’s. When the automobile was first invented it was a thing only the rich could afford. After the invention of the mass production line more and more people were able to buy automobiles because they were being produce and sold for cheaper. A historian once said that Henry ford is the reason why common people have no limitations of their geography.
For all these features any car can still crash so this report aims to make you more aware of the safety aspects of modern cars and what role they play in driving.
Over time, there have been several technological advancements that have shaped the world in which we live and are familiar with today, and one advancement, in particular, that has influenced American society significantly is the automobile. Since the automobile’s beginning, it has continuously been improved and modified pushing the rest of technology to keep up with its rapid pace of innovation. Americans have frequently taken advantage of the automobile’s many benefits, but what they often fail to realize is that the automobile has given American society more than just the luxury of driving. In fact, the automobile has influenced this nation and the people within it both historically and culturally
Starting in the late 1700's, European engineers began tinkering with motor powered vehicles. Steam, combustion, and electrical motors had all been attempted by the mid 1800's. By the 1900's, it was uncertain which type of engine would power the automobile. At first, the electric car was the most popular, but at the time a battery did not exist that would allow a car to move with much speed or over a long distance. Even though some of the earlier speed records were set by electric cars, they did not stay in production past the first decade of the 20th century. The steam-driven automobile lasted into 1920's. However, the price on steam powered engines, either to build or maintain was incomparable to the gas powered engines. Not only was the price a problem, but the risk of a boiler explosion also kept the steam engine from becoming popular. The combustion engine continually beat out the competition, and the early American automobile pioneers like Ransom E. Olds and Henry Ford built reliable combustion engines, rejecting the ideas of steam or electrical power from the start.
Starting in the late 1700’s, European engineers began messing with motor powered vehicles. By the mid 1800’s, steam, combustion, and electrical motors had all been attempted. By the 1900’s it wasn’t very clear on which type of engine would really power the automobile. At that time, electric cars were the most popular but there were no batteries at that time that would allow a car to move very fast or a long distance. Commercial production in the United States began at the beginning of the 1900’s. In the early 1900’s, the United States had about two thousand firms producing one or more cars.
Automobiles play an essential role in American society. As if being the major means of transportation was not impressive enough, automotives can be seen on T.V., in movies, in magazines, and can sometimes be indicative of a person’s wealth and social status. On average, Americans drive nearly 40 miles and drive for just over 50 minutes driving per person per day (http://www.bts.gov). That means a person spends roughly one-sixteenth of a day driving. It would make sense, then, to make such an essential part of society as efficient, cost effective, and clean as possible. However, that is not the case. As the years have passed cars have actually begun to move away from efficiency. Hawken writes, “[The automobile] design process has made cars ever heavier, more complex, and usually costlier. These are all unmistakable signs that automaking has beco...
The world of technology is ever changing and advancing. With the automotive industry in play technology is constantly surpassing what is available today with what can be done for tomorrow. Technology and the automotive industry go hand in hand with constant improvement to components of cars. Due to technology advancement there is competition within the car industry, especially between American car companies and European car companies. European car companies provide their buyers with innovative variety and revolutionary luxuries. European car technology is superior to American car technology due to their safety, entertainment, and luxury features.
The internal-combustion engine (I.C.E.) is very important to human life and one of the greatest inventions in history, without it people who travel long distances for work would not be able to get to their jobs; and travel would be almost impossible in bad weather. “Combustion drives the developed world's economy. Transportation is second only to industrial use as the largest consumer of energy in the US and accounts for about 60% of our nations use of petroleum” (Manly).
The invention of internal combustion engines in the early 19th century has led to the discovery of utilisation of cheap energy that is petroleum and this enabled the world to develop and progress into the modern world today. Humans were able to accomplish more work done with little manual labour, using internal combustion engines powered by fossil fuels. Internal combustion engine are mechanical power devices that convert heat energy to mechanical energy with the combustion process taking place in a system boundary (Rolle, 2005). Among the internal combustion engine invented in the 19th century were the Otto engine, Diesel engine and gas turbine engine. Gas turbine engine is one of the popular engines used today due to its high torque per weight ratio relative to other types of internal combustion engines. As explained by Cengel and Boles (2011), the gas turbine engine works on a 6 stages process, namely air intake, compression, fuel injection, combustion, expansion and exhaust (refer to Figure 1 in Appendix 1).
329) There was not one specific person who "invented the automobile," but, there were many people who contributed to the invention of the automobile.(Ingrassia, 5) (Boyne, 31) These people include Isaac Newton, who developed a power carriage in the fourteen twenties, and Joseph Cugnot, who built the first steam powered automobile in seventeen sixty nine. The first American to develop an automobile was Nathan Redd.(Brown, 329) The use of the automobile in the United States became common due to the convenience and reliability of a quick, easy to operate source of transportation. The American people began to build their homes further from their jobs, and further from civilization because they could commute back and forth much more quickly.(Simanaitis, 337) The convenience, reliability, and easy commute were only a few positive effects of the development of the automobile in the United States. The invention of the automobile also directly stimulated the economical growth and success of the United States.
Richard Petty once said “You’ll got home safe, so drive safe, and stay safe.” Being a racing legend, he is an advocate for safe driving to minimise the cases of road crushes that have been on the rise. He double up as the chairman of the Veterans’ Safe Driving Initiative, the initiative is aimed at guiding the veterans returning from deployment on safe driving tips. It is necessarily important since the infrastructure has changed over time. Another initiative is being run in Minnesota where the teens are guided on the important safe driving tips. Study shows that more crushes are likely to occur in teen driving than veteran driving. It is also evident that young drivers are more likely to cause a crush within six months of passing the driving test and young male are worse than the females in the field.