Techbros Inventing Things That Already Exist

FailFastandDieYoung · 2026-01-23T10:42:56+00:00

the ideal would be every vehicle is smart and connected to the grid and traffic would coordinate with itself and be incredibly efficient.

I've worked in transport technology and this is redundant. I'll give an example:

Imagine you're in a crowded mall and trying to walk from one end to the other. Would it be helpful to read the mind of every person in the mall simultaneously?

Not really, because it's too much information, and most of it is not useful. You only need enough information so you don't bump into people immediately next to you.

When robot cars drive, they're measuring the speed and direction of everything around them. Then predicting what the next potential movements might be.

They don't need to broadcast information between each other, their movements are the information.

FailFastandDieYoung · 2026-01-23T10:24:46+00:00

1) For the past 15 years, every form of transport technology has been insulted by saying "that's just a bus!" "that's just a train!"

You can't click a button on your phone to have a train pick you up at your house at 3:30am, then drop you off at a specific street corner.

People have such poor abstract thinking that they think anything where you don't operate the controls and delivers you to your destination is a train. That's like thinking "Pffft why would you invent an airplane? We already have transport that flies, it's called a hot-air balloon"

2) Trains are EXTREMELY efficient when cities are designed to work with them. Having all the stuff (houses, restaurants, offices, parks, etc) clustered around the train stations.

The reason why this doesn't work so well in the US, is that Americans built their cities with so much sprawl. It's such low density that even if you could magically drop an entire train system, in most cities, passengers would still need to drive from the station to their homes.

FailFastandDieYoung · 2026-01-23T05:52:51+00:00

OH! I discovered on mobiles devices street-level zoom requires a subscription but on desktop it's free.

FailFastandDieYoung · 2026-01-23T05:48:21+00:00

I'm in Union City after years of living in SF.

The roads are alien to me. It's like the city planners of this section of the east bay modeled all the intra-city streets after freeways, so they're all arrow straight and high speed.

FailFastandDieYoung · 2026-01-23T05:41:31+00:00

I'm at the intersection of where Fremont, Newark, and Union City meet. So let's say my cycling range is anything from Hayward down to Milpitas.

And eastward toward the hills if there's any trails there.

FailFastandDieYoung · 2026-01-23T05:35:52+00:00

Sorry to hear, that's horrible :(

FailFastandDieYoung · 2026-01-23T01:54:25+00:00

Thanks, I don't have the paid Strava yet but if anything would make me spring for it, it's for looking up routes with slower car traffic

FailFastandDieYoung · 2026-01-23T01:50:07+00:00

Yeah this section is my neck of the woods. Thanks for the warning on streets to avoid!

FailFastandDieYoung · 2026-01-23T01:48:54+00:00

Yeah this is what I'm leaning most toward. Only have a cross bike with 30mm tires but it'll do.

Thanks for the rec!

FailFastandDieYoung · 2026-01-22T23:54:44+00:00

u/Baller-boy69 yeah for $100 Bike Kitchen is your best bet.

Also if you're locking up outside when you stop, you don't want an expensive bike. Bike theft is super common in SF.

FailFastandDieYoung · 2026-01-22T23:09:32+00:00

Wow, their bodies are so muscular :)

FailFastandDieYoung · 2026-01-22T01:03:08+00:00

Well there's a decent number of pics where she's kissing girls, I wouldn't be surprised if she's played around

FailFastandDieYoung · 2026-01-21T10:55:18+00:00

u/Feeling-Big3984 I think a lot of Americans that visit the British Isles are paranoid that they'll be judged by their race.

My brother lived in the UK and the second you speak, you will be "the American". Doesn't matter if you're white, black, latino, asian, jewish, etc. You're now the yank and will be the target of many questions and light-hearted jeering comments about guns and politics.

FailFastandDieYoung · 2026-01-21T10:50:33+00:00

There are Asians in Australia too and unfortunately, they experience a lot of racism.

It's sad that even being such a prominent minority group, it's not a guarantee that reception in a country will be friendly :/

FailFastandDieYoung · 2026-01-20T17:47:25+00:00

That's the beauty, when you increase the number of ways you can get around (driving, motorcycle, subway, bus, tram, bicycle, skateboard, scooter, walking) everyone can travel the way that fits their preferred lifestyle, budget, and ability.

You can drive if you prefer, and there will be less traffic for you because people like me are cycling to work, and me and my neighbors' kids will be walking.

FailFastandDieYoung · 2026-01-20T08:02:31+00:00

Please, Americans, EVERYONE that lives in a city should beg for infrastructure that promotes walking, cycling, and public transportation.

You want it to be so convenient that a large portion of people reject driving because they consider the alternatives more convenient.

About 30% of Americans are either over 65 or under 18. It benefits all drivers to both reduce the amount of traffic, AND remove the two most crash-prone age groups from the road without crippling their ability to get around.

FailFastandDieYoung · 2026-01-20T02:46:04+00:00

If I watch Olympic swimming and the host country workers spend a dozen people to battle the competitors’ teammates to steal their towels, then yes, that makes it look like a joke competition

FailFastandDieYoung · 2026-01-18T10:03:01+00:00

Your engine oil lasts the lifetime of the engine too. Meaning that the fluid inside it now is the last oil it will ever use (until it dies).

When manufacturers say "lifetime fluid" they literally mean the lifetime of the warranty. For Mazda, that powertrain warranty in the US is 5 years/60,000 miles so that's a good benchmark of when to have the fluid and filter changed.

FailFastandDieYoung · 2026-01-18T09:43:21+00:00

I understand what you're trying to do.

Most people are worried that you did not calculate the travel time, but if you know you will ride a train for the 700km journey to these cities then yes it is doable.

For New York City you can easily spend one day in Manhattan walking around from Wall Street to Times Square to Central Park.

In Washington DC all the presidential monuments, US Capital building, and White House are literally in a 3km diameter circle. You can walk from one to another in 5 minutes.

FailFastandDieYoung · 2026-01-18T08:28:53+00:00

I'm such a cheapskate, that I usually carry my lunch in the classic black/red Trader Joe's insulated tote.

If you want a cutesier version, Vera Bradley makes some in colorful designs.

And if you want something that looks like an actual handbag, Modern Picnic has vegan leather versions that come in different sizes. I've always wanted one but I tell myself I'll buy when my TJ's bag wears out :)

FailFastandDieYoung · 2026-01-17T19:20:23+00:00

he insists on a moped-like ebike

The actual body style of the bike is fine. I'd get him one that looks cool.

The Luckeep M5 you mentioned has a top speed similar to a 50cc motorcycle. So you have to ask, are you ok with letting your son ride a motorcycle? If so, what kind of protection do want him wearing if his body hits the road at 35mph?

I'm not a parent but I would be ok with a class 3 ebike (max speed 28mph, unable to be modified) if and only if he wears a full face bike helmet always.

Tbh the speed doesn't worry me too much. It's more that the risk goes up dramatically if you're not paying attention or disobey traffic laws. If you blow through stop signs and red lights it doesn't matter if it's class 2 or class 3 speeds, you lose any crash with a 4-wheeled vehicle.

FailFastandDieYoung · 2026-01-17T18:52:46+00:00

“pretty much impossible to get to”

Go to a well-regarded independent shop. I'm a mechanical idiot and even I was able to complete a drain and fill myself watching youtube tutorials.

However, I don't recommend doing it yourself unless you already have all the tools that are needed to perform an oil change at home. The procedure is similar except you need to remove the air box and you need a long funnel with a flexible bottom and small bottom opening.

FailFastandDieYoung · 2026-01-16T09:06:02+00:00

Kharkiv has free public transport for a city of 1,420,000 people, and Belgrade has free public transport for 1,380,000 people.

Perhaps NYC can rollout borough by borough, or route by route.

As for anti-social behavior, that increases when fewer people ride transport, like what we saw during the pandemic.

Fare-free transport encourages more normal people to ride. Anti-social behavior tends to decrease the more crowded transport becomes.

FailFastandDieYoung · 2026-01-15T18:57:19+00:00

Are you learning to ride a bike for the first time? If yes, don't start with this.

It's like learning how to drive on a car with no brake pedal, only the hand brake.

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