News: Maya Angelou (Marguerite Annie Johnson), writer, born 4 April 1928; died today, 28 May 2014. xxxx R.I.P.

OK. I need some input here. I've just read about this:




A Driverless Car produced by Google - see this short video:



I was reading this article entitled "Google Reveals Diverless Car Prototype." Go have a look yourself.

I may be totally behind the times and, being a retired old woman of 66, I am finding it hard to believe this type of thing will really work!

But just have a look at the video! It does appear to work. Those women, children, and elderly men are all riding along in this car, which has no steering wheel, no gas or brake pedals, no controls at all except for an emergency "stop" button.

My question is this - what did they promise these people to get them to take a spin in this thing?

I have to admit, it's cute as all get-out. I love those little round bug-type-cars that you see around now-a-days. When we were in the UK, we'd always see those little cars that had 2 wheels in the back and only 1 wheel in the front! So cute... but I just don't know... I keep thinking it will tip over if it goes around a sharp corner!

What do you think about having a car with no controls?

I have not investigated it in detail yet. I don't know how it's run... I have to go back and read more. Does it run on voice recognition? You just get in and say "go to Market Basket in Salem"?

This is all very interesting to me. I don't drive because I don't trust myself out on the crazy roads in this city these days. My senses are slower and my legs always hurt, especially when sitting in that car seat. So I never take my car out of the driveway. If I had a car that would drive me anywhere I wanted to go, all by itself, by me just telling it where to go... well, I might become a lot more mobile again! And this is just the point that the people at Google are making. It could change the world!

And we all know how Google has already changed the world now, don't we?

So let's just give it a chance and see how it progresses. I am not discounting this idea yet. I just hope I live long enough to see it put into action in our society and successfully!

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On another note, you may know that I am a huge tennis fan. I don't play tennis myself but I love to watch the game. I have the Tennis Channel on my cable line-up and at any given day, I can watch a tournament somewhere in the world. Right now I'm watching the early stages of The French Open. And today I learned something that has just made my day --- on day 4 of this tournament, yesterday, an unknown-to-me Spanish woman called Garbine Muguruza


Garbine Muguruza,
Spain

beat, in straight sets, 6-2 and 6-2, the nemesis of all the other female tennis players in the world - Serena Williams! Beat her! In the 2nd round! Venus Williams also was beaten yesterday, as well, in the same round, but that doesn't surprise me as she is quite often eliminated early on these days. But Serena?

Just.... WOW!

This opens up the whole women's side of this tournament for me. I have a lot of women I like these days, and now it seems they all have a chance at the prize! Now if only that Roger Federer could get himself eliminated, I'd be a totally happy woman (sorry Sheila, I know you love him!).


Roger Federer, Switzerland

I know, I know... many people revere the "King of Tennis" but not I. He gives me the shivers and I've never liked him even one iota. He may be a very nice man, with his two sets of twins and all, but he's just not my cuppa. I am a Rafa gal and will support Rafa Nadal until he decides to give up the game.


Rafael Nadal, Spain

So that's it on the tennis front. A whole new world has opened up now... personally, I really like Eugenie Bouchard from Canada:


Eugenie Bouchard,
Canada

And I always root for Sara Errani of Italy:


Sara Errani, Italy

as well as Angelique Kerber of Germany:


Angelique Kerber, Germany

Love that woman, so strong! There are more but I'll stop now... I am just happy that the field of women tennis players is so strong at the moment.

Cheers on a rainy Wednesday morning,

Bex




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