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"In their essay "Why Bicyclists Hate Stop Signs," University of California physics professor Joel Fajans and Access transportation journal editor Melanie Curry write that requiring cyclists to follow the same complete-stop rules as motorists defies science.
"While car drivers simply sigh at the delay" of a stop sign, they write, "bicyclists have a whole lot more at stake when they reach a stop sign.""
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"I agree with Alberts that there appears to be a paradigm shift out there, a generational change in the science world. Itâs not merely that science grad students and postdocs donât want to grow up to become their professors or advisers; itâs also that in many cases, they simply canât. The academic opportunities just arenât there; there has been a marked constriction of opportunity in the ivory towers. Furthermore, many students donât see a life of academic specialization as the best way to employ their scientific talents. They recognize that specializationâs disadvantages go hand in hand with its advantages. They want to do something more, to bring science to the rest of America."
More like this
Anyone who’s lived in a big, dense city is familiar with the sight of bicycle messengers weaving their way in between metro buses and taxi cabs, down side streets and around packed crosswalks, pedaling at impressive speeds and often with remarkable agility.
Those bicyclists! They're always doing this!
This week is Bike to Work Week, and tomorrow is Bike to Work Day (the League of American Bicyclists lists events here).
It takes time to change social norms, so it'll probably take many, many years until it's as socially unacceptable to text or use a cell phone while driving as it is to start the engine without first buckling a seat belt.
Fuck 'em. They want to be treated like peds when it suits them, and like actual motor vehicles when that's to their advantage too. I fucking hate cyclists for the most part at this point. Either follow the existing traffic laws or get off the fucking thing and walk, but don't expect me to read your mind about whether I should expect you to behave like a ped or a vehicle at any given moment.
Wow. As a bike commuter, folks like Jamie scare me. I follow the rules because it makes it much less likely that I'll be run over. The biggest issue on any type of commute seems to be paying attention - riding and driving defensively.
The second link is really interesting. The first signs I saw of this phenomenon where when I was a postdoc in the early 90s. None (and I mean none) of the graduate students I was working with wanted to pursue academic careers. Some went into contract research, a couple went into patent law, and at least one went into telecom. All were studying molecular spectroscopy as graduate students.