Double-edged sword
Automation in aviation is a double-edged sword. What does that mean? A double-edged sword is something that has both good and bad consequences. Automation is a double-edged sword. On the one hand, planes are much safer because there is a much lower chance of an ordinary human error by the pilots. However, when something does go wrong, the pilots are much less prepared and much less able to correct it and make a life-saving maneuver. It’s a double-edged sword: it’s both good and bad.
Now, the good and bad don’t have to be equal. In this case, far more people have been saved from airplane automation than have died. Automation is a good thing. But saying it’s a double-edged sword is a way of acknowledging the downsides. If they’re aware of the downsides, then airlines and plane manufacturers can institute better training, better simulations maybe, or try to minimize the complexity of the systems.
Spring is in the air, and baseball is about to start. Actually, what is today? This episode will come out on March 21. So yesterday was the first day of the Major League baseball season; it opened with two teams playing in Japan. Baseball is my favorite sport, and one big controversy in baseball is video replay. When there’s a close play, we all want the call to be right. Baseball has been gradually increasing its use of instant replay to make sure the umpires’ decisions on the field are correct. If it’s a close play, we stop for a few minutes, go to the replay, and make sure the umpires made the right call. Unfortunately, that slows the game down. Replay is a double-edged sword. Yes, we get more accurate calls on the field. But we also have to sit through long breaks while they look at replays. Is it good for the game? I don’t know; probably yes. It’s better for calls to be right. But it is definitely a double-edged sword, because it’s boring to sit through long breaks looking at replays.
Using free web sites like Facebook is a double-edged sword. Sure, we get access to great web sites, but they are increasingly using our information in ways we might not like.
India goes to the polls in April; the whole massive country will vote in national parliamentary elections. I read an article about the prime minister’s chances of holding onto power. The article said that inflation in India is low, but that it’s actually a double-edged sword. Yes, it’s good that prices are not going up. But that’s because food prices are falling. And many of the voters in India are farmers. When food prices are falling, farmers aren’t doing well. So the low inflation in India is a double-edged sword. Good for consumers in the cities, but not so good for the farmers in all the rural areas.
Don’t forget about Audible, our partner, which is offering Plain English listeners a free audiobook just for signing up for a free trial. If you’re listening in the car, or on a plane, hopefully not a 737-Max, but maybe an older model of 737, then audiobooks are great ways to pass the time. PlainEnglish.com/book . Go there and you can browse the English books or books in your own language. Remember, you get one for free just by signing up for a free trial. PlainEnglish.com/book .
That’s all for today’s episode. Coming up next on Monday: oh man. A huge scandal in university admissions. Cheating galore. Just wait until you hear what some people did to get their kids into Harvard, Yale and Stanford. That’s coming on Monday’s episode. In the meantime, have a great weekend, study hard, happy spring! Today’s the first day of spring. JR and I will be back on Monday. See you then!
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