The Oft Unobserved Amazingness of the Automobile

Even aside from all the new technology (GPS, cellphone, mp3 players, DVD players,etc) that they are cramming into our cars these days, the automobiles we've been driving are marvels of ingenuity.

When I drive:

I am inside a contraption composed of metal, plastic, and other compounds weighing over 3000 pounds, more than 16 times my own weight. It travels (somewhat) regularly at 70mph, or 6160 feet/minute, or 102' 8" per second, though it is often not under my direct control. This mobile is auto propelled by a very rapid series of small explosions, which I cannot hear. The direction of the vehicle can be determined by as little as the force of two fingers on my left hand, though the knees and occasionally the chin are sufficient replacements. I am impervious to whatever weather I may be driving through and instead enjoy a temperature of my own choosing. Instead of explosions of gasoline or even the wind, I am able to hear the sound of a band performing on another continent in separate decade. Now add the ability to tell ask this contraption where to drive or command it to contact my wife's cell phone. Simply amazing.

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