Bad Driving May Have Genetic Basis 449
Serenissima writes "Bad drivers may in part have their genes to blame, suggests a new study by UC Irvine neuroscientists. People with a particular gene variant performed more than 20 percent worse on a driving test than people without it — and a follow-up test a few days later yielded similar results. About 30 percent of Americans have the variant. 'These people make more errors from the get-go, and they forget more of what they learned after time away,' said Dr. Steven Cramer, neurology associate professor and senior author of the study published recently in the journal Cerebral Cortex."
First... define worse... (Score:5, Interesting)
Some of the best drivers I know are the ones who can't obey speed limits, make illegal turns, and ultimately are deemed as "bad" drivers. However these same folks maintain superior control of their vehicles and never get into accidents unless they are caused by another driver's lack of control.
So, perhaps this gene is more of a "disrespect for authority" gene?
Another way for insurance companies to screw us (Score:5, Interesting)
Wouldn't surprise me if this does turn out to be true and not just a statistical anomaly then insurance companies will probably ask for a genetic test if they can get away with it and raise the premium if you have this genetic marker.
I could see this as true (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:First... define worse... (Score:5, Interesting)
Wow, defining the problem! I wonder if the researchers thought of such a novel concept?
If only there was some sort of written description of the research, longer than a summary, that might shed light on if they independently came to the same conclusion that problem-definition might be worthwhile and, if so, what they defined as "better" and "worse"...
Indications other than driving (Score:3, Interesting)
Obviously driving a car, truck, golf cart, etc. requires fine and gross motor skills. So if this gene is present does it affect only driving skills or other areas where fine and gross motor skills come into play? I'd like to see, for instance, if the 30% or so of people with this gene can't play video games on modern systems because they forget what the buttons do or just can't get the jumps, dives, runs, etc. down. It might also be interesting to see if neurosurgeons, sculptors, or sports players have this gene or not.
Re:Why is this surprising? (Score:3, Interesting)
Perhaps not surprising, but the news is not that they've discovered the fact that traits are inherited through genetic markers. Good ol' Chuck Darwin had that one figured a while back.
The news is that they've possibly identified one of the specific markers, and found a potential correlation between that and a specific subset of skills.
In addition to the "blue eyes" and "red hair" gene, we may have found the "hold my beer and watch this" gene.
Re:First... define worse... (Score:4, Interesting)
So, perhaps this gene is more of a "delusion of competence [sfgate.com]" gene?
FTFY
Re:First... define worse... (Score:3, Interesting)
I've always thought defensive driving (the ability to anticipate potentially dangerous situations and react in such a way as to mitigate or eliminate the danger) was the hallmark of good driving. The ability to react to surprise is also a trait of good drivers, I grant, but, as they say, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.
Re:First... define worse... (Score:4, Interesting)
To make an analogy, imagine that traffic laws are like government mandated school curriculum, they are designed to be of the most benefit to the majority, they are by no means designed to define driving ability.
Bad analogy.
Traffic laws are like the code of conduct within a classroom. They prohibit someone from sitting in the back of the classroom and screaming at the top of their lungs while pelting the other students with rotten vegetables. The screaming/pelting kid may very well learn great like that, but they're a terrible distraction to everyone else and degrade the learning experience for the rest of the classroom.
Bonferroni Correction (Score:1, Interesting)
Re:First... define worse... (Score:5, Interesting)
Uh, no. Many of the rules, like speed limits, are there to limit the damage that bad drivers can do when they screw up. Some bad drivers break the rules. Some good drivers break the rules. Bad drivers get in accidents no matter if they obey the rules or not. They just kill fewer people if they happen to be driving slow at the time.
Different take (Score:4, Interesting)
Officer, it was not my bad driving, but my genes.
If you write me a ticket, I will sue under the Americans With Disabilities Act.
Re:First... define worse... (Score:3, Interesting)
Then why did the same results happen on the first trial, when neither group had seen the track before?
Re:Chromosomes? (Score:3, Interesting)
"People with a particular gene variant performed more than 20 percent worse on a driving test" You mean the double-X chromosome?
Although I'm a man, I'd have to admit I've seen some pretty bad driving from people with a Y chromosome too. In fact, very smart people can be very bad drivers (e.g. von Neumann's corner [anecdotage.com] was named after a notoriously bad driver, John von Neumann [wikipedia.org] who you might have heard about).
Re:First... define worse... (Score:3, Interesting)
Just an FYI, it's called an accident for a reason,
My daughter recently completed a driver's ed class, which I thought was very well done. One of the things she was taught is that in driving, there is no such thing as an accident. You are referring to a collision. Good drivers are those that do not participate in, cause, or contribute to collisions. The mindset that they are trying to impart is that for the most part, collisions are caused by someone. They are not random events or acts of god.
Re:First... define worse... (Score:3, Interesting)
Not to mention that these "best drivers" may well be causing accidents by breaking the rules, encouraging unpredictability and spreading the results of their mistakes to others?
Re:predictable behavior in cooperative hazards (Score:2, Interesting)