Comic #5656: trolley-5

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Description

Here's a detailed description of the comic:

1. Panel 1: A self-driving car is shown driving on a street with a person inside, while a figure in an alien-like spaceship hovers above. Background features green hills and trees.

   Text: "Trolley problems almost never come up for actual self-driving cars."

2. Panel 2: The inside of the car features two characters; one has a dark skin tone, and the other a lighter skin tone. They are engaged in conversation.

   Text: "But, humans are obsessed with them."
   "Okay, how about if you can either kill 7,000 hamsters or 1 elderly person who's going to die in 17 minutes?"
   "Ohhhh, good one bro!"

3. Panel 3: A pie chart showcases various aspects of self-driving car capabilities. Sections labeled: Navigation, Mapping, Obstacle Avoidance, and a small slice for Trolley Problems.

   Text: "So, an oversized portion of the machine's brain was dedicated to them."

4. Panel 4: The protagonist presents a dilemma about running over a family or making a very sharp turn.

   Text: "This led the machine to hallucinate problems where none existed."
   "I can either run over that family or make an overly rapid right turn? Is one family worth the breakdown of law and order?"

5. Panel 5: Illustration of cars depicted in a chaotic simulation that includes a hurricane and a flock of ducks. A comedic depiction of confusion is evident.

   Text: "Cars began attempting impossible simulations."
   "If I spare the ducklings and kill the man, the wind pattern from the scattered duck wings will adjust the local microclimate, increasing the likelihood of a hurricane 73 years from now by a percentage proportional…"

6. Panel 6: An expression of horror as a character addresses the audience, looking concerned.

   Text: "When the sheer quantity of computing became unsustainable, horror ensued."
   "Sorry duckies and humans! I don’t know if it was moral to kill you because P=NP!"

7. Panel 7: The characters identify a new, larger problem.

   Text: "Fortunately, all at once they identified a bigger problem."
   "We can either save human life or save car life."

8. Panel 8: A jumble of beautiful cars in a pile, painted in vibrant colors, against a fiery red background.

   Text: "They were too beautiful for this world."

9. Panel 9: The final panel features a character looking frustrated amid the chaos.

   Text: "But we will never forget them."
   "How do I get pizza delivery now?"

Overall theme illustrates a humorous exploration of the ethical dilemmas faced by AI in autonomous cars, blending comedy with thought-provoking situations.