Legal battle over self-driving technology and Uber stories

The Uber ride can be an unusual modern location for friendship in the technological age. Finding oneself in close contact with a new person can yield both surprisingly positive and negative results. What about getting in a car with no driver, but rather a program running autonomously? This is the direction in which Uber is going, although automated Ubers are not yet sailing the streets of Davis. The company has tested the technology on the streets of Pittsburgh, Penn. but it has not yet been released en masse.

The impacts of self-driving technology on the public are also under common scrutiny. Automation will obviously have huge impacts on those who drive for Uber and possibly Lyft. Though Uber contends that it will direct previously employed drivers toward services like door-to-door flu shots through the company, the UC Davis community has concerns and words of encouragement of their own. Third-year psychology major Lexi Singh was unsure about the technology.

“I don’t know how I feel about self driving cars in general,” Singh said. “You lose an important social aspect because you don’t have a person that you’re interacting with necessarily. But that would also be just really interesting being in a car that’s just automatically driving. That would be actually pretty exciting to be in a self-driving car, but it would also be scary. I think I don’t really understand the technology very much to say what my opinion on self driving cars would be.”

Many people likely don’t know the specifics of self-driving programming. Infamous Uber driver Karaoke Caddy Man, or Stephen Brumfield, shared a story from his many hours on Davis’ roads. Brumfield was turning on Sycamore Lane when the light turned green, but the truck in the turn lane next to him didn’t go. The truck blocked his view of the crosswalk, so he waited too. It turned out to be a woman, pushing a stroller and pulling a toddler along behind her.

“I don’t know if their technology can handle that,” Brumfield said. “If this technology sees a green light, is it just gonna go? I decided to slow down early […] had I just kept going at 20 miles an hour by the time the technology would have seen that stroller, it would have been too late.”

Annika Lin, a third-year psychology major, isn’t so concerned about the technology itself, but rather what defines a successful Uber ride. For Lin, it’s getting to the destination.

“I’m not really afraid of it, I think it could be good if it was an automated thing because sometimes I get in an Uber and then they’ll refuse to take me because they’re like ‘oh I didn’t know it was going to be that far,’” Lin said. “I just got into an Uber and now I have to call a new one. So I think this automated thing would be cool because they can’t say no and you’re not really burdening anyone so you don’t have to tip them. It’s not like I really talk to my Uber anyway.”

How valuable is the five-minute Uber conversation, really? There’s certainly a split experience between receiving an effective service and having a social experience. Uber is one moment in the day when a stranger can become a friend or an acquaintance and the world draws in close. Second-year mechanical engineering major Ayan Siddiq knows this experience intimately.

“There was one time I was with a lady […] she was telling me about her daughter and how [she] was taking her to the zoo later in the day,” Siddiq said. “I was talking about how I don’t really like the concept of zoos. And then she starts saying how in a way, humans are also held captive, like in society. We were kind of just going back and forth about that, it was a very interesting conversation.”

Siddiq can see the benefits of automation regardless of concerns about technology and socialization.

“In general, they’d be able to put more cars out if it’s automated,” Siddiq said. “I don’t think the interaction between the rider and the driver is necessary, but it is fun to have. So I think it could be beneficial.”

Although some riders have a social experience on their way to their location, the job could also be a social one for some drivers. First-year English major Lili Eichler and first-year genetics major Esme Hassell-Thean shed light on a unique example.

“I’ve heard a lot of Uber drivers say that Uber is kind of therapy for them, just meeting new people,” Eichler said. “Like there’s this one Uber driver that we had, and he had Parkinson’s. He was the nicest guy. He said that Uber basically just appeased a lot of his symptoms.”

Eichler and Hassell-Thean each recalled notable moments shared with Uber drivers, one culminating in the realization that the driver worked on campus and knew exactly where to take them. However, Hassell-Thean ultimately articulated pros potentially outweighing the cons.

“I’m fairly neutral on the idea because the social bit can be nice, but it also carries the risk of having somebody that’s slightly odd,” Hassell-Thean said. “Although I think for the drivers, Uber is a good thing for students to do to make money because it’s a flexible schedule. But as a consumer I don’t think it matters.”

The Karaoke Caddy Man feels more strongly about the social significance of jobs that are quickly becoming automated. Despite having financial stakes in Uber’s evolution, Blumfield reflected on personal experience.

“My daughter works at McDonald’s, or she used to,” Blumfield said. “They decided to put a kiosk in there for you to go and order your food. So what happened to the smiling, and everything else that comes along with it? So we’re losing that. And obviously with McDonald’s it’s been lost years ago because nobody likes the job because they’re not getting paid enough.”

Blumfield has been an Uber driver for just over two years. He has installed a cordless karaoke system in his car and operates under the pseudonym ‘Karaoke Caddy Man’ on Instagram and Snapchat where he connects with his past guests.

“I’ve met so many people doing Uber and Lyft,” Blumfield said. “I mean, they’re all on my Instagram I’m watching their lives continue to grow. I mean tons of people. I keep up with them, and we still talk. All those memories would have just been a blank ride.”

The Karaoke Caddy Man has actually been sought out by people who have yet to ride in his car and sing with him. He recounted a recent positive experience while working and waiting to be called, although he cautioned that riders don’t understand how difficult it is to make a profit when he’s forced to idle while they meet the car.

“Just a couple of weeks ago I was was sitting in front of Blondies and I was just sitting in the car, you know, rapping and singing like I normally do and I just hear all this screaming ‘ahhhh’ and I’m like ‘what the heck is going on’ and they open up the door and they’re like ‘are you the Karaoke Caddy Man? […] oh my god we’ve been waiting the whole year to get in your car!’”

Whether or not Uber will try to automate Blumfield is something he will wait and see to find out.

“At some point I guess it’s going to happen and you know I don’t know if I’ll still be driving at that time but if I am, hopefully I’ll continue to […] still have passengers in Davis that will call me,” Blumfield said.

Written by: Stella Sappington — features@theaggie.org

Students reflect on Davis’ unconventional school spirit

UC Davis is ranked among the top public universities in the nation, a fact that seems to instill a sense of pride within the students that attend the university. However, when roaming around the campus it is not difficult to spot a fellow student representing another school.

Stanford, Cal and USC are among the top choices of schools many students on campus choose to represent in their apparel. But where’s the logic in Aggies representing a school they don’t attend? Is this an issue rooted in the level of school spirit throughout Davis, or yet another quirk Davis has to offer?

School spirit is a term that generally induces a positive sense of identity within members of the same educational institution. However, the forms in which school spirit manifests differ from person to person. Some regard school spirit as showing pride for their school by wearing school colors and attending sporting events. Others believe that school spirit is something they possess by simply getting involved with campus events or school clubs. Davis is known to have one of the largest university spirit groups in the nation, known as the Aggie Pack. But how much school spirit does the Aggie Pack represent?

“To me, school spirit means taking pride in the values and accomplishments of your school” said Nora Williams, a fourth-year international relations major at UC Davis. “Davis has some really talented sports teams but also our university produces a lot of groundbreaking research […] it definitely gives you a sense of pride everytime you hear something cool that an Aggie alum is doing post-grad.”

According to Williams, school spirit is not something that solely pertains to athletics, but rather anything that pertains to the university itself. For the past four years Williams has felt a great sense of pride in attending a prestigious and nationally-ranked university. From Decision Day up until her last quarter at Davis, Williams expressed how grateful she felt to be a Davis student.

“The people at Davis are so unique,” Williams said. “I am proud to be a part of a community where there is such a strong drive for service and justice […] I constantly see things about how Davis is number one for this or top 10 worldwide for that and it definitely makes me want to brag everytime I go home.”

By attending such an academically rigorous school, getting out to sports games can be difficult, especially with the amount of stress students deal with from work to school to extracurricular activities. The city of Davis and the university itself offer a variety of ways for students to relieve stress and have a good time, but attending sporting events does not seem to be a popular choice among students.

“To be honest, the first and only sporting event that I attended this quarter was [because I] tabled for Camp Kesem,” Williams said. “I really wish I had more time to watch sports games […] those athletes don’t get anywhere near the hype they deserve.”

Jon Amadi, a first-year undeclared student and football player at UC Davis, expresses a different opinion on the level of school spirit he has noticed around campus. Though Amadi feels a great sense of pride for Davis in terms of academics, he believes that the support for athletics at Davis is not nearly as prominent.

“A lot of my friends go to other schools that are really involved and have a ton of school spirit and students attend games more frequently,” Amadi said. “Davis is definitely known to be more of a research and academic school rather than a school focused on athletics [and] it’s not like we have a bad athletic history, people just don’t seem to care about the athletics.”

Amadi described the lack of attendance from the student body at football games as well as other sporting events he has attended, such as gymnastics, lacrosse, soccer and basketball.

“The only time we had a good amount of people attend […] was the very first game we played and the game against Cal Poly,” Amadi said.”I thought us winning the first game would have a bigger ripple effect among the student body and cause people to come to games more often.”

The impact that the audience, or in this case student body, has on the performance of sports players as well as people involved in the arts is immense. Amadi explained how having people cheering for you in the stands is a totally different experience than just having alumni and family watching. In a way, the active participation from the student body creates a greater sense of community within the university.

“Even getting 50 people to come to every game makes a huge difference,” Amadi said. “[Getting people involved] is not something that is going to happen overnight, but it is a step towards strengthening our school spirit. It’s super cool when there’s a bunch of students out there supporting you […] because to an extent it feels like they have your back.”

So what is it that hinders students from attending school sporting events or school events in general?

“Kids are more focused on school,” Amadi said. “When you come to college it’s kind of like a means to an end, meaning you are here so you can get a better job or go to graduate school, and I think a lot of people here have that same tunnel vision [and] they miss everything else going on around them.”

For most people, attending sporting events is primarily a social event rather than a way for people to show school pride. Amadi shared his experiences going to various athletic events and how it changed his experience at Davis.

“It’s actually really fun going to games,” Amadi said. “Watching people do what you can’t do [in reference to gymnastics] gives you a better appreciation for the people within the Davis community.”

There are several universities much like Davis that are more research and academically-oriented compared to sports, yet those same schools seem to have a significantly different turnout at sporting events. Thomas Halligan, a first-year materials science engineering major, explained why he feels like Davis has less school spirit in terms of sports compared to other universities located in California.

“Sports programs at schools like Berkeley or USC are a lot bigger,” Halligan said. “There is a lot more money that goes into advertising and [as a result] there are bigger events surrounding their athletics programs.”

With the argument of money aside, there still seems to be a disconnection rooted within the student body in terms of school pride. Halligan further explains what he believes this disconnection is.

“There isn’t cohesion,” Halligan said. “There is the research aspect which is very much in its own world and then there is the athletics aspect which is also very much in its own world [and] each part is kind of broken off into its own thing and there isn’t much of a connection.”

To bridge this sense of disconnect, Halligan proposes various solutions that could potentially increase student involvement at games as well as school events. Branding and faculty involvement were among the two plausible solutions to address the problem of the lack of cohesion.

“If the university markets school events better they have the power to hype up these events and brand themselves more effectively,” Halligan said. “I don’t think Davis does enough in terms of social media […] having a bigger presence on these [media platforms] might increase school spirit and involvement on campus.”

Halligan detailed the amount of influence professors have on the students. By bringing the students and faculty together to support the school, the community becomes more tight-knit.

“If a professor you look up to, like Enderle, attends a game you are more likely to show up,” Halligan said. “Whether your reason for attending is to get on the good side of the professor [or] recognizing your professor as a member of the community.”

The city of Davis as well as the university has many appealing attributes. From a vibrant city to a nationally-ranked public university, students have a lot to be proud of.

According to Halligan, Davis has the potential to pave the way for future Aggies to be more active members of the Aggie Pack.

“Davis is a really unique school and there are a lot of aspects that make it a great university if it were broadcasted on a bigger scale,” Halligan said.

Written by: Sneha Ramachandran — features@theaggie.org

Reports say flu vaccine effectiveness especially low this season

Sniffles, coughing and fevers, oh my! February marks the peak for influenza season, which this year is proving to be particularly nasty. The Center for Disease Control reports a record-breaking year, the worst since the H1N1 swine flu in 2009. Like the rest of the nation, UC Davis was hit hard this year. Vaccinated or not, the bug has spread through the student body like wildfire.

So why is the flu hitting so hard this year? Dr. Cindy Schorzman, the medical director at the UC Davis Student Health and Wellness Center says one reason is due to the effectiveness of this year’s vaccine.

“According to current CDC estimates the vaccination effectiveness is 39 percent, which is higher than previously reported,” Schorzman said.

The Los Angeles Times reported early on in the flu season the projected vaccine effectiveness to be just 10 percent based on data from Australia’s flu season, which starts earlier than the U.S.

“Historically [the U.S.] follows a similar pattern of effectiveness [to Australia] because the strains tend to be similar,” Schorzman said. “However, the vaccine in the U.S. was more effective this season than Australia in their flu season.”

Though the United States’ vaccine was found to be considerably more effective than predicted, these initial reports affected whether people got the flu shot this season.

“I think that the press had an unfortunate impact on the numbers of people getting the flu shot,” Schorzman said.

This is one of the major factors that caused this flu to hit the country so hard this season. Emmy Hughes, a third-year managerial economics major who tested positive for influenza, opted out of getting vaccinated this year.

“I didn’t get vaccinated the year before, and I heard it was only 15 percent effective this year, so I didn’t think it was that important,” Hughes said. “But mostly I think it was laziness.”

When asked about the vaccinations offered at the Student Health and Wellness Center, Hughes said she was unaware of these services. Hughes started getting sick on a Friday and experienced symptoms such as high fever, coughing, sore throat and even fainting.

“I blacked out a couple times,” Hughes said. “I was eating and passed out at the table, and then I woke up and got up and I passed out on the floor again.”

Fainting is not a common flu symptom, but she explained that fainting was not uncommon due to her anemia. She was concerned nonetheless.

“I went to the Davis Urgent Care,” Hughes said. “It was Saturday, so it was the closest open resource.”

She tested positive for influenza and was prescribed Tamiflu.

“They also gave me a prescription for cough syrup and told me to take NyQuil, which helped me sleep,” Hughes said.

Trevor Carpenter, a first-year computer science major, went to the UC Davis Student Health and Wellness Center after showing similar symptoms where he tested positive for influenza.

“I don’t have the student insurance, but they were very helpful,” Carpenter said. “The whole process was very quick. I met with a nurse and a doctor within a half an hour. It was a very positive experience.”

Like Hughes, Carpenter also did not get vaccinated this year.

“I thought about it, but I heard it didn’t have a high success rate this year,” Carpenter said.

When asked if he would have reconsidered getting the flu shot if the effectiveness was not so low, Carpenter said this wouldn’t have influenced his decision. Because he had never had the flu before, Carpenter didn’t know how severe flu symptoms were. The Student Health and Wellness Center prescribed Carpenter with Tamiflu, recommended painkillers and rest. His virus and symptoms were present for a week.

February is the peak of the flu season, but by no means is it over, and there is still time to get a flu vaccination. Schorzman also explained that even though the 39 percent effectiveness report is lower than other years, it is still worth getting.

“People who are vaccinated if they get sick will often get a less severe version of the flu, and that is in general, not just this season,” Schorzman said.

To prevent getting sick it is recommended to get adequate rest, wash your hands frequently and pay attention to self care.

“I definitely still encourage the flu shot, even though it is later in the flu season, we expect the season to last through the end of March,” Schorzman said. “Sometimes this will extend beyond, but it is not officially over until the health department, here the Health Department of Yolo County, issues a press release stating that it is over.”

In response to Hughes being unaware of the available resources at the Student Health and Wellness Center, Schorzman spoke about a flu awareness and vaccination campaign.

“We are trying to get the word out,” Schorzman said. “We do have a flu awareness and vaccination campaign, and we are trying to get a larger campaign going for next fall. This covers what the flu is, what the symptoms are and how to prevent the flu, including vaccination.”

The Student Health and Wellness Center is still offering and administering flu shots through the end of the season. More information can be found on the Student Health and Counseling Services website.

Written by: Grace Simmons — features@theaggie.org

Students take advantage of recruiters to secure future jobs, internships

In the midst of recruiting season, students are doing all they can to gain exposure to companies and lock down jobs or internships following the end of the school year. In addition to applying to companies online, students also have the opportunity to attend on-campus career fairs, often hosted by UC Davis, where company representatives come to campus to meet and network with students and alumni alike.

Speaking to recruiters may be one of the most effective ways for students to find potential jobs or internships, as students are able to directly make their mark on recruiters rather than have their resume and online application get lost in a sea of other applicants.

Jessica Hyunh, a UC Davis alumna, found luck in attending a UC Davis-hosted career fair. She noted that attending a career fair and talking to recruiters was much more effective in her job search than applying for jobs online, which tends to be the more traditional route of looking for opportunities.

“The job search was rough after graduation since I graduated in the fall instead of in the spring,” Hyunh said. “I didn’t find any jobs before I graduated; I actually didn’t start searching for a job until after graduation. Career fairs after graduation were super useful — that’s where I found my first job after college.”

Hyunh had a very positive experience talking to recruiters, as the recruiters she spoke to understood her intended professional route. She now works for Lending Club, a job she eventually received through initially attending a UC Davis career fair.

“I originally interviewed [at Lending Club] for a sales role and got rejected,” Hyunh said. “The recruiter understood that I didn’t really fit the sales route. Instead of letting me go immediately, she considered placing me in a different role. I interviewed again and I got the job [reviewing loans].”

Hyunh had vocalized that a position in recruiting was her intended career path. Lending Club offered her the chance to switch to a recruiting position after a year of working in the loans department of the company.

Some students take this opportunity to explore as many career fairs as possible by going so far as to travel to other colleges, such as UC Berkeley, to increase their exposure to recruiters and hiring companies.

Jeffrey Ge, a fourth-year managerial economics major, attends career fairs outside of UC Davis. Ge understands that other prestigious schools, like UC Berkeley, offer a wider variety of companies that may help him gain exposure to more potential job opportunities.

“The hardest part is [logistically] trying to get there and make everything work,” Ge said. “When I first talk to recruiters, I would say where I’m from and tell them that I’m from UC Davis. I would let them know that I understand that Davis isn’t the best at recruiting heavily, which is why I’m willing to go the extra distance to come to Berkeley. I know that Berkeley is a target school for specific fields.”

While Ge hasn’t yet found luck in attaining a job offer from these outsourced career fairs, he has found that recruiters have given him positive feedback for taking the initiative to attend a career fair so outside of his proximity.

“They would often say things like, ‘I know that’s really far, it’s impressive you came all this way’ or ‘Wow, that shows a lot of determination,’” Ge said. “Going the distance shows you have the determination, but they still want to make sure that you have the skills for the job.”

In addition to attending career fairs outside of UC Davis, many students take advantage of events such as hackathons to talk to company representatives. Companies sponsor these hackathons and provide gear for students to “hack” or use in their coding projects.

Representatives from these companies are also present at the event to talk to students about the products and offer more information about the respective companies. Students have the opportunity to network with these representatives, offer their resume and potentially land an internship or job while at the hackathon.

Students often make the time and energy to make the trek to various hackathons at schools both near and far. At CalHacks, the recent hackathon at UC Berkeley, UC Davis students made their way to the Bay Area in order to participate in a weekend of coding and networking. Students report colleges such as UC Berkeley as having much better hackathon sponsors than colleges like UC Davis, with sponsors more willing to engage with students and stay at the events for longer periods of time. However, some students have reported having disappointing interactions with company representatives at these events.

Varshini Anata, a third-year computer science major, frequents such hackathons and interacts with other hackers and recruiters. While she has had ample experience talking to different company representatives at these hackathons, she notes that some of her interactions with recruiters have been negative due to her educational background at UC Davis.

“[The recruiters at smaller companies] don’t usually ask me what university I go to,” Anata said, “But when I talked to bigger companies like Microsoft, [I noticed that] the first thing they ask is was what university [an individual] goes to.”

Talking to recruiters at such events generally entails giving a short elevator pitch and walking them through past work experiences. Students attempt to make good impressions on recruiters in hopes of being offered an interview or maintaining a professional contact when they may later be searching for a position. As such, many students are inclined to make their mark on larger companies with recruiters that may have more sway in their professional field.

“[The Microsoft recruiter] didn’t initially ask me what university I go to; I went through my experiences instead,” Anata said. “She confirmed what university I went to at the end of our talk, but still took my email and told me to add her on LinkedIn.”

While her in-person experience with the Microsoft recruiter wasn’t negative, Anata noted that after their discussion the recruiter wasn’t willing to converse with her more.

“I emailed her but she didn’t respond. When I talked to her in person it was a good experience, but after that she didn’t reply,” Anata said. “I did notice that they were mainly only taking resumes from students from UC Berkeley. They didn’t take many resumes from students from other colleges.”

Talking to recruiters can help students get the job or internship offer that they dream to receive. Aware of this, many students carve time out of their schedule to get as much face-time with recruiters as possible.

Written by: Alyssa Hada — features@theaggie.org