WorldWide Drilling Resource

37 NOVEMBER 2022 WorldWide Drilling Resource® moting what every associatio is a unique associa LGWA LGWA.org WA a Ground W Louisiana Association (LG siana. y to earn 11/2023 ine with you! r “School speakers ry hard to n should: tion pro- ) ter on Education Points for Loui This is your only opportunit Contractors! rade Show = 1/10-1/ and T Conventi 2023 LGWA WA.org Onl vailable Forms A https://LG of Hard Knocks” knowledge who are willing to share thei bring you new and exciting This association works ve ervices S j roducts P j quipment E j echniques ew T N j ducation E j amaraderie C j UPCOMING - Perception vs. Reality by Britt Storkson Owner, P2FlowLLC Most of us, in our verbal interactions with others over the years, have left the wrong impression or perception of what we really meant to say - not intentionally, of course, but it happens now and then to even the best communicators. Things are not always what they seem and sometimes we need help to get things straight in a wide variety of activities. When building a house, one needs to use a level to keep things square and plumb. We can’t do it just by sight because it isn’t accurate enough. Our perception doesn’t align with reality and we don’t expect it to in this case because our vision isn’t that accurate. This same concept applies to computers as well. Computers can do a lot, but they cannot do everything and they are not perfect. Very good, yes. Perfect, no. Often, there are flawed perceptions of what a computer is capable of. For example, some think computers can have humanlike qualities. While computers may look human and sort of act human, they are not human. Computers do only what their programs tell them to do - no more and no less. Like humans, computer perceptions can be flawed as well. A computer takes in data using sensors much like we use our senses of vision, hearing, and touch to gather data about our surroundings. The computer sensor converts physical inputs into an electrical voltage which can be read (measured) by the computer and decoded or interpreted based on the sensor manufacturers’ specifications. One of many examples of this concept is a pressure sensor. If the sensor input fullscale pressure range is 0-100 psi and the output range is 1-5 volts, then one-half of the full-scale pressure input will equal one-half of the voltage output which, in this case, would be 3 volts. If we measure 3 volts at the output, we know we have 50 psi, which is one-half of the 0-100 psi full-scale input. Even excellent and very reliable sensors can produce flawed data. In the case of pressure sensors, turbulence of the water flowing through the pipe can alter the readings, so they must be averaged to determine the proper pressure value to respond to. Pressure measurement of flowing water is not a straight line. There are pressure highs and lows which need to be rejected to come up with a satisfactory value the computer can correctly respond to. Then we have the case of computer marketers allegedly exaggerating the capabilities of a computer according to an article by MarketWatch entitled “Lawsuit accuses Tesla of overstating Autopilot, Full Self Driving capabilities.” Tesla offered buyers a $10,000 - $15,000 autopilot option which the plaintiffs claim doesn’t even come close to performing as advertised. Of course, one would think the term “autopilot” here needs to be legally defined because it can mean a lot of different things to a lot of different people and I suspect the court will attempt to do just that during the course of the trial. In this case, one would think the perception vs. reality issue would revolve around the car buyer expecting the autopilot feature to do one thing, when it actually delivered something else. Was it the result of manufacturer defects, incompetence, or malice - or was the buyers’ perception flawed? Britt Britt Storkson may be contacted via e-mail to michele@ worldwidedrillingresource.com Booth 239 Week Groundwater

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