Tag: Driving
How To Of The Day: How To Drive A Motorcycle
Illustration by Ted Slampyak
When Steve McQueen got away from the Nazis in The Great Escape, he did it on a motorcycle. When Evil Knievel roared over the top of the fountains at Caesar’s Palace, it was on a motorcycle. And when Chris Pratt sped through the jungles of a fictional dinosaur-filled island, he did it on a motorcycle, being chased by velociraptors. In other words, when a man has to get somewhere and make sure that he looks cool along the way, a motorcycle is the way to go. But in an age when manual transmission cars are all but relics of another time, it’s rare to find people who know how to operate gears, shift, and use a clutch; which is too bad, since motorcycles are a great way to get around, even when you’re not surrounded by velociraptors. Whether you want to find a more economical way to commute in the city or race down dusty roads in search of big adventures in far off places, a motorcycle opens up a world of opportunities that you just can’t get in a car. So strap on a helmet and grab a leather jacket — it’s time to learn how to ride.
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The Reason Why Road Signs Are Designed In Different Shapes
Hint: It has to do with potential danger ahead of you!
Yield signs kind of look like “Y’s,” if you’re really looking to make some connection there. And railroad signs are circular because trains have circular wheels, right? And roundabout signs are shaped like diamonds because… actually none of this rationale makes sense.
As it turns out, there is a specific and pragmatic reason behind the shape of each common road sign, but the shapes didn’t always carry significance. This all changed in 1923 when a part of Mississippi’s highway divisions decided to create a formalized system for the posts and sheet metal of the U.S. transit infrastructure.
The number of sides indicates the level of potential danger up ahead; the fewest number of sides being three (i.e.: a Yield sign), with the unlimited number of sides on a circle representing the maximum amount of perilous potentiality (i.e.: a Railroad sign). The exception to the more-sides-equals-more-danger-maxim is the rectangular sign, which is used strictly for informational purposes.
Although the DMV website does not mention the corner/danger correlation, the history still has some pretty interesting significance.
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