science

Small—On Safety

Small—On Safety is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Small—On Safety rather than just read about it. In short: Small—On Safety: The Designed-In Dangers of the Volkswagen is a nonfiction book written by the Center for Auto Safety, with an introduction by Ralph Nader. The book looks at the deficiencies in the safety aspects of the vehicles sold by Volkswagen.

Key takeaways

Small—On Safety belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Small—On Safety to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Small—On Safety from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Small—On Safety: The Designed-In Dangers of the Volkswagen is a nonfiction book written by the Center for Auto Safety, with an introduction by Ralph Nader. The book looks at the deficiencies in the safety aspects of the vehicles sold by Volkswagen. It was published on September 11, 1972, by Grossman Publishers. The book is based on a study released in September 1971 by the Center entitled The Volkswagen: An Assessment of Distinctive Hazards. The book concluded that "the Volkswagen Beetle is the most hazardous car currently in use in significant numbers in the United States" and that "the VW microbus or van is so unsafe that it should be removed from the roads entirely."

Background Unsafe at Any Speed: The Designed-In Dangers of the American Automobile, written by Ralph Nader, was published in 1965 and became a best seller. The book was instrumental in the passage of the National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act in 1966. The Center for Auto Safety was founded in 1970 by Ralph Nader and Consumers Union to continue his work in studying and advocating for automobile safety. The findings from the Center's study on the Volkswagen were not based on any independent testing by the Center but instead were based on tests by other organizations. These included Consumers Union and Cornell Aeronautical Laboratory's Automotive Crash Injury Research Center. The study also looked at complaints by owners and litigation involving accidents.

Findings The study urged the recall of all Volkswagen vehicles to correct safety defects. Defects noted in all Volkswagens included: faulty door latches, a poorly designed fuel system and gas filler cap, a swing axle suspension combined with the rear engine that caused hazardous handling, weak seatbacks, sensitivity to side winds, and side impact vulnerability. Additional defects noted in the VW bus included poor acceleration, inadequate protection in front end crashes, and frequent horn failure.

Responses In response to the 1971 study, Volkswagen said that the cars "meet or exceed all safety standards." The most detailed response to the 1971 study was by Road & Track magazine. In its April 1972 edition, they published an article entitled "Ralph Nader vs. Volkswagen", and subtitled "An evaluation of 'The Volkswagen: An Assessment of Distinctive Hazards". The article was written by John Tomerlin, a writer of novels and television scripts. He was also a sports car enthusiast who wrote for Road & Track and Car & Driver magazines. The article concluded that "Ralph Nader [should] observe the 'ethical imperative' to recall the VW Report and publicly retract its inaccuracies."

Effect on federal legislation The book was most notably featured in hearings held by the United States Senate on requiring auto manufacturers to provide free repairs on mandatory recalls. At that time, the auto manufacturers often required repair costs on the recalls be paid by the car owners. The hearing notably mentioned a recall on 3.7 million Volkswagens for defective windshield wiper systems. Volkswagen had required that the owners pay for the repairs. The hearing included excerpts from Small—On Safety, the Road & Track response, and various correspondence between the Center for Auto Safety and Road & Track.

References

Center for Auto Safety. Small—On Safety: The Designed-In Dangers of the Volkswagen (registration required). Grossman Publishers. 1972. Kirkus Reviews. "Small—On Safety". September 1, 1972. Hudson, Edward. "Nader Scored on Volkswagen". The New York Times. March 12, 1972. UPI. "Volkswagen Found 'Unsafe' By Nader". The New York Times. September 12, 1971. Auto Safety Repairs at No Cost, Hearings Before the Committee on Commerce United States Senate 93rd Congress First Session on S 355 to amend the National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 1966 to provide for remedies of defects without charge, and for other purposes - January 30 and 31, 1973

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Small—On Safety

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Small—On Safety claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Small—On Safety before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Small—On Safety ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Small—On Safety

In research: Small—On Safety appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Small—On Safety in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Small—On Safety is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1972 non-fiction books, Automotive safety, Works about consumer protection, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Small—On Safety outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Small—On Safety in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Small—On Safety means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Small—On Safety out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Small—On Safety in simple terms?

Why does Small—On Safety matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Small—On Safety?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Small—On Safety.