highway hypnosis
米ニューヨーク市で1日に起きた脱線事故。メトロノース鉄道の運転士は列車が急カーブで脱線して横倒しになる前に、「ぼっーとしていた（zoned off）」と語りました。
Train Engineer Was Dazed Before Crash, Lawyer Says
The engineer who operated the Metro-North Railroad train that derailed over the weekend, killing four people and injuring more than 70, told the authorities on Tuesday that he had become dazed before the accident, suffering what his lawyer referred to as “highway hypnosis.”
The account was delivered as federal investigators said they had found no apparent problems with the train’s brakes or other equipment.
The engineer, William Rockefeller, met with investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board and detectives from the Metropolitan Transportation Authority and New York City police for more than three hours on Tuesday — at one point tearing up, according to his lawyer, Jeffrey P. Chartier.
Mr. Chartier said Mr. Rockefeller was cooperating fully and was “extremely remorseful.”
日本のマスコミの中には「運転士が「脱線する直前まで居眠りをしていた」」と訳したところがありますが、厳密には、highway hypnosisは「高速道路催眠現象」と訳され、一定間隔で灯火や信号が並び、単調な風景が続くと運転者（士）が眠気などを催す現象のことを指すそうです。何となく分かる感覚ですが、運転士の証言なので真偽の程は分かりません。
さてこれから３限目です。あと少し！（UG）
