This report describes an investigation of the effects of moderate levels of blood alcohol on ability to steer a constantly turning course in a fixed-base shadowgraph driving simulator. An analysis of tracking error responses showed a statistically significant impairment of the performance of subjects less than 35 years old at a blood alcohol level of 50 mg%. Subjects over the age of 35 had difficulty operating the equipment. It is suspected that part of the decrement experienced by the older subjects must be attributed to task difficulty artificially raised by mechanical limitations of the simulator.
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