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At least 109 records · Page 6Linked to original sources
PubMed2003

Cell phone-induced failures of visual attention during simulated driving.

This research examined the effects of hands-free cell phone conversations on simulated driving. The authors found that these conversations impaired driver's reactions to vehicles braking in front of them. The authors assessed whether this impairment could be attributed to a withdrawal of attention from the visual scene, yielding a form of inattention blindness. Cell phone conversations impaired explicit recognition memory for roadside billboards. Eye-tracking data indicated that this was due to reduced attention to foveal information. This interpretation was bolstered by data showing that cell phone conversations impaired implicit perceptual memory for items presented at fixation. The data suggest that the impairment of driving performance produced by cell phone conversations is mediated, at least in part, by reduced attention to visual inputs.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2003

Collision and violation involvement of drivers who use cellular telephones.

The study sample consisted of 3,869 drivers, split approximately 50/50 between observed cell phone users and those observed not using cell phones (labeled "nonusers"). Cell phone use was determined by a snapshot observation made on city streets. The sample represented 54% of those originally observed, for whom a match was obtained for both vehicle license plate and for gender and estimated age group of the observed driver and that of the driver named in the vehicle policy. Data were obtained from records of insurance claims, police-reported collisions and violations, following a strict protocol to protect individual privacy. The dependent measures were at-fault crash claims and "inattention" violations. A logistic regression model controlled for age, gender, exposure (represented by not-at-fault crash claims), alcohol-related offenses, and aggressive driving offenses. The study also involved a comparison of the contributing factors and collision configurations of police-reported collisions involving the users and "nonusers" in the sample. Drivers observed using cell phones had a higher risk of an at-fault crash than did the "nonusers," although the difference was not significant for males. There was no apparent effect on "inattention" violations. The cell phone users also had a higher proportion of rear-end collisions. The violation pattern of cell phone users suggests that they are, in general, riskier drivers. These differences likely reflect lifestyle, attitude and personality factors. It is essential to control for these factors in assessing the direct risk attributable to cellular telephone use.

Accidents, Traffic↗
PubMed2004

Living dangerously: driver distraction at high speed.

Recent research indicates that cell phone use can distract drivers from safe vehicle operation. However, estimates of the prevalence of cell phone use while driving have been limited to daytime hours and low-speed roadways. This paper describes the results of a study to estimate rates of cell phone use and other distractions by examining approximately 40,000 high-quality digital photographs of vehicles and drivers on the New Jersey Turnpike. The photographs, which originally were collected as part of a separate study, were taken both during the day and during the night and at different locations across the span of the Turnpike. A radar gun linked to the camera recorded the speeds of vehicles as they passed. This provided us with the speeds of every vehicle photographed, and allowed us to determine population counts of vehicles. A panel of three trained coders examined each photograph and recorded the presence of cell phone use by the drivers or any other distracting behavior. Demographic information on the driver was obtained during previous examinations of the photographs for an unrelated study. A rating was considered reliable when two out of the three coders agreed. Population estimates (and confidence intervals) of cell phone use and other distractions were estimated by weighting the cases by the inverse probability of vehicle selection. Logistic regression was used to predict cell phone use from demographic and situational factors. The results indicated that the most frequent distraction was cell phone use: 1.5% of the drivers on the Turnpike were using cell phones compared to the 3 to 4% use rates reported in the National Occupant Protection Use Survey (NOPUS) surveys conducted during the daytime on lower speed roadways. The Turnpike survey indicated that cell phones were used less on weekends and at night, and when the driver was exceeding the speed limit or had a passenger in the car.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2003

Wireless telephones and the risk of road crashes.

In light of the rapidly increasing development of the cell phone market, the use of such equipment while driving raises the question of whether it is associated with an increased accident risk; and if so, what is its magnitude. This research is an epidemiological study on two large cohorts, namely users and non-users of cell phones, with the objective of verifying whether an association exists between cell phone use and road crashes, separating those with injuries. The Société de l'Assurance Automobile du Québec (SAAQ) mailed a questionnaire and letter of consent to 175000 licence holders for passenger vehicles. The questionnaire asked about exposure to risk, driving habits, opinions about activities likely to be detrimental to driving and accidents within the last 24 months. For cell phone users, questions pertaining to the use of the telephone were added. We received 36078 completed questionnaires, with a signed letter of consent. Four wireless phone companies provided the files on cell phone activity, and the SAAQ the files for 4 years of drivers' records and police reports. The three data sources were merged using an anonymized identification number. The statistical methods include logistic-normal regression models to estimate the strength of the links between the explanatory variables and crashes. The relative risk of all accidents and of accidents with injuries is higher for users of cell phones than for non-users. The relative risks (RR) for injury collisions and also for all collisions is 38% higher for men and women cell phone users. These risks diminish to 1.1 for men and 1.2 for women if other variables, such as the kilometres driven and driving habits are incorporated into the models. Similar results hold for several sub-groups. The most significant finding is a dose-response relationship between the frequency of cell phone use, and crash risks. The adjusted relative risks for heavy users are at least two compared to those making minimal use of cell phones; the latter show similar collision rates as do the non-users.

Accidents, Traffic↗
PubMed2005

Abnormal responses of electronic pocket dosimeters caused by high frequency electromagnetic fields emitted from digital cellular telephones.

High frequency electromagnetic fields emitted from digital cellular telephones (cell phones) occasionally cause abnormally high and erroneous indicated dose readings on electronic pocket dosimeters (EPDs). Electric field strength distribution around a cell phone transmitting 1.5 GHz band with a maximum power of 0.8 W was analyzed by using an isotropic probe with tri-axial dipole antennas. Five types of EPDs were exposed to the fields for 50 s under configurations relative to the cell phone. The electric field distribution expanded around the phone's antenna and had a maximum electric field strength of 36.5 +/- 0.3 V m(-1). The cell phone gave rise to erroneous indicated dose readings on four out of five EPDs. The maximum value of erroneous indicated dosage for 50 s reached 1,283 microSv, which was about 2.6% of the annual effective dose limit of 50 mSv. The electromagnetic susceptibility of the EPDs was higher in the sections where the semiconductor detectors or electric circuit boards were located. The distance required to prevent electromagnetic interference differed for each EPD and ranged from 2.0 to 21.0 cm from the cell phone. The electric and magnetic field immunity levels of the EPDs varied from 9.2 V m(-1) to greater than 37.6 V m(-1), and from 0.03 A m(-1) to greater than 0.51 A m(-1). The EPDs displayed erroneous dose readings during exposure but recovered their normal performance after the cell phone ceased transmitting. The electromagnetic immunity levels of the EPDs were either equal to or greater than the IEC-standard. The immunity levels should be enhanced greater than the IEC-standard from the standpoint of radiation protection. The simplest and most reliable measure to prevent potential malfunction is to prohibit the radiation workers from carrying cell phones to their workplace.

Cell Phone↗
PubMedDate not supplied

An evaluation of digital cellular handsets by hearing aid users.

Audible interference from digital cellular telephones (cell phones) has been a long standing problem for hearing aid users. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has lifted the hearing aid compatibility exception on cell phones and imposed a set of requirements effective September 2005. We conducted an experiment to determine how well hearing aid wearers are able to use commercially available digital cell phones. Hearing aid users evaluated the usability of six digital cellular handsets. The results suggest that certain transmission technologies create more annoyance from interference than others and that the type of hearing aid-to-telephone coupling (microphone or telecoil) can influence a user's experience of interference. However, the results also suggest that interference alone does not fully predict the usability of a cell phone for hearing aid users. These findings have implications for the American National Standards Institute C63.19 test and measurement standard that is used to rate cell phones' compliance with the FCC ruling and the education of consumers with regard to their expectations for cell phone use.

Adult↗
PubMed2006

Implicit multisensory associations influence voice recognition.

Natural objects provide partially redundant information to the brain through different sensory modalities. For example, voices and faces both give information about the speech content, age, and gender of a person. Thanks to this redundancy, multimodal recognition is fast, robust, and automatic. In unimodal perception, however, only part of the information about an object is available. Here, we addressed whether, even under conditions of unimodal sensory input, crossmodal neural circuits that have been shaped by previous associative learning become activated and underpin a performance benefit. We measured brain activity with functional magnetic resonance imaging before, while, and after participants learned to associate either sensory redundant stimuli, i.e. voices and faces, or arbitrary multimodal combinations, i.e. voices and written names, ring tones, and cell phones or brand names of these cell phones. After learning, participants were better at recognizing unimodal auditory voices that had been paired with faces than those paired with written names, and association of voices with faces resulted in an increased functional coupling between voice and face areas. No such effects were observed for ring tones that had been paired with cell phones or names. These findings demonstrate that brief exposure to ecologically valid and sensory redundant stimulus pairs, such as voices and faces, induces specific multisensory associations. Consistent with predictive coding theories, associative representations become thereafter available for unimodal perception and facilitate object recognition. These data suggest that for natural objects effective predictive signals can be generated across sensory systems and proceed by optimization of functional connectivity between specialized cortical sensory modules.

Acoustic Stimulation↗
PubMed2004

In vitro study of the electromagnetic interaction between wireless phones and an implantable neural stimulator.

Several clinical and laboratory studies have demonstrated electromagnetic interaction between implantable medical devices like pacemakers and cell phones being operated in close proximity. Those devices are largely now immune to phone interaction or procedures have been established to limit their interaction. The use of cell phones near people with implanted neural stimulators has not been studied. This research was initiated to investigate electromagnetic interaction between current cell phone technology and specific models of Cyberonics neural stimulators. Out of 1080 test runs conducted for this study, no interactions were observed, and it was concluded that the phone technologies examined in this study did not adversely affect the Cyberonics NeuroStar (Model 102) NeuroCybernetic Prosthesis (NCP) System. This article provides details on the experimental procedure that was used, which can also be used to test other neural stimulators and test technologies, and the results obtained.

Cell Phone↗
PubMed2006

Risky behaviors among motorcycling adolescents in Italy.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the relationship between risky behaviors and motorcycling in adolescents in Italy. STUDY DESIGN: A questionnaire was administered to a random sample of 1000 adolescents attending randomly selected public secondary schools to assess personal characteristics and lifestyle; motorcycle and helmet use; behavior while driving a motorcycle; traffic-related accidents, and receipt of tickets. RESULTS: Of the 894 responders, 54% and 29.2% routinely use the helmet as driver or passenger, respectively. Routine helmet use was higher among males, current smokers, alcohol drinkers, and those who reported that at least one close friend used a helmet. Motorcycling after consuming alcohol was higher in males, in current smokers, and in those who used cell phones and were tired while driving. An accident in the past year occurred in 25.7% of riders and was significantly higher in those who used cell phones while driving and in those who were interested in learning about motorcycle use. Adolescents who reported always motorcycling over the speed limit were at lower risk of smoking, talking with the passenger, and using a cell phone while driving. Being male, being older, learning about motorcycle use from someone outside the family, talking with a passenger, and using a cell phone while driving increased the risk of receiving a ticket. CONCLUSIONS: Educational programs, legislative measures, and policies to reduce risk behaviors in adolescents who use motorcycles are needed.

Accidents, Traffic↗
PubMed2001

Wireless communication devices and electromagnetic interference. ECRI's updated recommendations.

The controversy continues over whether to permit cell phones and other wireless communication devices to be used in hospitals. It's well known that wireless devices emit radio-frequency signals that can cause interference when used in close proximity to medical equipment. But is the risk of interference manageable? Should hospitals allow use of these devices by staff and possibly by members of the public (particularly now that so many people carry a cell phone or some other wireless device)? In October 1999, we recommended that hospitals permit the limited use of cell phones by patients and visitors but restrict the use of walkie-talkies to necessary staff members only. These recommendations still hold. In fact, many of the newer wireless devices--such as wireless personal data assistants, two-way pagers, and family radio service walkie-talkies--operate similarly to a cell phone or a walkie-talkie. Therefore, our recommendations cover them as well. In this Guidance Article, we discuss the reasons for our recommendations. In addition, because we know some hospitals are wrestling with these issues, we provide some useful suggestions for creating and implementing a realistic, effective policy covering the use of wireless technologies in the hospital.

Electromagnetic Fields↗