Thursday, January 03, 2008

Cell phones cause traffic problems

Cell phone usage is being blamed for several problems this week as a University of Utah study found that cell phone usage on highways causes traffic jams.

David Strayer, a psychology professor at the University of Utah, said new research not only showed that the cars of drivers talking on cell phones tended to move slower, but also that the conversational activity tends to cause traffic to show down.

"At the end of the day, the average person's commute is longer because of that person who is on the cell phone right in front of them," Strayer said in a statement. "That SOB on the cell phone is slowing you down and making you late."


Another news flash from the No-Shit-Sherlock department; wonder how much they spent in time, money, and man-hours researching something that anyone who had to drive in traffic knew already? I'm constantly getting stuck behind some jackass who is weaving along under the speed limit because he/she is busy yammering into a phone instead of focusing on the large piece of metal that they are propelling alone a street. My advice to these people is simple:

Pull the phone out of your ear and your head out of your ass.

We'll all get there faster and in one piece.

****************************************************

I was in an odd mood this morning when putting together my playlist for the day; I ended up with a long list of nothing but female pop/rock singers, some from way back, some newer. After a shuffle, these ended up in the top ten. Any fans out there?

"The Tide Is High" by Blondie
"Total Eclipse of the Heart" by Bonnie Tyler
"I Only Want to Be With You" by Dusty Springfield
"Different Drum" by Linda Ronstadt
"Orinoco Flow" by Enya
"You Ain't So Tough" by Heart
"Bette Davis Eyes" by Kim Carnes
"If Not For You" by Olivia Newton-John
"Maybe I Know" by Lesley Gore
"Fire and Ice" by Pat Benatar

5 comments:

none said...

I wonder if they could install a device in vehicles that jams cell phone signals while the engine is running?

I remember a long time ago, the car radio reception being fuzzy due to unshielded spark plugs.

BobG said...

I can understand using a cell phone in an emergency, or one being used by a passenger, but the driver needs to pay attention to their driving, in my opinion.

H2o said...

AMEN Bob! Nice choice of tunes...

AlanDP said...

I often load up only female artists. Good selection.

I have in a few Blondie singles (including "Tide") in my 80s folder. Or was it 70s?

Got that Bonnie Tyler album on vinyl, then later on CD. I used to listen to "Eclipse" just staring into the dark and letting the music wash over me.

Have a bunch of Enya CDs.

"Bette Davis Eyes" is also in one of my "high school music" folders.

I have a few Olivia singles from her country days. She lost me when she went pop.

Also have a few Benatar single mp3s, but not that one.

You need some Kate Bush.

James Higham said...

I hate cell phones.

Rip Her to Shreds is my favourite Blondie track.