EMR

About two years ago, someone told me about how cell phones can damage your brain cells. To be honest, I did not pay much attention to that because I just did not believe it and I had never heard of it, I couldn’t even understand how it would happen-until just recently. I had bought a Cosmopolitan (my second bible) and just near the middle page there was an article on the dangers and health hazards of cell phones. I knew only then that it was real and pretty serious-hence it was on Cosmo. Electro Magnetic Radiation is something that is produced by electrical appliances-the most common and familiar would be the microwave. Surprisingly (well, to me), cell phones also give out EMR. Many cell phones are sold each and every day and there are about a billion cell phone users in the world. As the number of cell phones increase rapidly, also more people should be concerned about effects that regular exposure to EMR can have on their health. Studies have shown that regular exposure to EMR is a serious health threat. Another damage that cell phones can cause to human beings is using it while driving. So many accidents have occurred as a result of talking on the phone while driving. People usually have the thought that “it would never happen to them” and that they can mange to talk on their phones while driving and controlling the steering wheel. I’m sure most people are able to do it but it is the dangers of doing it that should be considered. A person is easily distracted when they talk on the phone and tend to focus more on the ‘conversation’ rather than the road which is what leads to accidents. This is why talking on the phone while driving has been banned by the law in South Africa and if you give it some thought, it is actually as bad as drinking and driving.

Where it all began

I remember the very first phone I ever owned; it was a baby blue Nokia 5110. It was beautiful, I treated it like a fragile ornament, I didn’t want to drop it, scratch it or lose it. It meant a lot to me because at the time, it was THE phone to have and I was the first in my group of friends and in my class to have it (only because my mother had passed it on to me when she bought new one) and people were so amazed about the fact that I was so young and I had a phone (I was 13). When I think back to those times, I get the feeling that those types of phones were the first phones to be invented, because when I look at them now they look so ancient. But where really did it all begin?
In 1943 a chemist by the name of Michael Faraday began a research about whether space could conduct electricity. He exposed his advances of the science and technology of those times and his discoveries led to the development of the “cellular phone”.
The first person to communicate through wireless was Mahlon Loomis who developed a method of transmitting and receiving messages by using the earth’s atmosphere and launching kites enclosed with copper screens that were linked to the ground with copper wires. Dr Martin Cooper was the inventor of the first portable handset and the first to make a call using a portable cellular phone.
In spite of the demand, it took cellular phones about 37 years to become commercially accessible. Today there are more than 60 million cell phone owners and the cellular business has grown in the years to being a R30 billion market per year industry. Now, when I look back at how much I treasured my Nokia 5110 (which didn’t even have a colour screen), it makes me realise that every year cell phones advance at a rapid pace. If I see a person carrying a Nokia 5110 (a person who looks like they can afford a better phone) I think to myself “OMG” because it is such an old phone, it even had an aerial for goodness sake.

An Amazing Invention

Not many years ago, cell phones were the size of a brick and they were only used to make occasional calls, but today, you can get a cell phone the size of a match box which can do a whole lot more than just a phone call. Many cell phones are doing more than what they were initially designed to do, in addition to being communication devices, cell phones have become digital cameras and entertainment devices. They have long become a symbol of status as well as a fashion statement. People want phones that look better than theirs friends’ phones and phones that have more and better features. Cell phones have become something more than what most of us though it would turn out to be. It has become our phone book, we are able to store as many numbers as we possibly can, we can also put or contacts into different groups like family, friends or work. The camera has enabled us to save images for caller identity-now whenever a person calls, you know who they are not just because their name appears on the screen but their photo does as well. Cell phones have become our daily planner. We are able to access the calendar, mark important dates and times, set alarms and have reminders for those important things we need to do. Our cell phones have become our entertainment, we can listen to music which we have downloaded, listen to the radio and also play games whenever we want. But I must say, one of the most important features of cell phones would have to be internet access. Having the internet on my phone has made life so much easier. From Mxit to internet banking-can life get any better?

Cell phones: The Significance

Nokia, Motorola, Samsung and Siemens. If none of these names mean anything to you, I don't know which planet you're living in, seriously. These are just some of the manufacturers of cellphones around the world. These genuises have actually SAVED US! They have made our lives simpler, better and easier. Can you imagine the world without cellphones or can you imagine yourself without YOUR cellphone? I definatley can't. Just one day without my phone is a total nightmare, I honestly feel that I have been seperated from a vey important part of me if I don't have it with me, even if it is just for a few hours. It saves me from losing my friends on campus and not knowing where they are, from missing deadlines and even from those long and boring double-period lectures (Halleluyah to Mxit!).
Cellphones are getting more complicated and harder to use, making a phone call and being able to save a number on the phone book are known to be the easiest things to do and some would say that they are the most essential. But knowing how to send an MMS and how to connect to the internet are tasks that are as important. My 60 year old grandmother recently found out that her cellphone has a calculator. All along she has thought of herself as "Miss Know-It-All' as she was able to change the text from capital letters (how it always has been since she bought the phone about 2 years ago!) to small letters when she sends an SMS, on her own and without any help. She was amazed by the fact that her phone could do calculations on its own and could'nt stop bragging about it. This goes to show that every day we discover new things that our phones can do (ok my gran's case is different, shame) that are not written on the box and especially for those who do not even look at the manual because of excitement of a new phone or just because they think they know everything about cellphones. Well think again.