Tuesday, February 10, 2009

found on the internet...

I came across this article about a new technology that is being developed that will help with the problem of talking on the phone while driving. This technology will be embedded in the car key. Once the key is put into the car's ignition, it will activate a "driving mode" in the driver's cell phone to where it is rendered unusable except for outgoing emergency calls. It will even answer any incoming calls with a message saying something like, "I am driving right now and will return your calls when I arrive at my destination safely."

"The recent stats show that texting on the phone has overtaken drunk driving fatalities on public roads."

"Driving while talking on a cell phone makes you four times more likely to have an accident. Using a hands-free headset does nothing to off set that risk. Texting increases the odds of an accident another 50 percent."

After reading these quotes from the article, I'm thinking that this may be a very good thing, and not just for teenagers, which is the initial target of said technology. Yes, teenagers may not have as much driving experience as an older driver, but even an experienced driver can't give 100% of his or her attention to driving if they're talking on the phone, or even worse, texting while driving. So I look forward to every state mandating "no cell phone" laws and to having something like this new technology in place.

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And here's something fun and challenging. How well do you think you know where all 50 states are within the U.S. border? Know Your States is an addicting site where you can test your geographical knowledge. The best I did was 86% with an average error of 20 miles in 433 seconds. You would think after playing it quite a few times, my score would be better. But each time you do it, the order they give you the states is different, making some games harder than others.

Give it a try. You might want your kids to try it too, just to see if they're more knowledgeable than you. Let me know what your score is.

11 comments:

Susan said...

I think the cell phone limitation while driving is fabulous!! What I question is, will it disallow anyone in the car from using a cell phone? That would be a horse of a different color.
Susan

... said...

susan... i was wondering the same thing. i bet it does but it dosn't say anything about this issue in the article.

but would it be so terrible that no one in the car can use a cell phone? i don't know.

Karen said...

It's amazing what technology can do. Even without the device, think how it would educate people to just include in your own greeting -- "I'm on the phone or driving right now, I'll call you back."

Thanks for the link to the map. I love maps and map games;)

Momma Roar said...

Couldn't they have something at lights that make your calls just drop, LOL!

It's a shame we cannot control ourselves enough to just drive and not talk.

Ok, so the state game is super addicting! Oh, how I miss the old daily links!! First try, I got 82%, with 75 miles in 289 seconds, LOL!! I think the northeastern states are the trickiest because they are so tiny!

kel said...

I like it! good idea!

Melissa said...

The cell phone law would be a good one! California has a no talking on the cell phone unless you have a hands free set or you're on speaker phone. But I know it's still distracting.
The state thing is fun! I was a goofball the first time through... and didn't realize that they gave you the NAME of the state... I just thought you had to remember the shape and where it went! lol Needless to say my first score was less than stellar :S I did finally get to 84%, 32 miles in 249 seconds. Those midwestern states always throw me off :)

MightyMom said...

I think it only turns off the phone that the key thing is linked to. I saw a bit about it awhile ago.

I passed a car yesterday. 3 people in the car....all talking on cell phones...I had the crazy idea ....



maybe they were talking to EACH OTHER on the phones????



yeah, I'm weird.

Jamey said...

My comment from yesterday was lost :( I basically said that I like the concept but I don't like this idea. I don't like the fact that I have three kids in school and if something happened and the school needed to get a hold of me they couldn't just because I was in my car. I run a lot of my errands while they are in school so that I can spend time with them when they aren't in school. And I don't think I would feel comfortable doing that knowing that the school couldn't call me if they needed something. I very rarely talk on my phone in the car and don't think that I should have that restriction put on me because others can't be as responsible. That being said....I do think something needs to be done because the roads are much more dangerous now with everyone either talking on their phones or texting or even browsing the internet. It's crazy!!

Mrs4444 said...

I'm guilty of talking in the car, but I would buy that phone!

Steve Spray said...

Less texting would be a good idea.

Mary@notbefore7 said...

I guess I am the only one who doesn't like this.

I certainly hope it doesn't cut off anyone in the car from using the phone.

And I have to say, in a matter of emergency, I'd like to have a choice to answer my phone or to make a call. There are times you need it. Guess you'd have to pull over and turn off the car...

A no texting gadget would be brilliant. I can't believe people text and drive....AHHHH!