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Parent Category: Lower-Intermediate News Lessons

Category: Science and Technology

Written by Chris Cotter

Cell phones are an important part of our everyday lives. You can connect with friends and family, check e-mail and the Internet, and listen to music or watch TV. The invention has made our lives simpler. However, some people think that we might be too dependent on our phones.

Cell phones bring anxiety. Here's an example: You stand in a crowded place, hear someone's phone ring, and reach for you phone. Experts and the media call this "ringxiety." Some people think they hear the phone ring while they are in the shower. Other people often check their phones while they are watching TV or walking down the street.

A doctoral student named David Laramie came up with the word "ringxiety." He believes that TV advertisements, songs on the radio, even running water can make him trigger his ringxiety. Many other people also imagine either the ringing sound of their phone or their phone vibrating.

Although the medical community doesn't recognize ringxiety as an illness, many visitors to discussion boards also complain about the same problem. There is also some scientific truth. The human ear is very sensitive to frequencies between 1,000 and 6,000 hertz. The tones of cell phones fall within this range. Unfortunately, many other sounds do too.