Would you be surprised to meet someone who doesn’t have a cell phone? According to an article in Wikipedia (2011), over 5 billion people are using cell phones in the world today but the surprising thing is that in most countries their number of mobile phones is bigger than their population, which means that many people are using more than one cell phone. Now, many people think that cell phones have become a necessity, like water. Is it possible to live without cell phones these days? Today, people use cell phones for every part of their lives: for business appointments, shopping, social communication, and for everything trivial. How has the phone become the fastest changing invention in the world? Since Alexander Graham Bell created the first phone in 1875 (Casson, 1910, p.12), it has been progressing very quickly. In fact, this device can almost replace most other electronics – including the computer. Even though the cell phone is helpful in emergencies, provides entertainment and fun, and connects people around the world, it also has three negative effects, especially related to health, stress, and car accidents. The history of the telephone and its culmination to the cell phone are going to be addressed in this paper. It will also focus on the influential people throughout the history of the phone. Third, it will mention how the phone is used and what it has replaced. Lastly, it will show the negative and positive effects of the cell phone today.
This device is so critical that it can save people’s lives and therefore, it could be a modern miracle. Even though many people believe that the phone is a positive progression, there are some negative things to think about. It is a topic in a lot of different studies. There are many books that research the history of the phone and also the culture of the cell phone nowadays. There are articles that warn people about using a cell phone too much. However, other articles argue that cell phones have many advantages. Others praise how far the cell phone has gone around the world. So, is the phone the best invention in this century? And how can we protect ourselves from this device?
History of the Phone
Every person who is using a cell phone today is because of one man who always dreamed of sending speech on a wire while others criticized him and made him feel crazy. Nevertheless, he kept thinking and trying to make this dream happen. First, he experimented with tuning forks. He saw that sound can travel on a wire when something like a tuning fork hits it. This discovery made him try to use this knowledge to help people who can’t hear. But his real goal was to make a telephone that could make a voice heard through a wire. He worked for many years and, finally, on March 10, 1876, he made the first phone call. He called his assistant, Thomas Watson, who was in the basement of the same house as Bell. He said, “Mr. Watson, come here, I want you” (Casson, 1910, 33). An interesting fact is that a man named Elisha Gray, who didn’t know Bell, tried to get a patent for the telephone a couple of hours after Bell got a patent for the same idea. Even though Gray didn’t get the credit for inventing the phone and so is not famous like Bell, he helped start a company called Western Electric, which was a major competitor with Bell’s company (Farley, 2000).
Since this time, telephones have become very popular. In the beginning, it was advertised to people for possible emergencies. For example, some pictures show (on the next page) people who needed a doctor, or people who need the police (Levinson, 2004, 4). However, once people got a telephone in their home, they realized that they could call anyone. The first phones did not have a dial. Instead, people called an operator who connected them to another phone. By 1879, “telephone subscribers began to be designated by numbers rather than names -- as a result of an epidemic of measles. A Lowell, Massachusetts doctor, concerned about the inability of replacement exchange operators to put calls through because they would not be familiar with the names associated with all the jacks on the switchboards, suggested the alpha-numeric system of identifying customers by a two- letter and five-digit system” (Farley, 2009).
People saw that the telephone was so important for people’s safety and daily life that they wanted to improve it to become more convenient. First, they decided to put it in cars because cars have batteries and the size of the phone didn’t matter. So, in 1970, the car phone service became popular and mainstream with the initiation of the Autoradiopuhelin, which was within a 1G network (Rashnitsov, n.d). Specifically, “the first car phone service used a high-power transmitter and external antennas to get their signals across” (Rashnitsov, n.d). The popularity of the idea of installing a phone in a car that travels made people think to create one that you can carry anywhere. So, over the next few years, the Motorola Company worked to create a device that people can take with them. In 1973, Motorola introduced a cell phone that was a big success (Goggin, 2006, 29). Many other phone companies in many different countries copied this idea and tried to make it lighter and smaller. Since this time, the cell phone has been changing very fast and has become incredibly popular all over the world.
How the Phone is Used & What It has Replaced
In these days, the cell phone has become like a part of the body, so that people won’t be able to live without it for even one minute. This device makes people go crazy with it because it has replaced everything that is necessary for staying in touch with the world. Using a cell phone is like breathing – if a person loses it, he feels that he will suffocate and will stop everything until he finds it. In fact, “there is a high level of debt incurred by young people in owning and using a mobile” (Goggin, 2006, 115). This is because they cannot imagine life without it. People depend on the phone for a variety of things. For example, in the home, people use a cell phone for listening to music, watching videos, and playing games. In school, students use their cell phones as study tools. When traveling, cell phones are useful for taking pictures, navigation, and finding new places. Lastly, business professionals use cell phones to check email, share documents, and communicate with their partners and customers.
The options on cell phones today have made them replace the computer which means that people are able to use the cell phone as a small, portable computer. In fact, since people use their phones so much, advertisers compare the cell phone to the computer as an important way to sell products (Goggin, 2006, 162). Additionally, people want to use a computer in all places they are. For example, a person traveling to school or work by bus would use the internet to access his email, chat, check Facebook, and many other things. So, the cell phone has the ability to act as a computer in many different situations.
In the past, listening to music required a portable CD player or radio. Taking notes in a notebook or writing down appointments in a calendar are also not necessary anymore. Now, cell phones have replaced these items and have made it easier and faster to do these activities. Furthermore, cell phone companies are making cell phones with very high quality cameras, so that people don’t have to carry both a camera and a cell phone. This feature means that “photography is now here to stay in cell phone culture, and there are signs that it’s set to play an important role in cultural formation more generally” (Goggin, 2006, 161). People prefer a camera on their phone so that they can see their pictures right away and share them on the internet or with their friends by sending a text message.
The Negative Effects of the Cell Phone
Many people think that the cell phone doesn't have any negative effects and it's a completely positive thing. However, there are some negative effects and it’s dangerous for people’s lives if they use it a lot. Starting in the 1990s, according to Goggin (2006), many people began to be very worried about health risks from cell phones mostly because of electronic radiation. Nowadays, people are facing a new problem with teenagers who use cell phones too much. According to Lajunnen, H. & Keski-R, et al. (2007), teenagers who use cell phones are more likely to be overweight and unhealthy.
An additional negative effect of cell phones is the stress that people feel when the cell phone rings or receives a text message. Sometimes, a phone call can interrupt a family get-together or a friend’s party which can be offensive. But, if the call is not answered, it can cause the caller to be worried about a person’s safety. So, the cell phone is a double-edged sword because it both offers possibilities and it pressures us to use it all the time (Levinson, 2004, xiii). A further negative effect of cell phones is constant dependency on it. For example, imagine a group of friends traveling to a strange city, and they separate with an agreement to communicate by cell phone. But, one person in the group loses his phone and is not able to contact his friends. This situation could lead them into trouble. Because of the stress and dependency, cell phones have become a high priority in life. So, answering the cell phone has even become more important than physical, face-to-face conversations. Because of that, many people feel unimportant and excluded. All of these negative emotions conclude that cell phones make challenges in the way people act and relate with each other (Goggin, 2006, 115).
The Positive Effects of the Cell Phone
In spite of the negative effects of the cell phone, there are so many positive effects that a person could never list all of them. Out of all of these, there are some major ones that are very convincing. One of the most obvious positive effects is how helpful cell phones are in emergencies. From the beginning of the telephone, people have used it in emergencies, like calling the fire department, the police, or the doctor. The Bell telephone made it easier to contact the right people in any situation. According to Levinson, “twisting dial number one would prompt the ADT to request that a fire engine be sent to the home; dial number two would result in a prompt visit from the police; number three would yield a courier” (Levinson, 2004, 6). Nowadays, calling 911 on a cell phone is free and can lead the police to the location of the call without even telling the address. In addition, if a child is in a difficult situation or if a teenager’s car breaks down, it is easy to pick up the cell phone and call parents for help. This gives parents peace because their children can always reach them (Baker, 2010).
Not only is the cell phone for emergencies, but also it provides entertainment and fun. Cell phones have many different kinds of entertainment. For example, people can play games, share pictures, listen to music, and watch videos. The invention of the smart phone makes these activities easier because of the internet. While someone is waiting for an appointment, or traveling by airplane or car, instead of wasting his time, he can use his cell phone to play a game, search the internet, or watch a movie. Furthermore, now most airplanes have access to the internet which sometimes makes waiting fun.
A last positive effect is the ability to contact anyone at anytime and anywhere. This makes it easier to be in touch with anyone all over the world, especially with family. In fact, cell phones make family connections stronger and now it’s impossible for anyone to be completely away from his family (Levinson, 2004, 89). Cell phones enable teenagers to communicate with their friends or even strangers while they are in their own home. Besides this, they let teenagers know the world around them which is especially good in poor countries (Baker, 2010). Now, the whole world looks like a neighborhood because a person can interact with any other person and they can learn about each other’s lives, language and culture.
Conclusion
To conclude, the cell phone has many wonderful things and few disadvantages. It can save a person’s life, it makes life more enjoyable, and it creates friends among every culture. However, it is important to know some of the trouble that can come from a cell phone which includes health, anxiety and car safety. The cell phone is changing so rapidly that people cannot keep up with its improvements and progress. According to Casson (1910), Alexander Graham Bell dreamed of sending speech on a wire to between cities. This dream opened the door for him to invent a miraculous telephone. The word “telephone comes from the Greek word tele, meaning from afar, and phone, meaning voice or voiced sound” (Farley, 2009). Now people can send a lot more than just voice – they can speak face-to-face by using a camera. In the past, when Bell invented the cell phone, a lot of people couldn’t believe what he had done. So, these days, people should be prepared for future technology with the cell phone. In the meantime, more research should explain how the phone works now and the best ways to use it.
Bibliography:
Baker, L.C., (2010) “Cell Phones and Their Positive Effects on Youth”. Retrieved March 9, 2011 http://www.ehow.com.
Comer, J.C., Wikle, T.A. (2008) Worldwide Diffusion of the Cellular Telephone, 1995-2005. The Professional Geographer. 16(2), 251-269.
Casson, M.N. (1910). The History of the Telephone. 2nd ed. Chicago, IL: A.C. McClurg.
Farley, T. (2009) “Telephone History”. Retrieved March 13, 2011. http://affordablephones.net/historytelephone.htm
Goggin, G. (2006). Cell phone culture : mobile technology in everyday life. London ; New York : Routledge.
Lajunen, H. & Keski-Rahkonen, A., et al. (2007) “Are computer and cell phone use associated with body mass index and overweight? A population study among twin adolescents”. BMC Public Health 7: 24-28.
Levinson, P. (2004). Cellphone : the story of the world's most mobile medium and how it has transformed everything! 1st ed. New York, NY: Palgrave Macmillan.
Rashnitsov, D. “The History of the Car Phone”. Retrieved on March 15, 2011 http://www.ehow.com/about_5426865_history-car-phones.html
Wikipedia (2011) “List of countries by number of mobile phones in use” Retrieved Mar. 13, 2011 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_number_of_mobile_phones_in_use.
Wikipedia (2011) “Texting While Driving”. Retrieved on March 18, 2011 from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texting_while_driving
