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Introduction
People do not want their families or kids to die because of someone elses cell phone
mistake. Cell phones are present in human lives, but many people do not know the harmful
effects and risks of cell phones. What are the impacts that cell phones have on human health, cell
phones have negative and positive effects on human lives? Articles, books, and websites form
the basis of this research. The negative impacts that cell phones have on humans are mainly brain
tumors , vision, car accidents. The positive impact that cell phones have on humans is
communication. The impacts that can prevent the negative effects that cell phones have on
humans is less usage of the cell phone. These are all impacts that are most well-known about cell
phones and human health.

Literature Review
Ki Mae Heussner wrote Should You Be Scared of Your Cell Phone (October 15, 2010).
On a planet of 6.8 billion , people about 5 million use cell phones. Radiation from cell phones
can be harmful to human health. Heussner wrote about the effects cell phones have on humans.
Timothy J. Moynihan wrote Adult Health (2013). An association that cell phones have is
types of harmful ways to humans of the salivary glands. Salivary glands are glands that produce
saliva . There is no evidence of a link between cellphones and brain tumors and cancer.
According to the book, cell phones are capable of causing cancer.
Diana Zuckerman wrote Can Cell Phones Harm Our Health (November 2013). Cell
phone radiation may have other negative effects other than cancer. Cell phone radiation changes
the behavior of the cells inside the human body. The article states there may be other effects on
human health.
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Tara Parker-Pope wrote How Much Radiation Does Your Phone Emit (June 11, 2008).
For a phone to pass F.C.C certification, that cell phones maximum SAR level must be less than
1.6 W/kg (watts per kilogram). Federal Communications Commissions (FCC) is an independent
agency of the United states Government and Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) level is it measures
the rate which energy is absorbed by the human body.Cell phones emit varying levels of
radiation, depending on make and model. In the article it describes how much radiation is
emitted.
Markham Heid wrote Is Your Cell Phone Cooking Your Brain (Dec 18, 2012). Switching
up hands (and ears) frequently while on your cell phone can limit the amount of exposure to one
side of the head. In this article, Heid wrote about how much radiation is dangerous inside a cell
phone.
Background Info
A cell phone is any portable telephone which uses cellular networks to make and receive
calls. Cell phone is another name for cellular phone and mobile phone. A smartphone is a more
advanced phone that has extra features such as calls, sms messaging (short message service), and
advanced social networking (YouTube, Safari, Facebook, etc .). Cell phones are used to describe
a simple cellular phone, and smart phones are more advanced and used mostly for the touch
screen feature. A cell phone requires a subscription to a service provider and requires either a
prepaid or monthly billing setup. The invention of a mobile phone expanded from the telephone
invented by Alexander Graham Bell in 1876. There are thousands of models of cell phones that
have been invented between 1983 and now. The first cell phone was developed by Motorola
between the years of 1973 and 1983. Motorola Google Company said The world's first
commercial handheld cellular phone, the Motorola DynaTAC phone, received approval from the
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U.S. Federal Communications Commission on September 21, 1983. The 28-ounce (794-gram)
phone became available to consumers in 1984 (motorola.com). The cost of of the DynaTac
phone was $39,995.00. It was a high-priced phone because it was the first hand held phone
cellular phone to be sold. A cell phone today is most likely to cost between the range of $145.00-
$599.00; the most popular cell phone brands that people most buy today are Nokia, Samsung,
Apple, HTC, Sony Ecrisson, and etc.
Having a cell phone now makes people reachable in almost any location as long as there
is good reception. It makes it easier to communicate without face to face contact. Having internet
access on cell phones allows individuals to check items such as airline schedules, sports scores,
weather and traffic conditions. Many cell phones now come with cameras built into the cell
phone. This can be very helpful for a person involved in a car accident that does not have a
camera. They can take photographs of the damage using their cell phone and can send it directly
to their insurance company if needed.
Cell phones have both positive and negative effects on human lives. The average age for
a persons first cell phone is now 13. People can communicate through a cell phone such as face
to face contact. Mobile phones have expanded from an regular dial phone and now what is called
a smartphone. Now in the real world people use their cell phones for projects, notes, business
work, and social life. There is also some negative effects that are in human lives also. One
negative effect is that cell phones is now too much of a distraction to human lives such as car
accidents and health risks. Cell phones have the most common reason for an car accident it is
either they are texting and driving or talking on the cell phone. Cell phones cause main
distractions due to parents think the cell phone is a need and not a privilege.

Car Accidents
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As shown in figure 1, In 2011, at least 23% of auto collisions involved cell phones
(textinganddriving.com). Drivers are mostly brought to court by incidents that involve texting
and driving. In other cases, injured plaintiffs have also been found to have contributed to the
accident because they were using a cell phone while driving (nolo.com). Cell phone crashes
went up in America because of the popularity of technology programmed and installed inside a
cell phone. Council said In 2011, the government database had identified 52% of the crashes as
cell phone related. In 2010, it was 35%, and in 2009, 8% (usatoday.com). Statistics have found
there was at least 1.3 million crashes involved cell phones use per year. NSC said Its annual
attributable risk estimate in 2011 using new data from National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration. The updated assessment estimates that at least 23 percent of all traffic crashes
per year - at least 1.3 million crashes - involve cell phone use. An estimated 1.2 million crashes
each year involve drivers using cell phones for conversations and at least 100,000 additional
crashes can be related to drivers who are texting. Cell phone conversations are involved in 12
times as many crashes as texting (nsc.org).
Figure 1: Statistics of Car Accidents
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Cancer & Brain Tumors
Cancer is the uncontrolled growth of abnormal cells in the body. Cancer is another name
for a group of 100 more diseases .The way cancer starts when cells inside the body start to grow
out of control. Cancer harms the body when damaged cells divide uncontrollably to form lumps
of tissues called tumors. Cancer is the most common cause of death in america according to
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research, Lane said About 1,660,290 new cancer cases are expected to be diagnosed in 2013,
and in 2013 about 580,350 Americans are projected to die of cancer, almost 1,600 people a day.
Cancer remains the second most common cause of death in the US, accounting for nearly 1 of
every 4 deaths(cancer.org). Several major studies show no link between cell phones and cancer
at this time. Berl said Whether cellphone use causes cancer is an ongoing question with, as yet,
incomplete answers(health.usnews.com).
A brain tumor is an abnormal growth of tissue inside the brain. Brain tumors can spread
outside the brain by tissues being connected to the brain. A brain tumor contains cancer cells and
cells that are not post to be located near the brain. Most brain tumors come from breast cancer,
lung cancer, kidney cancer and glioma. Lane said About half of metastatic brain tumors are
from lung cancer. Other types of cancer that commonly spread to the brain are melanoma and
cancer of the breast, colon, kidney, nasopharynx, and unknown primary site( cancer.gov).
Glioma is another name for a type of brain tumor. Glioma comes from a tissue that sends
messages from the brain to the body. The possible connection between cellphones and cancer is
controversial. FCC said In 1991, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) banned
passengers from using their cell phones while on board an airplane that is in flight. The ban was
instituted because the FCC suspected that the radio frequency emitted by cellphones could
malfunction an airplane's equipment systems. In complying with this rule, different airlines have
instituted different policies about when phones can be turned on and off. In 2005, the FCC
announced that it might consider lifting the ban on the use of cell phones on airplanes, with
certain restrictions(wisegeek.com). Cell phones are capable of causing cancer and brain tumors
because of how much radiation that is coming from the cell phone. Gannett said The concern is
that cellphones are often placed close to or against the head during use, which puts the radiation
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in direct contact with the tissue in the head(howstuffworks.com).
The type of radiation that comes out a cell phone is
called non-ionizing. Non-ionizing radiation is any type of electromagnetic radiation that does not
carry enough energy per quantum to ionize atoms or molecules. Chan said Mobile phones
communicate with base stations using radiofrequency (RF) radiation. If RF radiation is high
enough, it has a thermal effect, which means it raises body temperature. There are concerns that
the low levels of RF radiation emitted by mobile phones could cause health problems such as
headaches or brain tumours(vic.gov.au). A molecule is an electrically group of two or more
atoms held together by chemical bonds. an atom is a molecule that is surrounded by negative
charged electrons. Lane said Studies thus far have not shown a consistent link between cell
phone use and cancers of the brain, nerves, or other tissues of the head or neck. More research is
needed because cell phone technology and how people use cell phones have been changing
rapidly(cancer.gov). The FCC said Any cell phone at or below these SAR levels is a safe
phone, measured by these standards. The FCC limit for public exposure for cellular telephones
is an SAR level of 1.6 watts per kilogram (1.6 w?kg)(fcc.gov).
Cell phones communicate with base stations using radio frequency radiation. If radio
frequency radiation is high enough, it has a thermal effect, which means it raises the body
temperature. There are concerns that low levels of radio frequency radiation emitted by cell
phones could cause health problems such as headaches or brain tumors.

Vision
Humans tend to pay attention more to their cell phone and strain their eyes. Staring at
your cell phone can cause blurry vision later in life. Bridget said A new problem that some eye
experts are calling computer vision syndrome (CVS) is sweeping the country; it can affect up to
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90 percent of people who spend two or more continuous hours a day with their eyes glued to a
screen, whether it's that of a computer, an e-reader, or a smartphone. The symptoms, which can
include blurry vision, headaches, dry eyes, or even long-term nearsightedness, may accrue over a
period of days or monthsbut don't wait until you sense something is wrong. Start preventing
the problem today(nbcnews.com). The reason your eyes can be damaged to a mobile phone due
to the fact that screens on mobile phones are small most people are squinting which is straining
your eyes. Chan said Scientists have figured out why, and it has to do with our eyes' inability
to focus on a smartphone's small screen AND adjust to how far away the content is from our
eyes(huffingtonpost.com).

Case Study
In 2000 Nivea was trying to arrange a wedding from Sweden, which was to take place in
Kenya some months away, she certainly remember life before the cell phone. Nivera did most of
the communication with her parents via letters. The down side to this was discovered that letters
quickly were overlapping and each time a reply came from her parents , they had not red the
letter she had recently sent to them. Still people in Kenya rely on letters, which is sometimes
enough for its purpose but not a very effective means of communication. For some people in
rural Kenya even letter writing is still not an option, given that most of them do not own a post
box so the cell phone is really a good option. In 2002 when her and her husband back to Kenya
for a trip to her parents they noticed the cell phone arrival. They had needed to stay in contact
with their families as any other Kenyan. Communication had become simple and available.
Letter writing to her parents is a problem of the past and she can now communicate using the cell
phone.

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Conclusion
Cell phones have brought on a whole new generation of technology and they do make life
more exciting in terms of communication. They are good for emergency situations, however the
side effects of cell phones and the distractions that they cause many dangerous and unhealthy
situations to occur. Cell phones cause brain damage, car accidents, and are distractions at school.
On top of that, they are also huge threats to the environment. I have found that there is no
possible connection between cell phones and cancer. Though this research showed that there are
more negative effects than positive effects of cell phones.
Using bluetooth and speakerphones can help to decrease negative effects of cellphone use
on human lives. Bluetooth is a wireless technology standard for exchanging data over short
distances from fixed and mobile devices, buildings personal area networks. Speakerphones is a
telephone with a loudspeaker and microphone, allowing to be used without picking up the
mobile phone or handset. Heid said A cell phone antenna picks up signals from cell phone
towers and satellites, while a Bluetooth headset technology is receiving radiations from a few
feet away (emfblues.com). Researchers were saying that bluetooth works with short distance
radiation and cell phone antennas works with far distance radiation. All bluetooth headsets and
speakerphones emit wireless microwave radiation. Zuckerman said Bluetooth radiation is
emitted from all Bluetooth Headsets and Technologies and is a type of wireless radio wave
frequency(RF) also known as microwave radiation(emfblues.com). A bluetooth headset is a
headset that has no wires and that is connected wireless to the mobile phone. Zuckerman said
But the signal travels only inches from the Bluetooth headset to the phone, so wireless headset
emissions are lower than emissions from a cell phone which transmits to a distant tower
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(ewg.org). That researchers found that the same radiation emitted inside a cell phone is higher
and stronger than bluetooth headset radiation which is weaker.
Other ways that cell phones can decrease or prevent the risk of negative effects are
speakerphone, less usage , and rest. Using a speakerphone can help decrease the risks of cancer,
glioma, and car accidents. Cancer and glioma are caused by the radiation given from a cell phone
but can be prevented by increasing the distance from the ear. Car accidents would be less likely
if speakerphones are used because during the use of a cell phone, drivers have to drive with one
hand. It would be safer to put the cell phone on speakerphone because you will use both hands
to drive instead of one. While using speakerphones, bluetooth, and other hand free devices can
decrease the negative effects of cell phones, less usage can completely prevent the causes of
cancer, glioma, and car accidents.
Rest is another method of prevention of the negative effects caused by cell phones. Using
your cell phone can cause your vision to be blurry, eyes to be strained, and can cause headaches.
By making sure you are getting enough sleep and rest, it will give will give enough time to rest
and heal themselves. Without enough sleep or rest your vision is being affected because your
eyes can not recuperate.