Maybe Cell Phones Are Good For The Brain

Posting Date: 06/20/2000

Even though there has been no evidence about any harm from cell phones, people continue to worry about everything from brain cancer to traffic accidents being caused by the devices. At the same time, of course, everyone continues to buy and use them.

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In light of all this, a little study about a possible beneficial effect of cell phone use was too interesting to pass up. A team of researchers from the University of Turku, Finland, tested memory response in 48 subjects with cell phones mounted on their heads. The subjects were asked to remember up to three letters. Speed and accuracy were measured, both with and without exposure to radiofrequency (RF)

The team found that RF exposure speeded up response times, when the memory load was highest (three items). Unfortunately, accuracy did not improve with the exposure, and the researchers admit the gain in speed "probably has no practical implications for performance in daily life."

Probably not. I certainly don?t recommend going around all the time with a cell phone strapped to your head to speed up reaction times. But it does raise some interesting questions. Maybe drivers who use cell phones are better drivers than those who don't, because their reaction times are faster.

Maybe not -- but it's a reminder that sometimes when we are just looking about harmful effects from something, there might be some hidden beneficial effects as well.