18-24 year olds send on average 110 texts a day

What? Doth mine eyes deceive me? Surely this story can’t be right?

Firstly – how do they have that many friends that they need to contact every day, and secondly, what do they have to chat about at such length?

I fall into this category, being 24, and I can safely say, hand on heart, I send nowhere NEAR that amount of texts. Nor have I ever. I appreciate that this is on average, but worryingly, that means there are some in this age group who send way more than the average.

These findings lend themselves nicely to the amount of chatter we hear about people being addicted to their mobile phones – with research from Ofcom finding that ‘60% [of teens] admitting to being ‘highly’ addicted to their phones.’ This survey takes it one step further, by revealing that ‘the study also shows that smartphones have begun to intrude on our most private moments, with 47% of teenagers admitting to using their device in the toilet. Only 22% of adults confessed to the same habit.’ Eww.

It’s true that smartphones are totally ubiquitous these days – they do everything for you: let you stay in touch with friends/family, read news on the move, watch TV, listen to the radio, and basically stay on top of your social life by acting as a calendar. They even have games to keep you entertained on a long journey – who needs Travel Connect4 now?

Going back to the texting element though, I do wonder if we’ll soon be seeing more and more injuries caused as a result of too much texting. Research that dates back as far as 2006 shows that ‘millions suffer from RSI’ – so surely it’s not too much of a leap to expect that figure to now be in the billions? The NHS has a page set up dedicated to causes/symptoms of RSI that’s due for update in February 2012. I don’t think it’s unrealistic to imagine that one of the causes to be added on to that list will be ‘texting’.

The Mist

 

When road-kill fights back...

 

This is the best film I have seen in a long time.

Based on a Stephen King novella of the same name, The Mist sees a small group of terrified citizens becoming trapped together in a supermarket as a mysterious white mist envelopes the entire town.

This is a creature-feature, but it’s more about paranoia, religious fanaticism and the price of hopelessness than it is about monsters. And if any of you ever wondered how fast society would break down when the pressure’s on – this film answers that question pretty accurately!

The Mist is tight and suspenseful, showing you only just enough blood to keep you on your toes, unlike the recent exercises torture porn that have dominated cinemas. The relatively static location and constantly changing threats just ratchet up the suspense.

This is a film with tension, character development, plot and action. It’s a film that will make you think long after the credits roll. It’s a film filled with metaphor and deeper meaning, but it still works as a popcorn cruncher.

And the ending is just perfect. Darabont seems to be one of few directors really capable of bringing off great endings to the stories he tells.

The Mist also shows how prevalent certain technologies have become since the original novella was written in 1980. Like many horror films now – The Mist has to make a point of showing that there is no mobile signal early on, so no one can call for help! At one point the protagonist also uses his Motorola as a flashlight in a dark room – a great touch, because using a phone-as-flashlight is something we’ve all done. In the same way, watch sales are dropping because people now use their phones as pocket-watches. Ever used a CD as a mirror? Just some examples of technologies designed for one thing finding another improvised use in real life!

But no matter how clever you are with your cell-phone, the giant tentacle creature is still going to eat you.