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SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2009
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NEWS ABOUT: texting

texting stories: 64 news summaries

1 - 20 of 64 Stories | 1 2 3 4 Next >>

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 Why Grandma 
 Texts Better 
 Than You 

Careers that revolved around shorthand give grannies fast fingers

Nov 4, 09 11:42 AM CST
(Newser) - Text messaging opened up a new—and better—method of communication for Matthew DeBord and his mother (gone were the days of “rambling, nonlinear” phone calls), but he was shocked when he realized his 70-year-old mom wasn’t just good at texting: “Mom texted like someone who’s... More »

MORE ABOUT:
BlackBerry • text message • texting • trend

 Multitasking Causes 
 Serious Brain Drain 

Constant switching of focus is inefficient, can lead to trouble

Oct 26, 09 2:44 PM CDT
(Newser) - Multitasking isn’t helping you do anything faster, and constant exposure to multiple electronic media makes people really bad at—multitasking. “When you’re pushing yourself to perform two or more tasks, especially complicated tasks, it’s not beneficial,” a researcher tells the Boston Globe . “It’s... More »

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brain • multitask • texting • scientific study • cognitive overload • multitasking • electronic media • concentration

 Federal Workers Banned 
 From Texting While Driving 

Executive order is part of larger push against distracted driving

Oct 1, 09 3:05 PM CDT
(Newser) - Federal employees are now forbidden from sending text messages while driving on government business or operating government vehicles. The new executive order, signed by President Obama last night, also encourages executive agencies to adopt texting bans for contractors, reports ABC. "To put it plainly, distracted driving is a menace... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Barack Obama • driving • text message • texting • driver distraction • reckless driving • Ray LaHood

(Newser) - Accidents caused by distracted drivers killed at least 5,800 and injured another 515,000 last year, according to data pulled from police reports and presented today to Transportation Department conference on the issue. The actual figures may be significantly higher, say Transportation officials, since distraction is often hard to... More »

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cell phones • car accident • texting • Department of Transportation • driver distraction

90% Want to Outlaw Texting While Driving: Poll

Younger Americans slightly more tolerant, but 83% still in favor of ban

Sep 28, 09 11:11 AM CDT
(Newser) - An overwhelming majority of Americans think texting while driving is such a bad idea it should be outlawed. A new poll finds that 90% of us support a ban; the most contrary demographic is, rather unsurprisingly, young'uns aged 18 to 29—though a robust 83% are in favor of a... More »

MORE ABOUT:
cell phones • driving • ban • texting • opinion polls • mobile phones • outlaw

 Truckers Fight to Keep 
 Computers in Cabs 

As ban on texting while driving gains grounds, drivers want an exception

Sep 28, 09 10:54 AM CDT
(Newser) - With Congress considering legislation to ban text messaging while driving, the trucking industry is fighting to keep its in-cab computers. Truckers use the machines to get directions and talk to dispatchers without having to pull over, saving them precious time on long hauls. The industry says the devices are less... More »

MORE ABOUT:
driving • truckers • texting • driver distraction • trucking

Traffic Tweets Send Mixed Messages

States send updates, but prohibit drivers
from reading them

Sep 19, 09 7:38 AM CDT
(Newser) - Safety experts complain that states are undermining their own no-texting-while-driving laws by offering motorists constant Twitter updates on traffic conditions, the AP reports. At least 22 states with laws that essentially ban drivers from using smartphones and similar devices behind the wheel provide such information, and, in some cases, readily... More »

MORE ABOUT:
cell phones • driving • smartphones • car safety • texting • Twitter

 Emoticons Invade 
 Academia 

Teaching millennials causes new frustrations for college writing professors

Sep 7, 09 4:44 PM CDT
(Newser) - College professors have lamented the state of student writing for centuries. But today’s Internet-obsessed culture brings new, infuriating errors to Writing 101 as students brazenly use colloquialisms like “:-)” and “LOL” in essays. “Occasionally, I've seen someone using the number 4 for the word 'for,'”... More »

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education • Internet • writing • college • online • instant messaging • emoticon • smiley face • texting • Cal State San Marcos • University of San Diego

(Newser) - A horrifying car crash video graphically highlighting the gory dangers of texting behind the wheel has been viewed some 4 million times online. But experts doubt that it will significantly change teen driver behavior, reports the New York Times. The video-gone-viral has been the buzz of schools since it... More »

MORE ABOUT:
YouTube • video • car crash • accident • driving • viral video • texting • teenage drivers • teenager • reckless driving • viral marketing

 Families' Mornings 
 Start with Tech Check 

Families boot up computers, phones on waking

Aug 10, 09 9:58 AM CDT
(Newser) - When it comes to morning routines, the modern family has a new set of priorities, many of which require a screen, the New York Times reports. “It used to be you woke up, went to the bathroom, maybe brushed your teeth, and picked up the newspaper,” says an... More »

MORE ABOUT:
technology • social networking • Internet • sleep • parenting • iPhone • Facebook • BlackBerry • family • text messaging addiction • text message • laptop • texting • Twitter • women's issues • routine

 Woman Gets PhD in Texting 

Philosophy thesis is first on text message communication

Aug 6, 09 7:57 PM CDT
(Newser) - A British graduate student has earned a PhD in texting—an academic first, Discover magazine reports. Caroline Tagg’s doctorate, more specifically, is in the philosophy of texting communication. Tagg studied 11,000 texts from 235 people over four years. Among the findings: The average text is 17.5 words,... More »

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cell phones • philosophy • communication • PhD • text message • texting • mobile phones

Texting Boosts Driver
Crash Risk 23 Times

Texting while driving found to be
deadliest distraction 

Jul 28, 09 1:49 AM CDT
(Newser) - A first-of-its-kind study has found that sending and receiving text messages is the deadliest distraction for drivers by far, the New York Times reports. The study, which involved cameras in the cabs of long-haul trucks, found that texting raised a driver's risk of collision a whopping 23 times, putting it... More »

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cell phones • text message • texting • road safety • drivers • driver distraction

 Voicemail Is So Over 

System too slow in faster-paced world

Jul 9, 09 1:14 PM CDT
(Newser) - After some 25 years of popularity, voicemail has become merely an annoyance for many, the Boston Globe reports. "What I really hate are the soliloquies," says a time-crunched user. But the long-winded are only part of the problem, experts say; the real culprit is the rise of texting.... More »

MORE ABOUT:
cell phones • text message • texting • voicemail • telephone • trend • message

COMMENTARY

Why One Mom Drew the Line
at Skype

Technology that brings us together can pull us apart, she writes

Jun 28, 09 2:05 PM CDT
(Newser) - Today’s world of cellphones, tweets, and texts makes it possible to stay constantly in touch—but where do we draw the line between contact and privacy, connection and independence? When it comes to family intimacy over distance, that question comes into sharp relief, Peggy Orenstein reflects in the New ... More »

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cell phones • privacy • communication • Skype • texting • Twitter • women's issues

 Smartphones Dial Up 
 Etiquette Debate 

Some call tapping rude; others call it necessary

Jun 22, 09 10:20 AM CDT
(Newser) - Most companies don’t have rules about smartphone use at work—but with more people eying their BlackBerrys during meetings, a debate is raging over smartphone conduct, the New York Times reports. Many call excessive BlackBerrying the height of rudeness, but others hold that today’s world requires constant electronic... More »

MORE ABOUT:
iPhone • BlackBerry • smartphones • texting • etiquette • e-mails

 OMG! Wrld's Bst 
 Txtr Wins $50K 

500 text per day habit pays off for Iowa teen

Jun 17, 09 1:20 AM CDT
(Newser) - A 15-year-old Iowa girl took home $50,000 and a new phone after thumbing her way to first place in the National Texting Championships yesterday, CNN reports. Kate Moore, who has developed a 500 text-per-day habit since getting her first phone last year, aced speed and dexterity tests as well... More »

MORE ABOUT:
cell phones • contest • text message • texting • SMS • Kate Moore

 Texts, Tweets 
 Have Roots 
 on Typewriter 

German chose character length by writing random messages

May 11, 09 9:37 AM CDT
(Newser) - The man who chose text-messaging’s magic number—160 characters—did so in a decidedly low-tech way, the Los Angeles Times reports. In 1985, German Friedhelm Hillebrand typed message after random message into his typewriter, and found that 160 was “perfectly sufficient,” he said. And now sufficiency is... More »

MORE ABOUT:
cell phones • text message • texting • Twitter • Friedhelm Hillebrand • Jay-ZTV

(AP) - The head of the Boston-area transit authority said today he'll ban all train and bus operators from even carrying cell phones on board after a trolley driver told police he was texting his girlfriend before a collision yesterday. About 50 people were hurt in the underground crash in downtown... More »

MORE ABOUT:
cell phones • Boston • crash • texting • trolley

 Sexting Pics 
 Live Forever, 
 Teens Warned 

Stalkers, potential employers may have access to photos years later

May 4, 09 6:00 AM CDT
(Newser) - The critical problem with sexting is that salacious snaps teens send of themselves from their cell phones can exist forever in cyberspace. That's the message Australian authorities are stressing in a new educational anti-sexting campaign. Nude pictures sent in fun could end up being posted on the Internet by sexual... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Internet • sexual harassment • pornography • harassment • child pornography • texting • teen sex • cyberspace • teenager • sexting

 Sex Query? 
 Experts Help 
 Teens Via 
 Texting 

Health professionals text teens answers to anonymous sex questions

May 2, 09 3:14 PM CDT
(Newser) - Teenagers no longer need to reveal their angst over pregnancy or noisy sex in crowded classrooms, the New York Times reports. Public health officials, fretting over the state of sex ed in US schools, are now answering questions via text message. Some use multiple choice menus and automated responses, but... More »

MORE ABOUT:
pregnancy • North Carolina • sex education • abstinence education • STD • text message • texting • teenager • mobile phones

1 - 20 of 64 Stories | 1 2 3 4 Next >>


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