“You damned, ugly, shiny thing. It would hurt you to ring, wouldn't it?”

#7: It takes the energy of 3,700 Hiroshima atomic bombs to make one year's supply of smartphones

This week we've got three curiosities from my month-long experiment with No Mobile Phone (spoiler alert: it was great). First up: some bad-taste maths....

#8: Getting your phone out makes your conversations shit

Or, according to one study, phones “inhibited the development of interpersonal closeness and trust, and reduced the extent to which individuals felt empathy and understanding from their partners”.

Fascinating, but surely this wouldn't affect me and my good friends. Would it? Umm...

#9: Phones make you dumb, dissatisfied and dangerous

We check our phones in an effort to stay connected, but this means we lose connection to NOW. It makes us dumber, more disatisfied with life and - who do you think is more of a dangerous driver, the drunk one or the one on his/her phone?

Thanks for reading, everyone! I know you're all living mad busy lives, but I hope this short email gives you something to think about as we hit the weekend.

I appreciate your ears. Go on and share if you found something worth sharing. I'm heading out now to post some thank you letters for people who hosted us on our cycle across Europe this summer. December is a good time for gratitude, so -
THANK YOU! A plus!
-DC