Can You Walk and Talk?

Can You Walk and Talk?

Augustus Fremont, 23; Manhasset, New York: While phones are a big part of our lives, and are seen as very distracting, they aren't as distracting as they seem. We are always on our phones, texting, talking, or on some form of social media; which would take away from understanding our surroundings. However, a poll was taken and says that only 36% of the respondents had had someone walk into them and 23% of them walking into someone. Those are surprisingly low statistics! It shows that while we are on our phones, we are pretty aware of our surroundings at least nearest to us, aka people walking past us. So we are able to multitask when it comes to walking and talking (and you thought walking and chewing gum maybe hard!) 

Amerata Peer, 60; Huntington Beach, California: People are spending so much time looking at their phones that they are bumping into people often. This statistic shows that we are not looking at where we are going, because it is showing close to half of people polled were hit by someone who was using their phone. That is more than ever before! Back in the day, we didn't have those types of distractions, so we didn't bump into people as often. And a fourth of people who were polled bumped into someone, that also isn't good. While it isn't usually dangerous bumping into someone, it means they are more likely not to pay attention period. Meaning they have a higher chance of getting hit by a car or a bike. We need to stop talking on our phones so much, the people will be there in 20 minutes when we get to our destinations! It isn't worth it, unless absolutely necessary, to talk to someone when we are walking. It is like driving and texting, it is very dangerous. Kids today think they can multi-task but God definitely didn't give us the attention span to do so! Please really think about whether you really need to text that person about how great your venti mocha frappa latte with skim milk and no foam and what it is worth. 

Fredrich Anaya, 35; Maui, Hawaii: There are still unanswered questions existing in this statistic, that definitely can alter how this is taken or looked at. A big question that isn't answered is how many times did the person who wasn't walked into, saw that they would be walked into, and moved? I have definitely noticed when someone isn't looking and so I move out of the way so we don't hit, it isn't because they notice. Or they may notice and slide their shoulders so we don't hit. I'm sure some of the people who said no have had some close calls. It never identifies if the person said they didn't hit someone, if they had any close calls that if one didn't notice, they would have hit. Also, goes into what type of talking. Is it texting, calling, or skyping? The answer would be very different because if they are calling they aren't looking at the phone. If it dealt with calling, this would be bad because that means that they weren't looking at their phone, so they weren't distracted, and they still walked into someone. If it is texting or skyping, it would mean they were distracted by the phone and would be more likely not to see someone around you because you would be looking down at the phone. There also is no evidence to any of what the people polled said. Also, they could have lied about bumping into someone (I know I would), by not saying they did or lying about the times they have done it. There is no way of proving it.