Answering the phone or driving the car

2001/10/01 Elhuyar Zientzia Iturria: Elhuyar aldizkaria

• Teknologia

Mobile phones confuse, distract the driver. This news is not entirely new, it is evident. However, scientists at Carnegie Mellon University have sought the scientific reason for this. It seems that the brain's ability to perform two cognitive tasks at once is limited, especially in situations that require a lot of attention. Images that reflect brain activity have been used to carry out the research. The volunteers got to work on a complex vision process and during their work they heard several phrases.

According to the results obtained, when listening to the phrases the level of attention to volunteering decreased by 29%. Therefore, the problem is not solved with the option of hands-free, because to drive, in addition to the hands, the activity of the brain is necessary. In addition, driving requires a lot of attention and affects 53% of the brain area of the tongue. Therefore, scientists have also recommended speaking as little as possible when we drive.