Digital zombies? It is the term used to refer to people walking down the street looking at their mobile phones. Paying full attention to the mobile phone can carry some risks, as we walk without being aware of the environment around us. In this sense, we can be hit by a vehicle by not paying attention to traffic lights or hitting others on the street.
Apps like Facebook, Whatsapp, Twitter and Instagram are grabbing the attention of many people as they walk the streets, which, in addition to involving risks, includes the disadvantage of preventing us from observing the surrounding environment and the changes that occur there.
- As far as we know the streets of the city in which we live.
- Walking through them requires some attention.
- Changes in the environment in which we find ourselves are usually not very fast.
- But are variations that require reactions.
- So be a digital zombie?pose a danger to our health.
In fact, in the early twentieth century, with the birth and spread of the car, an intense awareness campaign was carried out to highlight the new dangers to the most distracted pedestrians. This type of person was called “reckless. ” The term refers to people from rural areas who have arrived in major cities and have been impressed by buildings, monuments, advertisements or the high movement of people.
This scattered care, in addition to the unkistakableness of the behavior and damage that a car could cause, greatly increased the risk of accidents. Going back to the present, we now have a new form of distracted pedestrians: digital zombies.
Several campaigns have been launched to alert pedestrians to the dangers of being a ‘digital zombie’, for example, in San Javier, a Spanish city, a sign was placed to warn pedestrians in the summer of 2013.
The curious sign read: “Warning, pedestrian. Be careful walking. Can you wait for your WhatsApp?” In central London, however, some traffic lights and other street furniture were covered with a softer material so that pedestrians would not be injured when hit. Although this may seem strange, there are many cases of people involved in these small accidents, al After all, looking at the phone screen also limits our peripheral vision.
In Taiwan, it was even discussed whether distracted pedestrians who look at their mobile phones while crossing the street should be fined, this measure, although it may seem rigid, could prevent accidents, in fact, the proposal reached the country’s parliament after several people were crushed under these conditions.
Today, some apps try to reduce the risk of being a “digital zombie”. An interesting example is the transparent screen, which uses your phone’s camera to simulate a transparent effect on the screen. This way, pedestrians can see the street through the screen. .
In fact, those responsible for certain brands plan to integrate such applications into their products. These solutions, while ingenious and relatively effective, can also be counterproductive. After all, do you facilitate the practice of being?Digital Zombie? And make people feel more inclined to do it.
The best solution is, of course, for everyone to make a responsible effort not to use the mobile phone while walking, that’s what can really reduce the risks. In case you need to look at your phone on the street, we can stop for a few seconds to do it safely and without disturbing the other pedestrians.