Skeptics Stack Exchange
Skeptics Stack Exchange

Questions tagged [mobile-phones]

A device that can make and receive telephone calls over a radio link whilst moving around a wide geographic area.

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Do mobile phones have anything to do with brain cancer?

Is there evidence for a correlation between the use of mobile phones and the occurence of brain cancer? If yes, is there also evidence for causality?
user288
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Does a mobile phone charger that is plugged in but has no phone attached to it use energy?

Obviously, I am talking about simple charger without any indicator lights etc. If yes, why does it use energy when the circuit is not closed? Examples of the…
Dan
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Are cell phones dangerous to use at the gas station?

All over the world there are signs similar to this, is there the slightest bit of support for the danger of using a cell phone at the gas station? Related to: Are personal electronics a risk to commercial aviation? Resources: Mythbusters…
Kit Sunde
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Can you test for microwave leaks by putting a cell phone inside and calling it?

I heard as long ago as 2003 that trying to call a cell phone while it's inside a microwave (with the microwave off, of course) could be used to test if the shielding of the microwave was intact. I recall trying it and that it worked (the phone did…
Hendy
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Is Swype faster than typing?

Many articles on IT websites claim that Swype is faster than typing on smartphones (zdnet, ghacks, etc). Wikipedia relates the following claim : "The creators of Swype predict that users will achieve over 50 words per minute.". I know that Swype was…
Franck Dernoncourt
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Can you detect a hidden camera in a trial room/changing room with your phone?

There's this message spreading virally over the internet: Read This Message.....!!!! How to Detect Hidden Camera in Trial Room? In front of the trial room take your mobile and make sure that mobile can make calls........ Then enter into the…
missingfaktor
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Does 5G pose health risks?

Among others, the website RadiationHealthRisks claims: Second, according to experts, because of the shorter length of millimeter waves (MMV) required by 5G to support the bandwidth, these shorter waves do not travel as far or through objects. This…
Christian
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Does radiation from sleeping next to your smartphone affect your brain patterns negatively?

Vivian Giang writes in Sleep Drives Metabolite Clearance from the Adult Brain: In fact, as part of Swart’s Neuroscience For Leadership class at MIT in April, she discussed the serious health consequences that come from neglecting shut-eye. Swart,…
Christian
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Can mobile phones be tracked when they're switched off?

Seeing as mobile phones aren't sending signals when switched off, is it possible to track a mobile phone when it's switched off? NSA growth fueled by need to target terrorists By September 2004, a new NSA technique enabled the agency to find…
Jan Vladimir Mostert
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Does immersing a wet phone in rice prevent it from dying?

There is a tale spreading around about people who have supposedly resuscitated their cell phones using bags of rice after dropping them in water or otherwise getting them soaked. The supposed science behind this is that the rice will "help soak up…
asteri
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Does home-WiFi expose you to less radiation than using the 3G on your cell-phone?

Are there any studies that compare WiFi and cellular data usage, in the home, over time? Mainly I've heard that WiFi uses more battery (so it should emit more radiation) but OTOH it feels like 3G/cellular needs to use higher power to reach the…
Macke
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Does mandatory registration of SIM cards reduce terrorism?

Like a number of other countries, Pakistan is no longer allowing the usage of unregistered SIM cards for mobile…
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Do cellphone towers cause health issues?

Yesterday I got a request to install a cellphone tower on my building. The company is going to pay me fair amount but I heard that cell tower radiations cause some serious health issues. Are they safe? Related Questions: Do mobile phones have…
user2551549
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Is talking and driving more dangerous than any other type of distraction?

Are there any studies that demonstrate that talking on a cell phone is more dangerous than any other type of distraction? Yes, it seems clear that talking on a cell phone is a distraction, but for the number of laws passed, I would expect that it…
Russell Steen
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Are smartphones, keyboards, and tablets more contaminated with Staphylococcus aureus than a public toilet seat?

Source: How clean is your iPad? – a “Which?” hygiene investigation We use them every day while eating lunch or a snack, but new Which? research has revealed tablets, smartphones and keyboards may have more bacteria lurking on them than an office…
Carlo Alterego
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