Friday, July 19, 2013

Cellphones in the Restroom

For reasons that I can't understand, too many people use their cellphones in restrooms. [*] I'm not talking about ringers going off when someone calls or texts a person, but rather that the phone is being used to talking/texting while the person is engaged in waste disposal. Standing at the urinal or sitting on the stool, it doesn't matter - too many people won't let go of that connectivity for even the few minutes that the nature break requires.

Sadly, chemists are now encouraging that trend. A new report shows that a microbial-based fuel cell using urine can be used to charge a phone in real time:
"During the [charging] operation, 2 outgoing calls were made, 2 text messages were received and 1 was sent, and Bluetooth was enabled for synchronising with another handset for file transfer."
No longer will we be unable to answer that call/text at the urinal because our phone battery is low; just empty your bladder and watch the meter climb. Thanks Science!


[*] Well, at least too many men. I cannot report on what occurs in women's restrooms. I hope that they have behave better than men.

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