3 Weird Ways To Use Your Smartphone

Thanks to smartphone technology, we’re able to tap into a new, exciting world of possibilities that let us increase productivity. That said, smartphones can also do some relatively weird things that might blow your mind.

Avoiding the Law

No one wants to see sirens in his or her rearview mirror. Now, thanks to smartphone technology, people can escape tickets by utilizing the iPhone app, Trapster, which allows users to submit speed trap locations to over 10 million users.

Warding Off Teenagers

As we age, our ears lose the ability to sense certain sound frequencies. Now, thanks to smartphone technology, you can take advantage of this to ward off annoying teenagers. The iPhone app “Annoy-a-Teen” emits an irritating high-frequency tone which goes unnoticed by most adults. Silent to you, but incredibly irritating to loud, obnoxious teens, this app might be a great way to get the kids out of the house; so you can enjoy some peace and quiet. Treating Pain

Treating Pain

It may sound far-fetched, but some medical professionals believe that smart phones can be used to treat chronic pain. A study out of Norway recently put this theory to the test by recruiting 140 women to participate in a program which used smartphone intervention as a coping tool. Over a month-long period, subjects received therapist feedback through their smartphones, while also keeping diaries using these devices. At the conclusion of the study, researchers say the smartphone intervention appeared to help subjects with catastrophizing and acceptance issues.

While this study suggests that smartphones might help some people better accept their unrelenting pain; it’s not clear whether it would offer much help to people who owe their pain to a specific, treatable physical condition. According to Dr. Paul Hahn, who treats patients suffering from temporomandibular joint disorder, treatment should always be the main focus, when it comes to alleviating chronic pain.

“Counseling and intervention are useful tools for treating vague or untreatable chronic pain,” he said. “In some cases, patients may have no choice but to live with their pain, when no cause can be found or no treatments are available. On the other hand, most of the time, health care professionals can take steps to alleviate pain by offering effective treatments. That said, there’s no doubting that intervention has its merits.”

A recent study appears to support Hahn’s assertion. After looking over medical records associated with nearly 5 million patients who were treated at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Healthcare System, researchers found that chronic pain drastically increased a person’s risk of suicide. Interestingly, however, this was only the case when patients and doctors were unable to clearly identify a cause and prescribe and effective treatment.

Ultimately, this revelation appears to suggest that intervention could save lives; and smartphone technology may offer an easier way to reach more people in need.

Unlimited Potential

While some use smartphones to escape the fuzz; others use them to help others. Whatever the case, thanks to their ability to utilize apps, these devices seem to hold seemingly endless possibilities that could pave the way for a mind-boggling future.