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Is this a cure for cellphone addicts behind the wheel? Think competition and prizes

Miami Herald
December 6, 2018

If you’re ready to admit your cellphone addiction is out of control and it’s only a matter of time before your distracted driving behavior leads to an accident, you should try breaking bad habits with a mobile app that promises to make you a better, safer driver.

That’s a tall order in Miami, where preoccupied phone junkies cause 12.2 accidents per day — all preventable if they had just kept their eyes and concentration on the road.

Going cold turkey, which means turning off the phone or disabling texts and calls while you’re driving, doesn’t seem to be effective.

“It’s really hard for people to put down their phones because they are engineered to keep you attached to them,” said Sam Madden, an MIT computer science professor. “You get hooked on likes and social feedback, or you’re stressed out at work and need to know right now if someone responded to your email. The phone is constantly creating and presenting little rewards.”

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