EL SEGUNDO HERALD July 20, 2017 Page 3 Community Briefs The Jewelry Source 337 Main St. El Segundo. 310-322-7110 www.jewelrysourceUSA.com ©2007 Getting women into trouble, and men out of it, Smartphones from front page Burkley Brandlin Swatik & Keesey LLP AT T O R N E Y S AT L AW Lifetime El Segundo Residents Living Trusts/Wills, Probate, Employment Law, Personal Injury Trust and Estates Litigation, Business Litigation, Civil Litigation 310-540-6000 *AV Rated (Highest) Martindale - Hubbell / **Certified Specialist Estate Planning, Trust & Probate Law, State Bar of California, Board of Legal Specialization Douglass since 1984 MORTUARY “Our Family Serving Yours Since 1954” B U R I A L - C R E M AT I O N - W O R L DW I D E T R A N S F E R P E T M E M O R I A L P RO D U C T S 500 EAST IMPERIAL AVENUE EL SEGUNDO, CALIFORNIA 90245 Te l e p h o n e ( 3 1 0 ) 6 4 0 - 9 3 2 5 • F a x ( 3 1 0 ) 6 4 0 - 0 7 7 8 • F D 6 5 8 City of El Segundo Seeks Resident Input on Short-Term Rentals The topic of short-term rentals will come before the El Segundo City Council in the near future. To get the process rolling, representatives from the City’s Planning Division, Business License and Revenue Division, Police and City Attorney are looking to create the best balance of monitoring, enforcement and taxation on the one hand—and ease of participation and cost on the other. Residents who wish to weigh in on the matter can take a survey available on the City’s home page (www.elsegundo.org). Participants are asked if they have used Air Bnb, VRBO, HomeAway or other short-term rental site while on vacation or on business for lodging rather than staying at a hotel; if they have considered offering their home as a short-term rental to vacationers or businesspeople; if they know of any short-term rentals within El Segundo and if any of those are located on their block or behind their residence; if they consider the short-term rentals to be a problem; if short-term renting of homes to vacationers and businesspeople should be allowed in El Segundo; and if the City should require a permit to conduct a short-term rental. – Source: City of El Segundo Reduced Traffic Lanes Aviation, 33rd Street and Vista del Mar The SoCalGas Loop project on Aviation, Rosecrans, and Vista Del Mar is close to completion, and the tie-in operation is scheduled to start at 5 a.m. today, Thursday, July 20, and continue until the tie-in is completed. The tie-in locations are Aviation Boulevard and 33rd Street and Vista Del Mar in front of the NRG power plant. The estimated time required to complete the tie-in will be approximately 20 hours, but may potentially last longer. Traffic lanes will be temporarily reduced in the immediate construction zone. Public use, including emergency access of the street will still be available at all times. Contact: Rosa María Santana via 24-Hour Media Hotline: 213-244-2442; socalgas. com/newsroom; @SoCalGasNews. Customer Contact Center 24 hours a day, seven days a week at 800-427-2200. – Source: City of El Segundo that so much connectivity has a consequence. “Although these devices have immense potential to improve welfare, their persistent presence may come at a cognitive cost.” Previous research in this area demonstrated that smartphones are distracting, so lead researcher Adrian Ward designed two experiments to test “how dependence on these devices affects the ability to think and function in the world off-screen. In the experiments, Ward and his team ask participants to do one of three things with their phones: place them on the desk and within plain view; place them in a pocket or purse; or store them in a separate room. The UT-Austin team set out to discover if the devices caused “brain drain”--aka the ability think clearly and concentrate. It turns out that smartphones have gotten into people’s heads, or their psyches, more specifically. That was the conclusion of the UT-Austin team that reported that the presence of a smartphone negatively affects the owner’s ability to think, solve problems, and concentrate. Even if they’re not using their phones, the students experienced “brain drain,” according to Ward’s research. The closer the phone, the greater the disturbance too. Some of the takeaways from the 2017 study confirm what educators, parents and business leaders have suspected about the pros and cons of smartphones on campuses, in society, and at on-site workplaces. Placing a smartphone face down on a desk doesn’t reverse the “brain drain” effect, the Texas researchers found. Neither does turning off the phone except when the device is placed in another room. Ward and his team concluded that separating the user from the device may be the only way to help people to focus better and be less distracted. One possible explanation why distance breaks the device’s hold over one’s attention is that 89 percent of people with smartphones experience “phantom vibrations,” feeling as though their phones are vibrating even when they’re not. A 2012 paper published in the journal Computers in Human Behavior described the false-positive as a “recent psychological phenomenon that has attracted the attention of the media and medical community.” The Indiana University researchers, like the UT-Austin group, looked at the smartphone habits of college students. The phantom vibrations typically happened once every two weeks, the collegians reported. Another possible reason: poor decision-making caused by the distraction of a smartphone. This was a finding from a 2014 study by a team at the University of Pittsburgh. Like much of the cell and smartphone research done before this year, the Pittsburgh team wondered how smartphone use affected behavior. Not all decision-making by the tech users was good. In fact, the findings were a mixed bag: some bad, some good. While the researchers identified a connection between mobile device use and poor decisionmaking for simple, routine decisions, they noted that decision-making improved when a person took advantage of the technology as an assistant to research and compare opinions and options before taking any action. In the UT-Austin study, students whose phones were in another room scored higher on tests of memory, focus and problem-solving than did their fellow students whose phones were placed in a desk nearby. The conclusion? That the presence of a smartphone nearby seemed to affect the brain’s ability to function, even when a person isn’t consciously thinking about the device. Researchers asked the students if they believed their test scores were influenced by whether their phones were turned on, off, or close by. The majority didn’t think it mattered. There’s a popular notion that people can concentrate on more than one task or thought at a time. However “multitasking,” as it’s known, has its doubters. There is growing research suggesting that multitasking can actually reduce productivity because the brain is forced to jump back and forth between tasks rather than simultaneously focusing on two things. Neurobiologists, psychologists and social scientists have begun to delve into the longer-term effects of living in a state of near-constant multitasking. Jim Taylor, who teaches at the University of San Francisco, says that multitasking is nearly impossible and an excuse for doing too much. The concept was created “to make overly scheduled and stressed-out people feel productive and efficient,” Taylor said. It’s only possible to multitask if one of the tasks is so “automatic” that it requires no focus or thought. For example, stirring a pot of gravy and carrying on a phone conversation would qualify. Walking and eating is another pairing of a thoughtful activity with a no-brainer, he explained. Listening to music and reading is another. “… Because reading comprehension and processing instrumental music engage different parts of the brain. However, your ability to retain information while reading and listening to music with lyrics declines significantly because both tasks activate the language center of the brain,” said Taylor, who writes for Psychology Today and has published a parenting book for the digital age about preparing children for a mass media world. “The goal for parents is not to disconnect their children, but rather to expose them to popular culture and technology when they are developmentally ready,” he writes in “Raising Generation Tech: Preparing Your Children for a Media-Fueled World.” The goal--and challenge for parents of young children--is to equip them with what Taylor calls the “perspectives, attitudes and tools they need to thrive in this digital age.” The messages coming from Taylor and the UT-Austin team have a common theme, though they’re drawn from observations of children and young adults. There’s a proper time and a place for smartphones and mobile devices. Deciding when to allow them or institute a power-down rule is for parents, teachers and bosses to decide. • 3rd Annual El Segundo Art Walk Thursday, July 20 The Self-Guided Public Art Experience with Over 40 Artists in 35 Downtown Venues and Hundreds of Attendees. Presented by Hazawaytoday. On the third Thursday in June, July and August from 5-9PM, art enthusiasts and community members celebrate their love of art in the ever-evolving Smoky Hollow and Downtown neighborhoods of El Segundo. With many of the Art Walk activities taking place on Main and Franklin streets, visitors are encouraged to arrive early and stroll through the different exhibitions and pop-up galleries throughout the thriving community. Start your evening at the ESAW Headquarters (212 EUCALYPTUS DRIVE.), the visitor center for the Art Walk. Visitors can pick up maps, view and purchase art from uniquely curated exhibitions featuring local artists, sample beer from El Segundo Brewing Company and enjoy live music. The El Segundo Art Walk Headquarters is open from 5-9.30PM. 40+ Artists Include Chance Cooper, Sabrina Armitage, Carrie Dietz Brown, Scott McFarlane, Dane Capo, Paula Langstein and many more. 35+ Venues Include 212 Eucalyptus (HQ), Smoky Hollow Studios, Unita, Copper Willow Studios, ESMOA, Brewport, Masonic Center, Design Twins, Big Door, Create & Express, El Cuervo and many more. Masonic Center El Segundo High School students will take part in a special Teen Work Exhibit at the Masonic Center located at 520 Main Street. About Esaw The El Segundo Art is an organization that supports local community economic development through a variety of programs, which includes the self-guided “Art Walk” on the 3nd Thursday of each month. Our Mission is to improve the local community, to inspire culture and to create economic opportunities for artists, galleries, small businesses, and youth through our local programs. • Visit us online: www.heraldpublications.com
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