Don't talk and drive

Cell phone users should take no comfort in the availability of hands-free sets for cars: they're no safer.

A study of cellphone use by motorists suggests that they aren't any better off using a headset in the car than holding the phone to their ear: They're still four times more likely to end up in a crash and injured than if they weren't using the phone.

It's just not credible to expect your mind to be alert to road hazards while it's concentrating on the social (and other) content of a conversation -- as one of the researchers said, "Your brain can only perform so many tasks at once."

(via the Huffington Post)

Update: See Click & Clack's section on Drive Now, Talk Later for more arguments against use of cell phones in the car, with both scientific and anecdotal evidence and a great set of bumperstickers.