Horns are growing on young people's skulls. Phone use is to blame, research suggests.

[DonViejo]

Researchers at the University of the Sunshine Coast in Queensland, Australia, have documented the prevalence of bone spurs at the back of the skull among young adults. (Scientific Reports)

By Isaac Stanley-Becker June 20 at 4:40 AM

Mobile technology has transformed the way we live — how we read, work, communicate, shop and date. But we already know this.

What we have not yet grasped is the way the tiny machines in front of us are remolding our skeletons, possibly altering not just the behaviors we exhibit but the bodies we inhabit.

New research in biomechanics suggests that young people are developing hornlike spikes at the back of their skulls — bone spurs caused by the forward tilt of the head, which shifts weight from the spine to the muscles at the back of the head, causing bone growth in the connecting tendons and ligaments. The weight transfer that causes the buildup can be compared to the way the skin thickens into a callus as a response to pressure or abrasion.

The result is a hook or hornlike feature jutting out from the skull, just above the neck.

In academic papers, a pair of researchers at the University of the Sunshine Coast in Queensland, Australia, argues that the prevalence of the bone growth in younger adults points to shifting body posture brought about by the use of modern technology. They say smartphones and other handheld devices are contorting the human form, requiring users to bend their heads forward to make sense of what’s happening on the miniature screens.

more
https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2019/06/20/horns-are-growing-young-peoples-skulls-phone-use-is-blame-research-suggests/

[Amishman]

1. To be clear, it is the posture of using a phone that does it, not the phone signal

[LanternWaste]

5. You thought the paper was unclear on that?

[Codeine]

8. The other thread on this had multiple comments

speculating about cell phone radiation. The paper - and your post - is quite clear, but many (most?) DUers never read past the headline.

[Achilleaze]

2. republicans accept full blame for Horned Humans

If it hadn't a been for degenerate republican values like lying, grifting, sexual predation, whiney victimy mewling, and outright betrayal of the USA, this never would have started happening. Everyone agrees. Republicans and their darkside buddies are to blame.

[sl8]

3. The horned ones are now among us?

Last edited Thu Jun 20, 2019, 12:06 PM - Edit history (1)

Huh. Maybe I need start taking all those ancient prophesies more seriously.

[Delmette2.0]

4. On the serious side,

it is a bone spur. My son had one on his elbow, the one he leaned on most of the time. It hurt like crazy when he fell and broke the bone spur.

Our bodies react to physical stress like carpel tunnel, why would this be a big surprise?

[NightWatcher]

6. Because people never looked down before.

This is spurious and not much more

[customerserviceguy]

7. But how long did it take to read a newspaper?

An hour, max? Haven't we seen people whose faces are nearly constantly glued to their smartphones?

[Codeine]

9. Bone spur-ious, perhaps? nt