Jake+Rossen

While smartphones have become popular among adults， they can also be found in a rising number of adolescent1 pockets. According to a study， 78 percent of American children between 12 and 17 had phones； in another survey， 10 is now the average age for children acquiring their first device.

雖然智能手機已在成人中普及，但在越來越多的青少年的口袋中也能找到智能手機。一項研究調(diào)查結(jié)果表明，12至17歲的美國兒童中的78%擁有手機；另一個調(diào)查則發(fā)現(xiàn)，10歲是如今兒童獲得他們的第一個手機的平均年齡。

For parents， smartphones are useful： Theyre a way to keep track of their childs location， and they satisfy the peer comparison that often accompanies a request for a mobile device. But in creasingly， experts are cautioning that adults who equip kids with easy access to social media and instant communication may be creating more problems than they solve.

對于父母來說智能手機是有用的：它們是追蹤孩子所在位置的一種方式，而且滿足了孩子同齡人之間攀比所帶來的對移動設(shè)備的需求。但越來越多的專家警告說，那些為孩子提供容易訪問的社交媒體和即時通信設(shè)備的家長會制造出比解決的問題更多的問題。

Jesse Weinberger， an internet safety expert， believes that parents are missing some key issues when thinking over phone usage.

互聯(lián)網(wǎng)安全專家杰西·溫伯格認為父母們在思考手機使用的問題時缺乏對一些關(guān)鍵問題的考慮。

“My general rule is not to give a phone to someone younger than a freshman in high school， 13 or 14，” Weinberger says. “Theres a lack of critical thinking prior to that. Theyre missing impulse control and they believe whatever they see.”

“我的一般規(guī)則是不要給比高一新生還小的，比如13歲或14歲的孩子們手機，”溫伯格說，“在那之前他們?nèi)狈ε行运季S。他們無法控制沖動，他們相信他們看到的一切?！?/p>

While these issues are present on the internet regardless of how its accessed， Weinberger believes the easy reach of a smartphone creates a far different atmosphere.

盡管這些問題存在于互聯(lián)網(wǎng)上，不論是通過什么方式訪問互聯(lián)網(wǎng)的，溫伯格認為智能手機的上網(wǎng)便捷性創(chuàng)造了一種截然不同的氛圍。

Weinberger points out that social media has become so popular that authority2 figures make a common oversight. Applications like Facebook are technically not meant to be accessible to those under 13 years old， yet children bypass simple birthday checks without a second thought. The apps are then used to help show their social standing by measuring followers and likes.

溫伯格指出，社交媒體變得如此受歡迎，因而引發(fā)了權(quán)威人士的共同監(jiān)督。應(yīng)用程序，比如臉譜網(wǎng)，在技術(shù)上不允許13歲以下的孩子訪問，但孩子們能輕而易舉地繞過簡單的生日驗證。然后他們用這些應(yīng)用程序統(tǒng)計他們的追隨者和喜歡的網(wǎng)頁來幫助顯示他們的社會地位。

“Kids lie，” Weinberger says. “Eighty percent of kids will raise their hand when I ask if they have Instagram. They have three or four accounts， three to four e mail addresses. Parents have no idea whats going on.”

“孩子會撒謊，”溫伯格說?！爱?dāng)我問他們是否有‘照片分享應(yīng)用時，百分之八十的孩子會舉起手。他們有三到四個帳戶，三到四個電子郵件地址。然而父母們并不知情?！?/p>

Physiologically3， Weinberger notes that back lit devices used before bed can often disrupt4 circadian5 sleep rhythms； checking email can lead to an event called “email apnea6，” where we subconsciously7 hold our breath and refresh pages to see if any fresh communication has come in. In developing bodies， that could be dangerous. There are reasons known and not yet known why smartphones can prove hazardous8.endprint

從生理上來說，溫伯格指出，睡覺前使用背光照亮的設(shè)備往往會擾亂晝夜睡眠的生物鐘；檢查郵件會導(dǎo)致“電子郵件暫停呼吸”，即我們下意識屏住呼吸并刷新頁面，看是否有新的通信來了。這對還在成長的身體可能會造成損傷。各種已知和未知的原因都能夠證明智能手機是有害的。

In the end， parents will have to make their own determination whether their child is capable of handling a smartphone responsibly， or if they might be better served to equip them with a so called“dumb” phone9 with limited internet and app capabilities. Regardless， Weinberger believes that setting limits on its usage and educating children is key.

最后，家長們必須做出自己的決定，確認他們的孩子是否能可靠地使用智能手機，或者為他們配備一個聯(lián)網(wǎng)和應(yīng)用程序功能有限的所謂的“笨”手機（非智能機）是否會更好。不管怎樣，溫伯格認為，限制孩子手機的使用和教育孩子才是關(guān)鍵。

When it comes to safety， the question isnt really when a child is ready for a phone. The question is， when is the parent ready？

當(dāng)說到安全使用手機時，問題不在于孩子什么時候才適合開始用手機，而在于父母什么時候做好了讓孩子用手機的準(zhǔn)備。

Notes：

1. adolescent [ ] n. 青少年 2. authority [ ] n. 權(quán)威；權(quán)力

3. physiologically [ ] adv. 生理學(xué)方面

4. disrupt [ ] vt. 破壞；使陷于混亂 5. circadian [ ] adj. 生理節(jié)奏的

6. apnea [ ] n. [醫(yī)]窒息，[臨床]呼吸暫停

7. subconsciously [ ] adv. 潛意識地

8. hazardous [ ] adj. 有危險的；冒險的

9. dumb [ ] adj. 啞的，無說話能力的； dumb phone 非智能機endprint