Smartphone withdrawal.

• Position: TECHNOLOGY - Brief article

If you feel naked without your phone, you're not alone. A recent study showed that people really do suffer "iPhone separation anxiety" if their phones aren't within reach--and that can hurt their performance on simple mental tasks. Researchers at the University of Missouri asked 40 people in their 20s to solve a word-search puzzle with their iPhones on them, even though they couldn't use them. The participants were then given a second puzzle, this time with their phones taken away but within earshot. A few minutes into the test, the researchers...