Sixth sense protects you while driving, except when texting

New York, May 12: A sixth sense steadies drivers’ hands and helps them stay on track, even when they are absent-minded or emotiolly upset, except when they are engaged in texting on their mobile phones, a study says. In the study, 59 volunteers were asked to drive the same path of a highway four times under — ‘normal conditions’ of being focused on driving; while distracted with cognitively challenging questions; while distracted with emotiolly charged questions; and while pre-occupied with texting trivialities. The findings showed that when the participants drove in all the three situations — except under normal conditions — their hands became jittery while handling the wheels but the vehicle went on a straight path . “The driver’s mind can wander and his or her feelings may boil, but a sixth sense keeps a person safe at least in terms of veering off course,” said lead researcher Ioannis Pavlidis from University of Houston, in the US. (IANS)