Inventor of First Mobile Phone Looks back, Thinks about Future
2023-03-01
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1The man who made the first call from a wireless phone is now 94 years old.
2The year was 1973. Martin Cooper operated a large, heavy new communication device on a street in New York City.
3The device was not physically connected to phone lines.
4But, Cooper was able to make use of it --- he called a technology business competitor.
5Fifty years later, the inventor says he hopes wireless phones can make life better but he also expresses some worries.
6"My most negative opinion is that we don't have any privacy anymore because everything about us is now recorded someplace," Cooper said.
7And, he says he is concerned about how easily young people can link to harmful online material on their cell phones.
8Cooper spoke with the Associated Press from Barcelona, Spain, where he attended the Mobile World Congress, the biggest telecom industry trade show.
9Cooper received an award there for his lifetime of work.
10Cooper says he is an optimist. He believes the technology's best days may still be ahead in areas such as education and health care.
11"Between the cellphone and medical technology and the internet, we are going to conquer disease," he said Monday, at the MWC.
12Cooper was working for Motorola when he used the Dyna-Tac phone to make a call in April 1973.
13Things have changed greatly since then.
14But, he said, "we had no way of knowing this was the historic moment."
15Cooper said there are still ways for the mobile phone to change.
16The first one he used weighed over 1 kilogram.
17Today, they are small.
18But he thinks one day, they will be more like a part of our body than something we hold.
19He said perhaps the human body can even power the phones.
20"The human body is the charging station, right," he asked.
21The body makes energy from food, he argues, so it could possibly also power a phone.
22Instead of holding the phone in the hand, for example, the device could be placed under the skin.
23Cooper said he also hopes there can be more protection for internet users concerned about privacy and for children.
24Speaking about privacy concerns, he said: "it's going to get resolved, but not easily."
25He also said there should be a special internet for children so they do not run into material made for adults.
26Cooper said the idea for the mobile phone came from a communication device used by the comic book character Dick Tracy.
27The imaginary detective had a wristwatch from which he could make phone calls.
28I'm Dan Friedell.
1The man who made the first call from a wireless phone is now 94 years old. 2The year was 1973. Martin Cooper operated a large, heavy new communication device on a street in New York City. The device was not physically connected to phone lines. But, Cooper was able to make use of it --- he called a technology business competitor. 3Fifty years later, the inventor says he hopes wireless phones can make life better but he also expresses some worries. 4"My most negative opinion is that we don't have any privacy anymore because everything about us is now recorded someplace," Cooper said. 5And, he says he is concerned about how easily young people can link to harmful online material on their cell phones. 6Cooper spoke with the Associated Press from Barcelona, Spain, where he attended the Mobile World Congress, the biggest telecom industry trade show. Cooper received an award there for his lifetime of work. 7Cooper says he is an optimist. He believes the technology's best days may still be ahead in areas such as education and health care. 8"Between the cellphone and medical technology and the internet, we are going to conquer disease," he said Monday, at the MWC. 9Cooper was working for Motorola when he used the Dyna-Tac phone to make a call in April 1973. Things have changed greatly since then. 10But, he said, "we had no way of knowing this was the historic moment." 11Cooper said there are still ways for the mobile phone to change. The first one he used weighed over 1 kilogram. Today, they are small. But he thinks one day, they will be more like a part of our body than something we hold. 12He said perhaps the human body can even power the phones. 13"The human body is the charging station, right," he asked. The body makes energy from food, he argues, so it could possibly also power a phone. Instead of holding the phone in the hand, for example, the device could be placed under the skin. 14Cooper said he also hopes there can be more protection for internet users concerned about privacy and for children. 15Speaking about privacy concerns, he said: "it's going to get resolved, but not easily." 16He also said there should be a special internet for children so they do not run into material made for adults. 17Cooper said the idea for the mobile phone came from a communication device used by the comic book character Dick Tracy. The imaginary detective had a wristwatch from which he could make phone calls. 18I'm Dan Friedell. 19Dan Friedell adapted this story for VOA Learning English based on a report by the Associated Press. 20________________________________________________________________________ 21Words in This Story 22negative -adj. centered on what is bad or unhopeful 23optimist -n. a person who is inclined to be hopeful and to expect good outcomes 24conquer -v. defeat 25comic book -n. a magazine that contains stories told in pictures mostly. 26wristwatch -n. an electronic timekeeping piece worn on the arm near the hand. 27___________________________________________________________________ 28We want to hear from you. How do you think the mobile phone will continue to change? 29We have a new comment system. Here is how it works: 30Each time you return to comment on the Learning English site, you can use your account and see your comments and replies to them. Our comment policy is here.