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Oh, man, I completely tuned out in the 80s! I had a hard childhood and so there were many reasons not to listen to people around me. When those same people purchased for me a big headphone radio set, I was too pleased to wear it constantly.

It was tan-colored and bulky, with nice cushioned headband and earpieces. It was AM/FM with volume, tuning, and not much else. It was my closest companion for years.

I walked into a Denny's with my mom (the radio was off) and some guy took one look and said "How long until he goes deaf!" Ha-ha. But I valued my hearing, and listened at tolerable levels. Live rock concerts were a bigger hazard to my hearing.

I also had a cassette player Walkman clone and all sorts of earphones, headphones. I picked up a miniature LCD TV from Radio Shack so I could watch TV at night. Yep, definitely addicted to media from an early age and really tuned out.

Yet I also knew how to keep my wits about me. I didn't wear that stuff while I was bicycling or driving a car. Sure, I'd turn up the speakers, but I often had the windows down too. so I don't think my situational awareness on the road was impaired.

But it's definitely a temptation. It is just as easy to get in a wreck if you are fumbling for a cassette tape or trying to tune the radio in the console, especially if you're wearing headphones, as it would be in this day and age with a smartphone.

And I'm sure that medieval codex-readers stubbed their toes and walked into posts as well. Distraction is nothing new, it's simply been progressively weaponized and monetized.