Finland tells parents to monitor childrens' mobile use

Rather like the findings of the UK's Stewart Report, ­Finland's Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority (STUK) says there's no evidence that mobile phones are dangerous to health but tells parents to restrict children's mobile phone use until all the effects are known. It suggests sending text messages instead of making voice calls and says children should be taught to use hands-free devices. [Sources: Finland.fi; stuk.fi (Finnish)]

Mobile Phone Throwing championships won by dog

The 9th international Mobile Phone Throwing World Championships took place in Estonia last week with, perhaps unsurprisingly, Estonians winning the men's and women's categories. The men's champion was Timmo Lilium who threw a phone for 85 metres, while Valeria Kadorova won the women's championship with a throw of 36 meters. 12-year-old Finn Riku Kankkunen threw 55 metres in the junior category, while Cara the dog won the freestyle category with a maximum 6 points. [News release]

Send a text to spend a penny

Finland's equivalent of the UK Highways Agency has started locking roadside toilets in isolated areas to prevent vandalism. However, customers can still use them, thanks to text messages. All you do is text the Finnish word for “open” to a special code and the door will unlock automatically. Mobile numbers will be stored for a short while, which will increase the possibility of tracing any vandals. The service is charged as a standard text message. [Source: Cellular-News.com]