Have you bumped or crashed into something hard enough to cause a bruise or require a trip to the auto body shop?
Do you struggle to recall what life was like before receiving the all-in-one communication, entertainment and source-of-knowledge device that fits in the palm of your hand?
Could there be a connection?
If you're like most people, you recognise the haze of distraction that captures other people but you don't think you're a likely victim.
Take distracted walking, the practice of moseying around your habitat or down the street with your eyes transfixed by your smartphone.
More than 75 per cent of people surveyed said distracted walking was a "serious" issue, according to a survey by the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, but almost as many said it was "other people" who blundered about in an oblivious state.
A lot of distracted walking incidents fall into the almost-comical "Oops, pardon me" category, but the surgeons group says the number of emergency room visits by injured distracted walkers doubled with the rise in smartphone use between 2004 and 2010.
Distracted driving of all sorts killed at least 3179 people last year. But all the attention paid to the deadly consequences in recent years hasn't stopped people from whipping out their smartphones.
A recent survey by the insurance company State Farm found that fewer people are talking on their phones while driving than they were in 2009. But the percent who are text-messaging went up five points to 36 per cent, and the number using an internet function more than doubled to 29 per cent.
Both surveys reveal the addictive quality or Pavlovian response that comes with devotion to smartphones, almost a damn-the-danger attitude that many people can't escape.
The surgeons' survey found that 90 per cent of people say they see people walking around glued to their phones, with 64 per cent describing those distracted walkers as totally "zoning out".
But only 38 per cent of them admit to being zoned out themselves, a percentage that might be challenged by the evidence at almost any street corner.
Alan Hilibrand, a surgeon who is a spokesman for the group, cites estimates that 60 per cent of pedestrians are preoccupied with their smartphones.
Why do they continue to do it? People said they feel confident with multitasking or are too busy and want to be productive.
"Many of us simply need to force ourselves to set down our devices and focus on what's in front of and around us," Hilibrand said.
The same sort of numbers pop up in the State Farm survey.
THE RESULTS
- Everyone says sending text messages while driving is distracting, but 36 per cent of people say they do it.
- 21 per cent say they read social media while driving and 16 per cent they update their status.
- 19 per cent say they take photos while driving.
- 29 per cent say they access the internet on a phone behind the wheel.
"It's interesting to observe how the number and types of distractions available on cellphones has grown over the years we have conducted this annual survey," said Chris Mullen, who directs technology research for the insurance company.
If there is good news to be found in the State Farm survey, it is that people are less likely to pay attention to their smart phone when driving if it's icy, snowy, foggy, rainy, dark or they're in a school or construction zone.
But 48 per cent of people said they are just as likely or more likely to use them on a high-speed highway or interstate.