‘Cellphones can’t cause explosion at petrol stations’

Co-founder of Apple Computer, Steve
Wozniak, has dismissed the long-held
belief that the use of mobile phones at
petrol stations could cause explosions.
Wozniak, who was the guest speaker at
a leadership seminar organised by MTN
in Port Harcourt on Friday, described
the claim as ridiculous.
The American inventor, electronics
engineer and computer programmer,
who was reacting to questions from
participants at the event, said the
mobile phones do not have the capacity
to cause any harm in such an
environment.
Wozniak maintained that the radiation
in any cellphone was low and not
capable of causing fire outbreak.
He added that no research from
engineers and inventors had given
contrary results.
"It is ridiculous to say that cellphones
should not be used in filling stations.
The radiation in any cell phone is not
much; the radiations in cellphones are
so low and cannot cause any harm in
fuel stations. I have not discovered it in
my research," Wozniak told his
audience.
Wozniak, who also disclosed how he met
his late friend, Steve Jobs, said he
initially worked with Hewlett-Packard
before setting up a company with Jobs.
Explaining that he became a genius in
computer programming because he was
always competing with himself, Wozniak
urged would-be inventors to look for
inventors and learn how they started.
The world-renowned inventor expressed
optimism that the computer would
solve the problem of teaching, saying,
"The world is looking for the best
teacher and I hope that one day, the
computer will be able to solve the
problem of teaching.
"The computer will one day be the
answer and could become the best
teacher in literature, cooking, chemistry,
etc. For you to be an inventor, it is
necessary for you to look for people
who have built things."