About the Author: This 4th semester Mass Communication student is in big trouble, she's still unsure of what she wants to do after graduating! Loves writing but also needs to consider her incurable addiction to theatre. Aspires to be successful and to enjoy whatever she ends up doing.

Belinda Hon delves into what is soon becoming a pandemic.

When I make plans for a friends' night out, I expect a simple two things; easy conversation and a good time. Everything's fine and dandy and my fairly elementary expectations are met (usually).

Then one of my friends whips out his iPhone.

And the minute this happens, it seems to me his social skills turn to mush. He becomes immersed in his online applications; Facebook, Twitter, foursquare - and any attempt to make conversation past this point is futile.

The only responses you'll get are grunts and the occasionally "oh yeah" (I could have more thrilling conversations with my bowl of dessert). It's as if mobile internet steals away my friend's ability to form full sentences, what more actual opinions and if any of you have friends with iPhones, you probably know what I'm talking about.

And of course, like birds of a feather, the rest of my friends follow suit; someone whips out his Blackberry and the other a HTC model. With just a few taps on their touch screens, my once well-versed dinner companions become mindless, internet-trolling members of the undead. I'm a fan of zombies but not the ones that are glued to their phones.

I am left there, the lone survivor of a pandemic that is spreading faster and wider than any zombie infection, feeling irritated and mildly disrespected. I mean, if I wanted silence, I'd go to a library.

Their internet surfing is bearable for the first three minutes, but after awhile, it feels like a slap in the face. I remember there was one point (after about fifteen minutes) when I was very tempted to exclaim; "Oh, I'm sorry, am I not enough entertainment for you?"

See, when I was brought up, you were apprehended for texting at dinner or when there was company. You were to pay full attention to the company you had, show them interest. I never understood why until only recently; in the presence of others, it really is kind of stuck up to keep yourself engaged in something closed off such as, oh I don't know, a mobile phone.

Call me a traditionalist, but I believe friends are supposed to do things together; not convene at a certain location and then go about doing your own thing. If that's the case, we might as well have all just stayed at home and held an online conference on Skype.

Then again, I don't use a smart phone. My Nokia doesn't even have the MMS function. So, to some extent, you could say I don't understand how addictive these things can get. Regardless; something is obviously wrong if people prefer virtual company more than a night out with close friends.

Mobile internet is a great way to stay up to date, but zombies don't really make good dinner companions. You should ponder that the next time you decide to check up online when you have company.