Smartphones have come to dominate the lives of many people who own them, as the phone and its apps becomes the central organiser of their lives: The Australian, October 20, 2017, p. 11.
This article summarises research that indicates that this dependency upon smartphone technology weakens the intellect in numerous ways. For example, the ringing of the phone during demanding tasks led to people not optimally performing on those tasks. If they were unable to answer the phone, problem-solving skills diminished. In laboratory tests with groups of students, with their visible ringing phone, cognitive ability crashed.
In general, smartphones produce a ‘brain drain” diminishing: “learning, logical reasoning, abstract thought, problem solving and creativity.”
I am sure that there is no conspiracy here, that the designers of smartphones did not know that this dumbing down would occur, and set out to make devilish devices to do it. It was simply fortuitous that it occurred. The Dark Lords of Mordor have an uncanny ability to throw sixes every time on their loaded dice.