Imagine a scenario where a group of friends sits down at a restaurant, and instead of talking, they pull out their phones and text or plays games instead of talking to one another.

This scenario has become socially acceptable because students are obsessed with cellphones and social media.

Accessing social media is like trying to get coffee every day. It’s an addiction that can’t be stopped.

According to the Pew Research Center 91 percent of Americans own a cellphone, while 58 percent of Americans own a smartphone.

Most students can’t go for several minutes without checking their smartphones for messages or posts on social media. The average cellphone user checks their phone 150 times a day, according to ABC News Online.

Social media and cellphone addiction is so severe that people prioritize keeping up to date over personal safety.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 25 percent of young adults reply to at least one text message every time they drive. Twenty percent report they have had multi text message conversations while driving.

Social networking is now the most common activity on the Internet. Sixteen percent of time spent online is used for social networking sites, while 5 percent is spent on shopping sites like Amazon, according to Fox Business Online.

Students are obsessed with social media, and having a phone that can instantly connect to sites like Facebook and Twitter feeds that obsession. Sixty percent of social media time was spent on smartphones or tablets.

Students or their parents spend money on data plans so they can be on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter. Regardless of the means, the end is the same: as soon as one person is on a social media site, friends will follow suit.

As long as Facebook, Twitter and other social media networks continue to exist, students won’t stop using them. It’s how we communicate now.

Talking person to person will not be the norm anymore. It will be an oddity.