A woman by the name of 'Sister Plaster' gives out envelopes containing plasters on Beijing subway to attract public attention to the harms of excessive cellphone use. The slogan on her T-shirt reads 'Take care of your necks, phubbing clan!' [weibo.com]

A woman nicknamed "Sister Plaster" caused an online sensation on August 15 by giving out small plasters to passengers on the Beijing subway and calling on people to refrain from using their cellphones too much.

By using the small, sticky first-aid essentials, she aimed to highlight the harm of "phubbing" to people's necks, an idea widely applauded by netizens.

"Phubbing," a playful noun amalgamating "phone" and "snubbing," has been coined to refer to the act of watching and keeping focus on one's cellphone, sometimes in an excessive manner ignoring the health risks involved. It has been a growing phenomenon in the East and West alike.

"Every time I take a subway, most people around me, the young and the old, are looking down at their phones," Sister Plaster wrote in her post. "Their necks would suffer in the long run…"

"As long as there remains the 'phubbing' clan, I'll keep moving on," she claimed.

A passenger scans the QR code on the plaster presented by the woman. [weibo.com]

(Source: China Youth Daily/Translated and edited by Women of China)

Editor: Eileen Cheng