Lately when I’m watching older TV shows and movies, I’m struck by the number of plots that just wouldn’t work today due to the prevalence of mobile phones and smart phones. The inability of one person to get in touch with another was a key tool in the toolbox of fiction writers everywhere. You don’t need Lassie to go get help when you can dial 911 on your mobile phone, unless you’re on AT&T, in which case your phone won’t work from the bottom of the well, or pretty much anywhere else.