"Amanda Lenhart" is a senior research specialist at the Pew Internet & American Life Project who resides in Washington, D.C. She has published numerous articles and research reports, many of which focus on teenagers and their interactions with the internet and other new media technologies.

More Amanda Lenhart on Wikipedia.

Clearly, most parents feel a bit overwhelmed.

People in their 30s are the ones who are doing this. They just have more stuff to sell, that's got a lot to do with it.

In many countries, the cell phone is viewed as the most basic piece of technical equipment, kind of like the way Americans view the computer, ... Just as some of us have multiple computers, some people have more than one cell phone.

It's obviously an evolving proposition. Two years ago, it was cell phones. Now you have something that can take a picture of a test and e-mail it to someone else.

Our sense from talking with these teens is that the Internet expands their network of friends. They keep in touch with people they normally would not because instant messaging can be a more casual way of talking with someone you met at summer camp or someone you have not seen in awhile.

Twenty-four percent, or 35 million, have participated in an online auction, either buying or selling. People are comfortable [with these sites].

Teens feel more comfortable online because it is not a physical world to them. While they may be exposed to advances or images they don't like, they don't feel that they will be physically harmed because they know how to block offensive users in chat and they believe it would be hard for predators to track them down.

Text messaging is popular for two reasons: It's mobile, and it's quiet.

There were definitely some teenagers who told me they'd been asked to rewrite papers.