Local council bans mobile masts
Kent County Council has banned all mobile phone masts from its properties because of fears about radiation omissions, and is believed to be the first council to be working towards a complete ban within its boundaries.
Antony Savvas, Network News, Network IT Week 31 Jan 2001
Kent County Council (KCC) has banned all mobile phone masts from its properties because of fears about radiation omissions, and is believed to be the first council to be working towards a complete ban within its boundaries.
KCC said it took the decision following the publication of last year's Stewart report into the possible health risks posed by mobile masts and mobile phones. Council leader Sandy Bruce-Lockhart said: "We take very seriously the findings of the Stewart report [which] called for a 'precautionary approach'."
The council has demanded that mobile operators request planning permission for all masts, even though existing planning law dictates that they only have to request permission if a mast is taller than 15m.
As the landlord of council property, KCC said it is entitled to turn down all requests and is appealing to school governors to do the same where they have jurisdiction.
It is also asking district councils within its boundary to turn down requests where they have jurisdiction, and is seeking the support of private landlords.
Many cash-strapped councils have already allowed masts on their property and are locked into contracts, but KCC's response to the new masts could be replicated up and down the country, posing serious problems for the mobile industry as it seeks to build completely new third-generation networks.
Another weapon set to be used against the mobile companies is the Human Rights Act. Solicitors acting for those opposed to masts claim the Act allows councils to turn down planning applications for masts, even though there is no scientific evidence linking the masts to human health risks.
Social Security staff in east London recently threatened industrial action over the location of masts on their building, and the plan was subsequently shelved.
First published in Network News
Showing posts with label mobile phones. Show all posts
Showing posts with label mobile phones. Show all posts
Saturday, July 21, 2007
Mobile Phones Are Dumbing Down The Population
MOBILE PHONES 'DUMBING DOWN BRAIN POWER'
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/07/13/nbrain113.xml
The Telegraph
By Ben Quinn
Last Updated: 1:16am BST 15/07/2007
Telegraph technology blogs
An over reliance on technology is leading to a dumbing down of the nation’s brain power, according a study published today.
How could I ever live without you?
In a society flooded with mobile phones, Blackberry devices and computers of various shapes and sizes, a quarter of all Britons do not know their own landline number while as little as a third can recall more than three birthdays of their immediate family.
The research reveals that the average citizen has to remember five passwords, five pin numbers, two number plates, three security ID numbers and three bank account numbers just to get through day to day life.
Six out of ten people claimed that they suffer from “information overload,” stating that they need to write these numbers down in order to remember them.
However, more than half of the 3000 people surveyed admitted to using the same password across all accounts, leaving them at risk of potentially severe security breaches.
Professor Ian Robertson, a neuropsychology expert based at Trinity College Dublin who carried out the study, said: “People have more to remember these days, and they are relying on technology for their memory.
“But the less you use of your memory, the poorer it becomes. This may be reflected in the survey findings which show that the over 50s who grew up committing more to memory report better performance in many areas than those under 30 who are heavily reliant on technology to act as their day to day aide memoir.”
Professor Roberston, who oversaw the research to mark the launch of Puzzler Brain Trainer Magazine, said that a series of five simple exercises a day can help to increase memory capacity.
Other results of the two month study indicated that the majority (58 per cent) of the population wrongly believes that they are incapable of remembering the myriad of numbers and codes which they use in everyday life.
As many as a third of those surveyed under the age of 30 were unable to recall their home telephone number without resorting to their mobile phones or to notes.
When it came to remembering important dates such as the birthdays of close family relatives, 87 per cent of those over the age of 50 could remember the details, compared with 40 per cent of those under the age of 30.
Men came off worse than women. Only 55 per cent of men could remember their wedding anniversary, compared to 90 per cent of women.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/07/13/nbrain113.xml
The Telegraph
By Ben Quinn
Last Updated: 1:16am BST 15/07/2007
Telegraph technology blogs
An over reliance on technology is leading to a dumbing down of the nation’s brain power, according a study published today.
How could I ever live without you?In a society flooded with mobile phones, Blackberry devices and computers of various shapes and sizes, a quarter of all Britons do not know their own landline number while as little as a third can recall more than three birthdays of their immediate family.
The research reveals that the average citizen has to remember five passwords, five pin numbers, two number plates, three security ID numbers and three bank account numbers just to get through day to day life.
Six out of ten people claimed that they suffer from “information overload,” stating that they need to write these numbers down in order to remember them.
However, more than half of the 3000 people surveyed admitted to using the same password across all accounts, leaving them at risk of potentially severe security breaches.
Professor Ian Robertson, a neuropsychology expert based at Trinity College Dublin who carried out the study, said: “People have more to remember these days, and they are relying on technology for their memory.
“But the less you use of your memory, the poorer it becomes. This may be reflected in the survey findings which show that the over 50s who grew up committing more to memory report better performance in many areas than those under 30 who are heavily reliant on technology to act as their day to day aide memoir.”
Professor Roberston, who oversaw the research to mark the launch of Puzzler Brain Trainer Magazine, said that a series of five simple exercises a day can help to increase memory capacity.
Other results of the two month study indicated that the majority (58 per cent) of the population wrongly believes that they are incapable of remembering the myriad of numbers and codes which they use in everyday life.
As many as a third of those surveyed under the age of 30 were unable to recall their home telephone number without resorting to their mobile phones or to notes.
When it came to remembering important dates such as the birthdays of close family relatives, 87 per cent of those over the age of 50 could remember the details, compared with 40 per cent of those under the age of 30.
Men came off worse than women. Only 55 per cent of men could remember their wedding anniversary, compared to 90 per cent of women.
Sunday, July 15, 2007
Study Shows Glial Cells Affected By Cell Phone Radiation
Glial cells, commonly called neuroglia or simply glia (greek for "glue"), are non-neuronal cells that provide support and nutrition, maintain homeostasis, form myelin, and participate in signal transmission in the nervous system. In the human brain, glia are estimated to outnumber neurons by about 10 to 1.[1]
Glial cells provide support and protection for neurons, the other main type of cell in the central nervous system. They are thus known as the "glue" of the nervous system. The four main functions of glial cells are to surround neurons and hold them in place, to supply nutrients and oxygen to neurons, to insulate one neuron from another, and to destroy pathogens and remove dead neurons.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glial_cell
Toxicology. 2007 May 26; [Epub ahead of print]
Effect of an acute 900MHz GSM exposure on glia in the rat brain: A time-dependent study.
Brillaud E, Piotrowski A, de Seze R.
INERIS, Unité de Toxicologie Expérimentale, Parc Technologique ALATA, BP no. 2, 60550 Verneuil-en-Halatte, France.
Because of the increasing use of mobile phones, the possible risks of radio frequency electromagnetic fields adverse effects on the human brain has to be evaluated. In this work we measured GFAP expression, to evaluate glial evolution 2, 3, 6 and 10 days after a single GSM exposure (15min, brain averaged SAR=6W/kg, 900MHz signal) in the rat brain. A statistically significant increase of GFAP stained surface area was observed 2 days after exposure in the frontal cortex and the caudate putamen. A smaller statistically significant increase was noted 3 days after exposure in the same areas and in the cerebellum cortex. Our results confirm the Mausset-Bonnefont et al. study [Mausset-Bonnefont, A.L., Hirbec, H., Bonnefont, X., Privat, A., Vignon, J., de Seze, R., 2004. Acute exposure to GSM 900MHz electromagnetic fields induces glial reactivity and biochemical modifications in the rat brain. Neurobiol. Dis. 17, 445-454], showing the existence of glial reactivity after a 15min GSM acute exposure at a brain averaged SAR of 6W/kg. We conclude to a temporary effect, probably due to a hypertrophy of glial cells, with a temporal and a spatial modulation of the effect. Whether this effect could be harmful remains to be studied.
PMID: 17624651 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]
Glial cells provide support and protection for neurons, the other main type of cell in the central nervous system. They are thus known as the "glue" of the nervous system. The four main functions of glial cells are to surround neurons and hold them in place, to supply nutrients and oxygen to neurons, to insulate one neuron from another, and to destroy pathogens and remove dead neurons.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glial_cell
Toxicology. 2007 May 26; [Epub ahead of print]
Effect of an acute 900MHz GSM exposure on glia in the rat brain: A time-dependent study.
Brillaud E, Piotrowski A, de Seze R.
INERIS, Unité de Toxicologie Expérimentale, Parc Technologique ALATA, BP no. 2, 60550 Verneuil-en-Halatte, France.
Because of the increasing use of mobile phones, the possible risks of radio frequency electromagnetic fields adverse effects on the human brain has to be evaluated. In this work we measured GFAP expression, to evaluate glial evolution 2, 3, 6 and 10 days after a single GSM exposure (15min, brain averaged SAR=6W/kg, 900MHz signal) in the rat brain. A statistically significant increase of GFAP stained surface area was observed 2 days after exposure in the frontal cortex and the caudate putamen. A smaller statistically significant increase was noted 3 days after exposure in the same areas and in the cerebellum cortex. Our results confirm the Mausset-Bonnefont et al. study [Mausset-Bonnefont, A.L., Hirbec, H., Bonnefont, X., Privat, A., Vignon, J., de Seze, R., 2004. Acute exposure to GSM 900MHz electromagnetic fields induces glial reactivity and biochemical modifications in the rat brain. Neurobiol. Dis. 17, 445-454], showing the existence of glial reactivity after a 15min GSM acute exposure at a brain averaged SAR of 6W/kg. We conclude to a temporary effect, probably due to a hypertrophy of glial cells, with a temporal and a spatial modulation of the effect. Whether this effect could be harmful remains to be studied.
PMID: 17624651 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]
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