Doctors not convinced of 'safe radiation'

Doctors not convinced of 'safe radiation'

TNN | Jul 19, 2013, 04.36 AM IST

KOLKATA: Top city doctors and researchers don't share the confidence of cellular operators or even government officials that there is no health hazards associated with mobile towers. They believe that stricter radiation norms need to be enforced and the industry needs to fund research on the subject.

According to Shyamal Kumar Sarkar, head of the department (Radiation Oncology), Medical College, the International Agency for Research on Cancer classified mobile-phone radiation under Group 2B or in the 'Possibly Carcinogenic' category. "We don't have any definite proof as yet. There are 4.5 lakh mobile towers in India and something that people should know is that they shouldn't use their cell phones for more than 10-24 minutes a day. A distance of 50-300 metres from a mobile tower falls within the high-radiation zone. India has higher exposure limits than many countries. Only time will tell the kind of damage that will take place. Monitoring agencies are more concerned about the thermal effects but the non-thermal ones are what we are more concerned about," he explained.

The doctor pointed to how Blood Brain Barriers, which are supposed to prevent the flow of toxins into the brain, are liable to get affected due to radiation. If the rate of damage to DNA is higher than the rate of DNA repaired, the risk of cancer increases. He also spoke of irreversible infertility and the risk to children.

"Many people complain of Tinnitus and Ringxiety. Such people have ear trouble and a constant ringing in their ears wakes them up in the middle of the night. Children and teenagers fall in the high-risk group. They are five times more susceptible to brain cancer if exposed to radiation. There have been studies that reveal how birds and insects have been affected due to radiation. Maybe, a bit of revaluation of test results on humans needs to be done," Sarkar said.

He was speaking at a workshop on electro magnetic fields and cellular telephony organized by the Bengal Chamber. Sarkar's figures were questioned by Vikram Tiwathia, ADG, Cellular Operators Association of India, who was the chairperson of the session. The audience didn't take too kindly to this reaction. Neither did Prof Bhaskar Gupta, electronics and telecommunication engineering department, Jadavpur University, like Tiwathia's attempts to refute the doctor.

"Conclusive evidence is not always available. Researchers are still not very sure what causes cancer or they would have succeeded in preventing the disease. This doesn't mean that the possible causes of cancer should be promoted. If possible, no chances should be taken," Gupta said.

According to Prof Bhabotosh Biswas, HOD, cardiothoracic vascular surgery, R G Kar Medical College and Hospital, palpitations are noticed if mobile phones are kept closer to the heart. "Along with disorders like burning and tingling sensation, fatigue, sleep disorder and dizziness, people complain of palpitations. Such people have no history of heart disease. Cell phones could be responsible. I have seen palpitations in people with mobile phones in their pockets. There is possibility that the brain is also affected. Till there is conclusive evidence, mobile phones should be kept away from the heart. The only way to reduce exposure is to reduce usage," he said.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/Doctors-not-convinced-of-safe-radiation/articleshow/21155256.cms

Cell Phone-Cancer Link to Be Revisited

Cell Phone-Cancer Link to Be Revisited

JUL 18, 2013 07:20 AM ET // BY PAUL GREENBERG

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KOHEI HARA/GETTY IMAGES

Renewed interest in whether prolonged cell phone use and exposure to radiation can cause cancer has caused the Federal Communications Commission to revisit the potential risks. In April, the FCC announced it's soliciting information from health experts on the current research.

Some scientists and consumer groups have been critical of the FCC, since it has not revised its standards for mobile devices since 1996.

Kerry Crofton, Ph.D., author of “A Wellness Guide for the Digital Age: With Safer-Tech Solutions for All Things Wired and Wireless,” believes that by not updating the industry standards for the past 17 years, the government has been lax in protecting the public.

“The BioInitiative Report 2012, an international group of scientists who reexamined these standards, did an exhaustive study of the evidence of a potential link between mobile phone use and brain cancer, as well as other concerns, and found flaws in the standards,” said Crofton, co-founder and executive director of Advisory Board Doctors for Safer Schools.

“There were very few cell phones in service back in 1996, and now, by some estimates, there are 5 billion globally," Crofton said. "The other concern is that the standards were based only on testing a 200-pound male mannequin, but the standards do not apply to more sensitive groups, such as children, pregnant women and teens.”

Current research has delved far more deeply into the potential risks. David Gultekin, a researcher at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York, is conducting research into Specific Absorption Rates (SAR) of radiation into brain tissue via cell phone radiation.

“This needs further study, but what we know right now is that it is heavily absorbed by brain tissue,” said Gultekin. “Radiation penetrates the brain and gets absorbed. It also causes the temperature of the tissue to rise. We also know that absorption is not uniform throughout the brain, that there are hot spots that cause variations in energy inside the tissue.”

Gultekin says his research represents the first time absorption is measured in real brain tissue. The  methods FCC approved in 1996 for wide certification of cell phones was not derived from research that penetrated the tissue to measure absorption.

This leaves researchers and epidemiologists to wonder: Is there a direct correlation between SAR of radiation and disease, such as brain cancer?

“Brain cancer can take 20 to 30 years to develop,” said Crofton, so the concern with having the FCC not up to date on its standards and not responsive to the science is that by the time regulators wake up to the facts there could be a global health crisis.”

Crofton draws comparisons with the delayed response to the asbestos problem in America. “It took a hundred years for regulators to respond to that crisis, but the threat from not just cell phones, but WiFi networks and cell towers is immediate and widespread,” she said.

Both Gultekin and Crofton see an urgent need for the FCC to update its standards for mobile devices.

Recently President Obama chose former telecommunications industry lobbyist Tom Wheeler to head the FCC. Reaction to his nomination has been mixed, with some saying his appointment would make American telecommunications more competitive. Others are concerned that he is too closely associated with the industry to be depended upon to update standards for certification of mobile devices.

“The FCC chairman in June called for further investigation,” said Crofton. “Scientists were solicited to send in data, but nobody is very hopeful that much change is going to take place. This could just be a public relations exercise.”

http://news.discovery.com/tech/gear-and-gadgets/do-cell-phone-safety-standards-need-upgrade-1307171.htm

Floral signs go electric

Floral signs go electric

Press release issued 21 February 2013

Bees and flowers communicate using electrical fields, researchers discover

Various flowers (top: Geranium magnificum; middle: Gerbera hybrida; bottom: Clematis armandii) showing a composite of immediately before and after application of charged powder paint. The pattern of powder deposition reveals the shape of the electric field. Image by Dominic Clarke and Daniel Robert

Flowers' methods of communicating are at least as sophisticated as any devised by an advertising agency, according to a new study, published today in Science Express by researchers from the University of Bristol.  However, for any advert to be successful, it has to reach, and be perceived by, its target audience.  The research shows for the first time that pollinators such as bumblebees are able to find and distinguish electric signals given out by flowers.

Flowers often produce bright colours, patterns and enticing fragrances to attract their pollinators.  Researchers at Bristol's School of Biological Sciences, led by Professor Daniel Robert, found that flowers also have their equivalent of a neon sign – patterns of electrical signals that can communicate information to the insect pollinator.  These electrical signals can work in concert with the flower’s other attractive signals and enhance floral advertising power.

Plants are usually charged negatively and emit weak electric fields.  On their side, bees acquire a positive charge as they fly through the air.  No spark is produced as a charged bee approaches a charged flower, but a small electric force builds up that can potentially convey information.

By placing electrodes in the stems of petunias, the researchers showed that when a bee lands, the flower’s potential changes and remains so for several minutes.  Could this be a way by which flowers tell bees another bee has recently been visiting?  To their surprise, the researchers discovered that bumblebees can detect and distinguish between different floral electric fields.

Also, the researchers found that when bees were given a learning test, they were faster at learning the difference between two colours when electric signals were also available.

How then do bees detect electric fields?  This is not yet known, although the researchers speculate that hairy bumblebees bristle up under the electrostatic force, just like one’s hair in front of an old television screen.

The discovery of such electric detection has opened up a whole new understanding of insect perception and flower communication.

Dr Heather Whitney, a co-author of the study said: "This novel communication channel reveals how flowers can potentially inform their pollinators about the honest status of their precious nectar and pollen reserves."

Professor Robert said: “The last thing a flower wants is to attract a bee and then fail to provide nectar: a lesson in honest advertising since bees are good learners and would soon lose interest in such an unrewarding flower.

"The co-evolution between flowers and bees has a long and beneficial history, so perhaps it's not entirely surprising that we are still discovering today how remarkably sophisticated their communication is."

The research was supported by the Leverhulme Trust.

Paper

'Detection and learning of floral electric fields by bumblebees' by Dominic Clarke, Heather Whitney, Gregory Sutton and Daniel Robert in Science Express

http://www.bristol.ac.uk/news/2013/9163.html

HAARP Facility Shuts Down

HAARP Facility Shuts Down

TAGS: air force, Alaska, amateur radio club, hams, ionospheric research, keeney, naval research laboratory, research

07/15/2013

The High Frequency Active Auroral Research Program (HAARP) — a subject of fascination for many hams and the target of conspiracy theorists and anti-government activists — has closed down. HAARP’s program manager, Dr James Keeney at Kirtland Air Force Base in New Mexico, told ARRL that the sprawling 35-acre ionospheric research facility in remote Gakona, Alaska, has been shuttered since early May.

“Currently the site is abandoned,” he said. “It comes down to money. We don’t have any.” Keeney said no one is on site, access roads are blocked, buildings are chained and the power turned off. HAARP’s website through the University of Alaska no longer is available; Keeney said the program can’t afford to pay for the service. “Everything is in secure mode,” he said, adding that it will stay that way at least for another 4 to 6 weeks. In the meantime a new prime contractor will be coming on board to run the government owned-contractor operated (GOCO) facility.

HAARP put the world on notice two years ago that it would be shutting down and did not submit a budget request for FY 15, Keeney said, “but no one paid any attention.” Now, he says, they’re complaining. “People came unglued,” Keeney said, noting that he’s already had inquiries from Congress. Universities that depended upon HAARP research grants also are upset, he said.

The only bright spot on HAARP’s horizon right now is that the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is expected on site as a client to finish up some research this fall and winter. DARPA has nearly $8.8 million in its FY 14 budget plan to research “physical aspects of natural phenomena such as magnetospheric sub-storms, fire, lightning and geo-physical phenomena.”

The proximate cause of HAARP’s early May shutdown was less fiscal than environmental, Keeney said. As he explained it, the diesel generators on site no longer pass Clean Air Act muster. Repairing them to meet EPA standards will run $800,000. Beyond that, he said, it costs $300,000 a month just to keep the facility open and $500,000 to run it at full capacity for 10 days.

Jointly funded by the US Air Force Research Laboratory and the US Naval Research Laboratory, HAARP is an ionospheric research facility. Its best-known apparatus is its 3.6 MW HF (approximately 3 to 10 MHz) ionospheric research instrument (IRI), feeding an extensive system of 180 antenna elements and used to “excite” sections of the ionosphere. Other onsite equipment is used to evaluate the effects.

Larry Ledlow, N1TX, of Fairbanks, Alaska, said HAARP ionosonde and riometerdata have been “invaluable, especially being more or less local, to understand current conditions in the high latitudes.” He said data from other sites “simply do not accurately reflect the unique propagation we endure here.”

To fill the gap, Ledlow said, several members of the Arctic Amateur Radio Club — including Eric Nichols, KL7AJ, author of Radio Science for the Radio Amateur and articles in QST — have discussed building their own instruments. “It’s all very preliminary,” he said, “but we really feel the pinch losing HAARP.” Nichols, of North Pole, Alaska, has conducted experiments at HAARP. He called the shutdown “a great loss to interior Alaska hams and many others.”

The ultra-high power facility long has intrigued hams, even outside of Alaska. In 1997, HAARP transmitted test signals on HF (3.4 MHz and 6.99 MHz) and solicited reports from hams and short-wave listeners in the “Lower 48” to determine how well the HAARP transmissions could be heard to the south. In 2007 HAARP succeeded in bouncing a 40 meter signal off the moon. Earlier this year, HAARP scientists successfully produced a sustained high-density plasma cloud in Earth’s upper atmosphere.

As things stand, the Air Force has possession for now, but if no other agency steps forward to take over HAARP, the unique facility will be dismantled, Keeney said. He pointed out that it would cost less to bulldoze the antenna field than it would to replace the 180 antenna elements.

Splashy web postings abound, blaming HAARP for controlling the weather — most recently in the case of Hurricane Sandy and the spate of tornados — and for causing other natural disasters. Quipped Keeney, “If I actually could affect the weather, I’d keep it open.”

http://www.arrl.org/news/haarp-facility-shuts-down

Clause allowing installation of cell towers at all places removed

Clause allowing installation of cell towers at all places removed

Mihika Basu : Mumbai, Thu May 30 2013, 05:30 hrs

THE department of telecommunications (DoT) has removed a clause from its model guidelines that allowed installation of cellphone towers at all locations, irrespective of land use.

The clause was contrary to a BMC draft policy banning new cellphone towers on hospital and school premises.

Minister of state for communications and IT and shipping Milind Deora said the guidelines were advisory, not a binding policy.

"I have also asked my ministry to review the land-use clause. The clause relates to agricultural versus non-agricultural land but as it has created concern among people, I asked my department to explain the rationale. I told them if it is not a critical clause, it can be dropped," he said.

The guidelines for issue of clearance for installation of mobile towers were to become effective on June 1 but Deora has instructed his ministry to consider delaying finalisation of model guidelines for municipalities and panchayats till discussions are held with members of civil society.

"Government of India does not have the powers to make guidelines binding on local bodies. It is up to states/municipalities/panchayats to apply own wisdom and frame rules. I can only hope they will take into account our concerns and suggestions. In fact, I would urge activists in Mumbai to pressure municipal councillors to get BMC to adhere to our advisory," he said.

Deora said he had asked his department to hold meetings with credible residents in Mumbai and Delhi and consider their suggestions.

"We are open to suggestions and we want this to be a strong advisory. We have to be careful to consult credible activists and experts, not those with commercial interests."

The developments come after South Mumbai residents wrote a strongly-worded letter to Deora on May 26 alleging opinions of citizens were ignored in framing the model guidelines.

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/clause-allowing-installation-of-cell-towers-at-all-places-removed/1122630/

Obesity epidemic caused by EMF exposures in the home according to startling new research

Obesity epidemic caused by EMF exposures in the home according to startling new research

Thursday, July 11, 2013 by: Lloyd Burrell
Tags: obesity epidemic, dirty energy, electropollution

(NaturalNews) Two-thirds of the U.S. population is overweight, and about one-quarter to one-third of adults are obese. Fact. Poor diet and a lack of exercise are at fault, the experts say. But what if the cause of this epidemic was something even more insidious? What if that which is considered the lifeblood of our modern day lives, electricity or more precisely dirty electricity, was really to blame?

The answer to these questions is an unequivocal yes. At least according to Samuel Milham, MD, MPH, author of an alarming new study on the link between obesity and exposure to dirty electricity (a form of electromagnetic field pollution).

According to Dr. Milham's study just published in Electromagnetic Biology and Medicine, EMFs (in the form of dirty electricity), are contributing not only to obesity, but to a myriad of other health concerns which plague Americans in today's disease-ridden society.

Dr. Milham found evidence of the link between dirty electricity exposures and obesity and diabetes through analyzing worldwide health metric data. He noticed that many small islands known for having the highest BMIs (marker for obesity), worldwide in addition to the highest incidence of diabetes did not draw their energy supply from an electrical grid. An alternative source of energy was commonly used, a diesel generator set, known to be a major source of dirty electricity.

What is dirty electricity?

Dirty electricity, defined as electrical pollution contaminating the electrical grid, stems from the use of many commonplace items found in or around the home but also from the poor design of our electrical distribution system. As Dr. Milham says "the high obesity levels in the US is not surprising, because the U.S. uses the earth as the major conduit for neutral return currents."

Studies show the human body suffers adverse affects at a cellular level from this constant exposure to dirty electricity. Combine this with the fact that there are actually more overweight and obese people living in the United States than people who are living within a healthy weight range and Dr. Milham's conclusions start to make sense.

Electricity and the diseases of civilization

In his book Dirty Electricity: Electrification and the Diseases of Civilization, Dr. Milham reveals that as electricity spread throughout the United States in the 20th century, so did other diseases of civilization including:

• ADHD
• Suicide
• Cancer
• Obesity
• Asthma
• Diabetes
• Cardiovascular disease

Affected populations

Is it a coincidence that locations utilizing less electricity have the lowest levels of these exact same diseases? Unlikely.

When comparing the levels of exposure to dirty electricity between the Amish and non-Amish populations the findings cannot be ignored. The Amish people are well-known for their lack of dependency on electrical power. The upshot is a population with half the rate of diabetes and cancer and virtually no obesity or ADHD.

Other recent findings stemming from a reduction of or less exposure to dirty electricity found:

• The number of children requiring albuterol (asthma inhalers) decreased from 37 to only three in one U.S. schoolhouse.
• A lower risk of cancer for California middle-school teachers.

How to reduce exposure

Utility companies should be made to face up to their responsibilities. Supplying consumers with a highly polluted electricity supply which puts populations at considerable risk of harm is not acceptable.

Householders need to act to protect their home and work environment as much as possible. By eliminating certain devices in the home which contribute to this problem, and introducing capacitive filters, many home and work environments can be effectively cleaned up.

Sources for this article include:

http://www.sammilham.com/

http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/guidelines/obesity/BMI/bmicalc.htm

http://informahealthcare.com/doi/abs/10.3109/15368378.2013.783853

About the author:
Lloyd Burrell is the author of a new ebook entitled "How To Beat Electrical Sensitivity" which offers a solution to the growing number of people whose health is being compromised by exposure to wireless and similar technologies, see www.electricsense.com/3-free-chapters.html

Since falling prey to a violent reaction to his cell phone in 2002 he has spent the last 10 years researching the effects of electromagnetic fields (EMFs) on health. He now offers a complete solution on how to live a healthy life in our increasingly electromagnetic world.

You can download his free EMF Health Report and subscribe to his newsletter by visiting his website http://www.electricsense.com/. You can also follow him on Facebook , Twitter and Youtube.

Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/041147_obesity_epidemic_dirty_energy_electropollution.html#ixzz2ZN1zULK9

Can you be electrocuted by your smartphone?

By Brandon Griggs, CNN

July 16, 2013 -- Updated 1859 GMT (0259 HKT) | Filed under: Gaming and Gadgets

Filed under: Gaming and Gadgets

Your video will begin momentarily.

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

       Incident in China raises concerns about smartphones and safety

       Reports: Woman died of electric shock last week after answering call on her iPhone

       The death of Ma Ailun, 23, was reported Sunday by China's Xinhua News Agency

       Her family said she collapsed after using her phone while recharging the battery

(CNN) -- Could your smartphone really give you a lethal electric shock?

That question was on the minds of many Monday amid news thatApple is investigating the death of a woman in China whose family said she was electrocuted after answering a call on her iPhone while the device was recharging.

The death of Ma Ailun, 23, was first reported Sunday by China's Xinhua News Agency. Citing police reports and social media posts by Ma's family, Xinhua reported that Ma, who lived in China's western Xinjiang region, collapsed to the floor Thursday after using her iPhone 5 while the battery was being charged.

"We are deeply saddened to learn of this tragic incident and offer our condolences to the Ma family. We will fully investigate and cooperate with authorities in this matter," Apple said in a statement sent to CNN and other news agencies.

Details of Ma's death remain sketchy. Local police confirmed that Ma died of electrocution, but as of Sunday had yet to verify that her phone was involved in the incident, Xinhua reported. CNN has not been able to independently confirm the report.

But the news raises questions about the potential electrical hazards of devices many of us carry at almost all times.

Experts say the likelihood of someone being electrocuted by a smartphone, even while the device is charging, is very, very low. For one, phones charged from a USB cord have a supply voltage of about 5 volts, not enough to severely harm a person.

"We have seen very few incidents related to shock or electrocution (involving cell phones)," said Scott Wolfson, communications director for the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. "Most of our attention has been on overheating, smoke or fire."

But the risks become greater when someone powers a phone with a substandard or incompatible charger. Some knockoff chargers don't have proper insulation, potentially exposing users to overheating, fire or electric shock. In a recent online post, the China Consumers Association warned about that country's market being flooded with counterfeit chargers that could potentially turn a phone into a "grenade."

"Stick to the company that made your phone when you're buying replacement products," Wolfson said.

It's not clear what kind of charger Ma was using, although her sister said she had bought her phone in December at an official Apple store and was using the original charger to recharge the device when the incident occurred, according to a post on Sina Weibo, a Chinese microblogging site that is similar to Twitter.

Mixing smartphones with water is another safety concern. Ma's family said online that she left the bath to answer the phone. Water is an excellent conductor of electricity, and moisture on the skin can lower a person's natural resistance to electric shock, experts say.

Also, electrical shocks involving consumer electronics often have nothing to do with the devices themselves. Instead, they can be caused by overloaded power outlets, frayed extension cords or faulty wiring in a home, experts say.

Wolfson said American consumers have reported a few isolated cases of phones smoking or catching fire while recharging. When it comes to cell phones and safety, the majority of problems have involved phone batteries that burst or catch fire under heat or pressure, he said.

"This is not the week to leave your cell phone in the car," said Wolfson, referring to the heat wave that's embroiled much of the country.

Still, he said, "it is a rare occurrence for there to be a safety incident with a cell phone."

http://edition.cnn.com/2013/07/15/tech/gaming-gadgets/iphone-woman-electrocuted/index.html?sr=sharebar_facebook