More on Wireless Librarian

[Stacy Pober]

Interesting how Eric responds not by citing any research that
establishes microwave radiation as safe, but by ridiculing the
possibility.  Derision isn't particularly satisfactory as evidence of
safety.

There's a difference between deciding something is safe after tests have
been done and assuming it is safe.  The fact that wireless LANS have
some similarity to cell phones is not at all comforting, even if I were
to believe that the radiation from cell phones was devoid of risk. 
Similarity is not a guarantee of safety (hey, carbon and oxygen aren't
dangerous  - I guess that means carbon monoxide must be safe!)

As to Park's book, I haven't read it but there was an interesting
comment in an otherwise favorable review of Voodoo Science in the Boston
Globe: 

"Oddly, he spends almost no time on what is perhaps the most pernicious
force in derailing the sort of science he applauds: that more and more
work is being funded by corporations interested only in positive
results. He touches on this problem when it intersects with favorite
stories, but ignores the fact that the whole system is becoming more and
more tightly controlled by people who are looking not for knowledge but
for salable products. Which is to say that his position is one of a
skeptic, but one operating from within the current American
establishment."

The history of x-rays and the early disregard for possible adverse
effects of ionizing radiation doesn't really give reasonable folks
reason for confidence that safety will be the first concern when there
is a buck to be made.  At one time, fluoroscopes were used as a sales
gimmick in shoe stores (people were encouraged to x-ray their feet to
check the fit of the shoes.)

Bottom line: I don't think the studies on the safety for wireless LANs
should be done in vivo using ME as one of the test subjects!

Stacy


Eric Hellman wrote:
> Well, you can also worry about carcinogens present in bindery glue,
> too, not to the mention the possibility of small children being
> choked by untidy 10-baseT cabling.
> 
> How many people are killed every year by collapsing bookcases?
> 
> Try reading some of the studies on this cell-phone stuff. The cancer
> rates are in the noise, swamped by real effects like cigarette
> smoking. Meta-studies find things, but don't consider the fact that
> medical journals won't publish a result that says that cell-phone use
> or whatever reduces the rate of cancer. The conclusion of the studies
> is always that a bigger, more expensive study is needed to confirm
> the results. Very often, the studies fail to find logical things like
> dose-response correlations.
> 
> I'm a bit biased, but Robert Park has a very nice book called "Voodoo
> Science" http://my.linkbaton.com/isbn/0195135156 in which he talks
> about the lousy science done addressing supposed cancers caused by
> power lines.
> 
> Eric
> 
> >Am I the only neo-Luddite in the bunch that is worried about the
> >possible adverse health effects of the microwave radiation involved with
> >wireless networking?
> >
> >Maybe the official story is that 'jury's still out' with regard to the
> >risks from both wireless LANs and cell phones, but there's already
> >enough evidence to give me pause.
> >
> >There's an article by Charles Moore discussing this issue.  It's
> >available online at Macworld:
> >http://macopinion.com/columns/roadwarrior/99/12/09/
> >
> >Here's a quote:
> >"Apple's new AirPort networking system operates in the 2.4 GHz Frequency
> >band at an output power of 15 dBm, while cellphones use the 800MHz to
> >1.9 GHz band. The power output level of cellular phones can range from
> >0.006 of a watt to 0.6 of a watt for handheld units and three to six
> >watts for portable units. 2.4 GHz is even farther into microwave
> >territory than the cellphone frequencies, and people will be exposed to
> >emissions from wireless LANs for much longer periods of time than all
> >but the most addicted cellphone users. Could the cumulative effect
> >ultimately be as bad or worse? I'd like to know before I invest in
> >wireless networking capability."
> >
> >Other info on health effects of non-ionizing radiation can be found at
> >Microwave News:
> >http://www.microwavenews.com
> >
> >I suspect this is one of those technologies where the health effects
> >will not be known until after most of us have become the 'guinea pigs'.
> >There's already plans for using wireless networking in one part of a new
> >library addition being constructed on our campus.  I am not happy about
> >this.  ("Do you need to talk to the librarian?  She's the one over there
> >wearing the tinfoil hat...")
> >
> >--
> >Stacy Pober
> >Information Alchemist
> >Manhattan College Libraries
> >spober at manhattan.edu
> >http://www.manhattan.edu/library/
> 
> Eric Hellman
> Openly Informatics, Inc.
> http://www.openly.com/           21st Century Information Infrastructure
> LinkBaton: Your Links that Learn     http://my.linkbaton.com/

-- 
Stacy Pober, Information Alchemist
Manhattan College Libraries
spober at manhattan.edu
http://www.manhattan.edu/library/