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EMFacts Blog

    • 05 FEB 16

    A non-thermal bio-effect: EMR From Cellphone Towers May Amplify Pain in Amputees

    Electromagnetic Field From Cellphone Towers May Amplify Pain in Amputees

    Neuroscience News February 3, 2016

    Open Neuroscience Articles

    For years, retired Maj. David Underwood has noticed that whenever he drove under power lines and around other electromagnetic fields, he would feel a buzz in what remained of his arm. When traveling by car through Texas’ open spaces, the buzz often became more powerful.

    “When roaming on a cellphone in the car kicked in, the pain almost felt like having my arm blown off again,” said Underwood, an Iraq War veteran who was injured by an improvised explosive device (IED). His injuries have resulted in 35 surgeries and the amputation of his left arm. Shrapnel from the IED also tore part of his leg and left him with more than 100 smaller wounds. “I didn’t notice the power lines, cellphones on roam or other electromagnetic fields until I first felt them in my arm.”

    Until a recent study led by researchers at The University of Texas at Dallas was published online last month in PLOS ONE, there was no scientific evidence to back up the anecdotal stories of people, such as Underwood, who reported aberrant sensations and neuropathic pain around cellphone towers and other technology that produce radio-frequency electromagnetic fields.

    “Our study provides evidence, for the first time, that subjects exposed to cellphone towers at low, regular levels can actually perceive pain,” said Dr. Mario Romero-Ortega, senior author of the study and an associate professor of bioengineering in the University’s Erik Jonsson School of Engineering and Computer Science. “Our study also points to a specific nerve pathway that may contribute to our main finding.”
    SNIP

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    • 04 FEB 16

    Science for Sale by David Lewis: recommended reading

    Following a similar vein as the last blog message,”Report from the Science and Wireless 2015 event in Australia” the 2014 book, Science For Sale by David Lewis PhD is relevant reading. The sub title is:

    How the US government uses powerful corporations and leading universities to support government policies, silence top scientists, jeopardize our health, and protect corporate profits.

    However the title would be just as accurate if it alternatively read: How powerful ‘US corporations use the government, etc’- considering the “revolving door” between corporate America and the government where govt. agencies are effectively given over to corporate control in exchange for large election donations. If it was in a 3rd World country it would be condemned as outright corruption. In the USA however, its just accepted as business as usual…

    From the book:

    The government hires scientists to support its policies; industry hires them to support its business; and universities hire them to bring in grants that are handed out to support government policies and industry practices. Organizations dealing with scientific integrity are designed only to weed out those who commit fraud behind the backs of the institutions where they work. The greatest threat of all is the purposeful corruption of the scientific enterprise by the institutions themselves. The science they create is often only an illusion, designed to deceive; and the scientists they destroy to protect that illusion are often our best…

    Review by Robert F. Kennedy Jr.:

    “David Lewis has been a beacon of integrity against the apocalyptical forces of ignorance and greed endeavoring to divert science from the noble pursuit of truth and pervert it into a tool that supports the most destructive policies of industry and government.”

    Read more →
    • 30 JAN 16

    Report from the Science and Wireless 2015 event in Australia

    This, must read, report analyzing the various presentations from SCIENCE & WIRELESS 2015 was prepared for the Pandora Foundation and for the Kompetenzinitiative by Dariusz Leszczynski, PhD, DSc (biochemistry) & Kirsti Leszczynski, PhD (physics). Science and Wireless 2015 was hosted at the RMIT University in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, on December 8, 2015.
    Excerpt:

    Dariusz concludes in part:

    Unfortunately, enthusiastic opinion of the Science & Wireless event has vanished. The S&W events organized in 2014 at the Wollongong University and in 2015 at the RMIT have not much to do with the community interaction between scientists, industry and users. S&W events in 2014 and 2015 were just presentations of science by scientists for the benefit of the industry. The real users of wireless technology, some of whom are concerned with possible/probable health risks, were clearly marginalized in 2014 and 2015. The community participants had no presentations to express their views and opinions and the opportunity to voice opinions in the discussion was severely limited by the time constraints. As of now, the Science & Wireless event cannot be called anymore a ‘Community Interaction’ event.

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    • 29 JAN 16

    Screens Versus Brains: Are We Robbing Our Children Of The Ability To Think?

    Here’s an interesting article sent in by Richard Giles. It is written by Sue Palmer who writes and speaks about child
    development and education in the modern world. Her concerns mirror those of of Baroness Susan Greenfield on IT’s impacts on children

    Don
    ****************************************
    Have you been in a primary school classroom recently? Did you notice that a large white screen has replaced the old-fashioned blackboard? And have you any idea how much of the day the children spend staring at it? In the classrooms I’ve visited, the ‘interactive whiteboard’ features in almost every lesson. Children sit, with blank zoned-out faces, staring at brightly coloured shapes and figures zooming around the screen……”As children engage in more screen activity, they definitely read less – and the effect is likely to be permanent…..Ultimately, screen images render the printed word simply boring, at a crucial phase when the child’s
    brain and mind are developing. SNIP

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    • 24 JAN 16

    Did CELLRAID do ‘volkswagen’ to the telecom industry?

    From Dariusz Lesczcynski’s blog “Between a Rock and a Hard Place”:

    Jan 22, 2016

    Excerpt:

    Did a small Finnish company, CELLRAID, Ltd, do ‘volkswagen’ to the telecom industry by showing lack of compliance? In this story, for the first time, are shown measurements results indicating that placing a cell phone in a pocket might cause radiation exposures higher than permitted by the current safety standards.
    SNIP

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    • 20 JAN 16

    Reducing occupant exposure to EMFs in residential construction: Avoiding AC magnetic field EMFs – Free CE Webinar

    January 20 @ 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm EST

    This webinar is the next in the 5 part series, ” Reducing occupant exposure to EMFs in residential construction” where each member of our panel of experts will present an entire hour on each specific type of EMF. Catch part 1 here as on-demand recording if you missed it.
    First to be discussed is AC magnetic fields. This is the type of EMF you think of when you hear the words, “electromagnetic field”. It has four common sources: separation of conductors carrying current loads, such as overhead power lines; unbalanced electric loads on adjacent hot and neutral conductors; current on grounding paths, including metal water pipes and TV cable sheathing; and point sources, such as transformers and motors.
    Yet, magnetic fields are only one component of a duality of fields present wherever electricity exists, the other being electric fields. Electric fields will be discussed in a separate webinar.
    SNIP

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    • 14 JAN 16

    NCRP Nixed Cell Phone Safety Advice Told CDC To Delete Cautionary Recommendation

    From Microwave News

    Excerpt

    The National Council on Radiation Protection, an organization chartered by the U.S. Congress, pressured the Centers for Disease Control to remove any reference to “caution” in its fact sheet on the use of cell phones. The NCRP was disturbed by the interpretation that CDC was endorsing “precaution.”

    SNIP

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    • 13 JAN 16

    ‘Smart’ Meters Represent Industrial Profiteering and Government Sanctioned Surveillance, New Study Says

    From a new post on Smart Grid Awareness

    Excerpt

    Posted on January 11, 2016 by SkyVision Solutions
    by K.T. Weaver, SkyVision Solutions

    Consumer Dataveillance by Smart MetersIn an article from December 31st, I wrote that ‘Smart’ Meters Generate a ‘Gold Mine of Data’ for Utilities and that they provide a ‘gateway’ to the home.

    To better understand the full nature of this “data gold mining” and the motives behind it, I will highlight portions of a newly published paper, “The Neoliberal Politics of ‘Smart’: Electricity Consumption, Household Monitoring, and the Enterprise Form.” The authors are from Portland State University.

    As we have previously observed, utility smart meters expose the consumer and society to tremendous threats and risks. To those who objectively study the issues, it is almost incomprehensible at to why our government officials continue to allow utility smart meter deployments. The latest paper, published this past November, offers additional insight for the underlying reasons of why smart meter deployments persist in spite of the dangers.
    SNIP

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    • 11 JAN 16

    EHS paper published in Reviews on Environmental Health

    David O. Carpenter
    Institute for Health and the Environment, University at Albany, 5 University Place, A217, Rensselaer, NY 12144, USA

    Abstract
    Microwave generating equipment first became common during World War 2 with the development of radar. Soviet bloc countries reported that individuals exposed to microwaves frequently developed headaches, fatigue, loss of appetite, sleepiness, difficulty in concentration, poor memory, emotional instability, and labile cardiovascular function, and established stringent exposure standards.
    SNIP
    There is increasing evidence that the “microwave syndrome” or “electro-hypersensitivity” (EHS) is a real disease that is caused by exposure to EMFs, especially those in the microwave range. The reported incidence of the syndrome is increasing along with increasing exposure to EMFs from electricity, WiFi, mobile phones and towers, smart meters and many other wireless devices.
    SNIP

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    • 17 DEC 15

    Finnish education professor’s warning: Wireless technology in schools may lead to a global epidemic of brain damages.

    From Agenta Jonsson who has been in contact with Finnish professor Rainer Nyberg. The following is a current update from a Jan 14, 2014 interview with Professor Rainer Nyberg

    Finnish education professor’s warning: Wireless technology in schools may lead to a global epidemic of brain damages.
    “We must protect children and youth more than we do today.”

    Yle Arenan. Yle Nyheter, Finland Jan. 24, 2014

    Translated by Agneta Jonsson
    Revised by Rainer Nyberg. Nov. 27, 2015

    Professor Rainer Nyberg changed his opinion of wireless technology in March 2013. At that time he had been lecturing in Finland and Sweden for many years and had written books about the uses and benefits of online learning. In this interview, for TV-Finland’s Channel, he explains how he found out about the health risks directly linked to wireless emissions from the technology he had assumed would only have positive effects.
    SNIP

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    • 13 DEC 15

    EMR Aware newsletter: Highly recommended!

    December – January 2015-16

    This free bimonthly newsletter is produced by EMR Aware, a group of concerned citizens based in Northern NSW Australia. It is intended to distribute, in the public interest, the latest information on the health, environmental and social impacts of electro-technologies. Since the primary objective is to encourage a fair and balanced discussion, emphasis here is placed upon aspects of the topics at hand that are not widely acknowledged by industry and their government regulators.

    As was the case with tobacco, asbestos and lead, education and consumer sentiment grounded in science is a key to overcoming the intransigence of commercial interests. Readers can assist by forwarding a link to this page to as many interested persons as possible. Be sure to check past editions of this newsletter for further relevant material.

    – See more at: http://www.emraware.com/newsletter_december_january_2015-16.html#sthash.9IrOUwpF.dpuf

    Read more →
    • 12 DEC 15

    Toys could be used as spying devices, MPs told

    From Olle Johansson

    BBC NEWS
    9 December 2015

    Excerpt

    The security services could remotely take over children’s toys and use them to spy on suspects, MPs have been told.

    The draft Investigatory Powers Bill would place a legal duty on internet providers to assist in hacking devices.

    But it would not be restricted to phones and PCs, a tech industry chief told the Commons science and technology committee.

    Antony Walker, of techUK, said anything that connected to the internet could “in theory” be hacked into.

    In the future, this could include driverless cars or household appliances connected to the internet – the so-called Internet of Things – said Mr Walker.
    ‘Child’s bedroom’
    SNIP

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    • 30 NOV 15

    New Paper identifying disease biomarkers for EHS and MCS

    While the folks at the Australian Centre for Electromagnetic Bioeffects Research (ACEBR) continue to firmly adhere to the viewpoint that EHS is just a nocebo effect and there is no evidence of any harm at exposure levels below the Standards, science moves on. Of note here is a paper published in Reviews on Environmental Health Volume 30, Issue 4 (Dec 2015):

    Reliable disease biomarkers characterizing and identifying electrohypersensitivity and multiple chemical sensitivity as two etiopathogenic aspects of a unique pathological disorder
    SNIP

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    • 25 NOV 15

    Appin Hall Children’s Foundation End-of-Year Newsletter 2015

    NOTE: This posting is a follow-up from my posting of August 26 2015

    From Ronnie Burns, founder of Appin Hall.

    Excerpt

    In July this year, Appin Hall received notice regarding an application to Kentish Council that the NBNCo (+ Ericsson Australia) were proposing to erect a 60met high telecommunications facility within 20met of our northern neighbouring property. In response to this development application, we submitted a Letter of Objection to Kentish Council based on the fact that many of our clients (children suffering serious illness) are already compromised due to
    illness, treatment + chemotherapy.

    After months of begging the powers that be: Local Council, the Tasmanian Government and the then Communications Minister, Malcolm Turnbull (and others) the outcome was that no response was forthcoming…
    SNIP

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    • 25 NOV 15

    Dr. Devra Davis on the TODAY Nine Network TV program

    Well worth seeing is the TODAY TV program featuring Dr. Devra Davis on mobile phone and Wi-FI dangers (link below). Dr. Davis has been lecturing in Australia on this issue much to the chagrin of the folks at ACEBR who consistently take the line that its all just a nocebo effect and all we need to do is to stop worrying.

    SNIP

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    • 17 NOV 15

    Off Topic: Waleed Aly: Here’s What ISIL Want, And How We Stop Them

    Waleed Aly is a well known TV presenter as well as a leader in the Australian Muslim community. I highly recommend viewing his excellent analysis of the current ISIL madness.

    Don

    From Getup:

    In times like these, we inevitably hear from voices calling us to division, not unity. These voices call on us to close our minds and shut our hearts. But here’s Waleed Aly on why that’s exactly what ISIL wants – and why it’s our job not to let them:
    SNIP

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    • 14 NOV 15

    Baroness Susan Greenfield on IT’s impacts on children

    Although I had mentioned this in a blog last year, considering my recent blogs on Wi-Fi technology in schools, it is worthwhile to revisit Professor Susan Greenfield’s Youtube talk on how new digital technologies are rewiring the brain’s frontal cortex – the area of the brain responsible for cognitive analysis and abstract thought.

    Greenfield suggests that ‘mind change’, brought on by increasing internet use and the popularity of social media sites like Twitter and Facebook, will be the new climate change.

    The first part of her presentation deals with how the brain develops and the second part about children and overuse of IT and its impact of their ability to learn and also diminishing interpersonal skills. Points in the presentation include:
    SNIP

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    • 13 NOV 15

    The Hidden Agenda Behind 21st Century Learning

    From Psychology Today:

    The Hidden Agenda Behind 21st Century Learning
    Public-private partnership is strangling our education system.

    Victoria L. Dunckley M.D. Sep 30, 2015

    Excerpt

    How has our public education system gotten so off track?

    High-stakes testing, obsessive data collection, and lofty promises of technology’s potential to “revolutionize” education are contributing to ever-increasing amounts of school-based screen-time. The invasion is occuring with complete disregard for what it taking away from in terms of basic developmental needs, as well as for screentime’s negative influence on nervous system health. Health and development risks aside, research suggests computer use in schools drags down test scores (link is external).
    SNIP

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    • 12 NOV 15

    Melbourne Lecture: The truth about mobile phone and wireless radiation… Presented by Dr Devra Davis

    This lecture is proudly presented by the Melbourne School of Engineering, in partnership with the Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences, the Faculty of Science and the Melbourne Networked Society Institute, at the University of Melbourne.

    Dean’s Lecture Invitation

    The truth about mobile phone and wireless radiation: what we know, what we need to find out, and what you can do now
    Presented by Dr Devra Davis

    Visiting Professor of Medicine at the Hebrew University Hadassah Medical School, and Visiting Professor of Medicine at Ondokuz Mayis University, Turkey

    Monday 30 November, 6:00-7.00pm
    (refreshments from 5:30pm)
    Carrillo Gantner Theatre, Basement
    761 Swanston Street, Parkville
    Register via link below
    SNIP

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    • 11 NOV 15

    New paper on children and mobile technology

    Exposure and Use of Mobile Media Devices by Young Children
    Hilda K. Kabali, MD, Matilde M. Irigoyen, MD, Rosemary Nunez-Davis, DO, MPH, Jennifer G. Budacki, DO, Sweta H. Mohanty, MD,Kristin P. Leister, MD, Robert L. Bonner, Jr, MD

    PEDIATRICS Volume 136, number 6, December 2015

    abstract (conclusions)

    Young children in an urban, low-income, minority community had almost universal exposure to mobile devices, and most had their own device by age 4. The patterns of use suggest early adoption, frequent and independent use, and media multitasking. Studies are urgently needed to update recommendations for families and providers on the use of mobile media by young children.
    SNIP

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