6 ms·

> Assuming the technology is safe Whoever invented the 5G conspiracy theories is either having a laugh or is fundamentally disconnected from how radiation work

> Assuming the technology is safe Whoever invented the 5G conspiracy theories is either having a laugh or is fundamentally disconnected from how radiation works. This pseudo-scientific nonsense has no place on HN. One of the key design features of 5G is to drop transmit power (instead having more sites, with lower range per site). Because signal strength drops off with the square of distance to the tower (technically the cube, but because they transmit a flat beam the relevant part of the graph is square), this results in dramatically less transmit radiation vs 4G. However, all of this is moot, because the radio frequency used isn't a frequency that could ionize anything even if the transmit power weren't negligible.

mminer237 6y ago
When he said that, I assumed he was talking about China using the technology overhaul to sneak in spying capabilities through Huawei. I forgot people don't know how radio waves are the opposite side of the light spectrum from x-rays.
fuzzybear3965 6y ago
I think a common misconception is that the concern is about the ionization potential of the radiation. The way I've heard it explained is that microwave frequencies (including, but not limited to, 5G signals) affect the ion channels of cells, preventing normal cellular function and increasing the risk of a variety of disorders, particularly neurological.
- zamadatix 6y ago
  The first part of the comment seems to cover this claim already, at least in relation to 5G rollout being bad, without getting into whether it's even a valid claim or not.
oliv__ 6y ago
Every time this is brought up, the only argument that comes up is that "radio frequency used isn't a frequency that could ionize anything even if the transmit power weren't negligible". This is absolutely true but fails to recognize that radio frequencies have harmful, non-ionizing effects on biological organisms.
- alex_young 6y ago
  > This is absolutely true but fails to recognize that radio frequencies have harmful, non-ionizing effects on biological organisms. What harmful effects are you referring to? Outside of intense heat or light, there shouldn't be any potential hazards to biological systems, since non-ionizing radiation by definition cannot remove electrons from atoms. https://www.cdc.gov/nceh/radiation/nonionizing_radiation.html#risk https://www.cdc.gov/nceh/radiation/nonionizing_radiation.htm...
- danielheath 6y ago
  What mechanism do you propose to create these effects? (To be clear, we are not talking about high-energy cosmic ray interactions, because those don’t happen at these frequencies).
  - deleted 6y ago
    [deleted]
- stopping 6y ago
  Do you have a citation for "harmful" non-ionizing effects? As far as I can tell, the body of literature has no conclusive evidence to suggest that radio waves do anything but heat the tissue that absorbs it. Rant: Like many things that receive attention on popular and social media, agonizing over 5G distracts from issues that cause real provable widespread harm, such as UV radiation and air pollution. We rarely see articles rise to the top when they cover non-controversial points that would do well to be read by everybody, because how much buzz and discussion can you generate from "wear sunscreen", "don't drive while tired", and "get a prostate exam before you turn 50"?
  - jjtheblunt 6y ago
    I suspect the person refers to how microwave ovens heat through water molecule resonance, around the 2.4 ghz spectrum
    - danielheath 6y ago

mminer237 6y ago

When he said that, I assumed he was talking about China using the technology overhaul to sneak in spying capabilities through Huawei. I forgot people don't know how radio waves are the opposite side of the light spectrum from x-rays.

fuzzybear3965 6y ago

I think a common misconception is that the concern is about the ionization potential of the radiation. The way I've heard it explained is that microwave frequencies (including, but not limited to, 5G signals) affect the ion channels of cells, preventing normal cellular function and increasing the risk of a variety of disorders, particularly neurological.

zamadatix 6y ago
The first part of the comment seems to cover this claim already, at least in relation to 5G rollout being bad, without getting into whether it's even a valid claim or not.

oliv__ 6y ago

Every time this is brought up, the only argument that comes up is that "radio frequency used isn't a frequency that could ionize anything even if the transmit power weren't negligible". This is absolutely true but fails to recognize that radio frequencies have harmful, non-ionizing effects on biological organisms.

alex_young 6y ago
> This is absolutely true but fails to recognize that radio frequencies have harmful, non-ionizing effects on biological organisms. What harmful effects are you referring to? Outside of intense heat or light, there shouldn't be any potential hazards to biological systems, since non-ionizing radiation by definition cannot remove electrons from atoms. https://www.cdc.gov/nceh/radiation/nonionizing_radiation.html#risk https://www.cdc.gov/nceh/radiation/nonionizing_radiation.htm...
danielheath 6y ago
What mechanism do you propose to create these effects? (To be clear, we are not talking about high-energy cosmic ray interactions, because those don’t happen at these frequencies).
- deleted 6y ago
  [deleted]
stopping 6y ago
Do you have a citation for "harmful" non-ionizing effects? As far as I can tell, the body of literature has no conclusive evidence to suggest that radio waves do anything but heat the tissue that absorbs it. Rant: Like many things that receive attention on popular and social media, agonizing over 5G distracts from issues that cause real provable widespread harm, such as UV radiation and air pollution. We rarely see articles rise to the top when they cover non-controversial points that would do well to be read by everybody, because how much buzz and discussion can you generate from "wear sunscreen", "don't drive while tired", and "get a prostate exam before you turn 50"?
- jjtheblunt 6y ago
  I suspect the person refers to how microwave ovens heat through water molecule resonance, around the 2.4 ghz spectrum
  - danielheath 6y ago