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3G Waves Causes Headaches, Sharpens Memory

Posted by timothy on from the like-alcohol-but-different dept.

jonknee writes "MobileTracker noted that an interesting study on 3G cellular networks has been released out of Amsterdam. The findings were that exposure to 3G waves can cause headaches and nausea (conventional cellular service doesn't have these effects). It also found that those same subjects had better memory and reaction times (conventional cellular networks have the same effect)!"

9 of 277 comments (clear)

  1. But what about CDMA2000? by halo1982 · · Score: 1, Interesting

    I think this is just WCDMA/UMTS. I'm wondering what the impact of CDMA2000 1xEVDO and 1xEVDV would have, if any (since those may be the primary 3G systems in the US).

  2. alertness by avandesande · · Score: 3, Interesting

    could be the bodies reaction to brain damage.

    --
    love is just extroverted narcissism
    1. Re:alertness by ComaVN · · Score: 1, Interesting

      That is frightningly true.

      --
      Be wary of any facts that confirm your opinion.
    2. Re:alertness by Threni · · Score: 3, Interesting

      Could be the heat making blood and other chemicals fire quicker. However, I'm reminded of the short story `Flowers for Algernon`...

  3. I, for one... by pope1 · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Welcome our Cellular Network Enhanced Overlords.

    *ahem*

    On a serious note, were the results of this study
    pusblished in any credible medical journal?

    Cell phone *sharpens* the senses? Seems just a little crazy to me.

    --
    /* * pope1 */
    1. Re:I, for one... by sql*kitten · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Cell phone *sharpens* the senses? Seems just a little crazy to me.

      Heating the brain a little is how it does it. Some of the body's subsystems work more efficiently when warmer than normal operating temperature (that's what a fever is: your body optimizing for fighting infection). Unfortunately, the optimal temperature is not the same for every subsystem, which is why the normal overall blood temperature is 37C. And there's no feedback between the subsystems: to fight infection, your immune system doesn't care if it damages your brain - that's why we cool the heads of people with fevers. So while one part of your brain may work better when a little warmer, there's no telling what the long term effects might be on other parts.

  4. Re:Sharpen the brains is good there... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

    With all that weed smoked in Amsterdam, they can do with all the brain sharpening they can get!

    Maybe this will balance them out a bit :-)

    I know you were joking, but isn't it about time we pushed the 'neurotoxic' myth about marijuana out of the popular consciousness? It's been disproven many times. The 'study' in which it was found only acheived neurotoxicity by distilling the THC into a fabulously concentrated form and then feeding rats the equivalent of 30 times their own body weight at once. I submit that 30 times one's weight in just about anything is detrimental. A more rational study found less deviation in rational thinking, problem solving, and memory between people who never smoked and people who smoked heavily for decades than was their margin for error. (about 3%, IIRC) While it is true that marijuana use produces free radicals, which can be dangerous, it is also true that increasing your anti-oxident intake can easily compensate. I'm not saying there aren't any bad things about marijuana, just that it isn't neurotoxic.

  5. Re:Great.. More junk science.. by Troed · · Score: 2, Interesting
    I work in the telecom industry. Last year when I started an assignment at one of the 3G-equipment manufacturers (where there is an active 3G network) I started having problems feeling "blanked out" in the afternoons. I couldn't explain it, tried different eating habits, excercising and working out. No go. When that assignment ended, the problems ended.

    I'm now on an assignment where I work with 3G again - and while I still feel the same way occassionally, it's not as bad. It _does_ happen though - and up until today when I saw this piece of research I hadn't even thought about 3G being the culprit (I, as you, know that we live in an ocean of radiation already).

    It's a nice explanation that fit what I've experienced myself though. In addition the feeling "blanked out" (sorry, it's hard to describe) my migraine did/has also gotten worse (at least once a week I go home from work with a migraine attack in the works. Sometimes more often).


    Idiotic replies not welcome - if you don't have migraine you have no idea ...

    --
    it's in my head
  6. How close were the people to the base stations? by cyberformer · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Base stations can be dangerous things, but the received radiation diminishes very rapidly with distance (inverse square law). That's why it's critical to know just how far away the people were from the base stations, and the news reports don't say this.

    If you hold your head directly in front of a microwave transmitter (even a 2G one), you're going to experience some bad effects. If you stand at the bottom of a hill and the transmitter is on top, you should be okay.