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Tower Switch-Off Embarrasses Electrosensitives
Sockatume writes "Residents in Craigavon, South Africa complained of '[h]eadaches, nausea, tinnitus, dry burning itchy skins, gastric imbalances and totally disrupted sleep patterns' after an iBurst communications tower was put up in a local park. Symptoms subsided when the residents left the area, often to stay with family and thus evade their suffering. At a public meeting with the afflicted locals, the tower's owners pledged to switch off the mast immediately to assess whether it was responsible for their ailments. One problem: the mast had already been switched off for six weeks. Lawyers representing the locals say their case against iBurst will continue on other grounds."
It's more likely just a kind of group psychology phenomenon (I'm sure someone with more knowledge of the terms involved will chime in eventually). A group of people convinced themselves that this was happening, and with more and more talking about it and believing it even more people believe they're sick from evil towers as well.
Hell, there were stories a few months back about men in other parts of Africa killing supposed witches, blaming them for shrinking genitals. These men actually believed they had the shrunk junk and killed for it. Not trying to pick on Africa in particular here, just the first story I recalled.
Come to think of it, I've heard of this exact same scenario played out somewhere in the US--A community complained of these symptoms only to find that the tower in question wasn't even finished and had never been turned on.
Accidentally, many places in Africa (so South Africa too, probably, especially with their number of immigrants from across the continent) still experience hunts for supposed witches .
Or "witchcraft" generally, for that matter.
One that hath name thou can not otter
Either it's placebo from seeing the tower (like a hypochondriac) or they're out for a quick buck. I Vote quick buck.
Go ahead and call me unreliable; reliable is just a synonym for predictable.
He probably also didn't tell his wife that, in many cases, when a cellphone is in an area of very weak or nonexistent coverage its response is to kick its transmitter into full "Scotty, we need more power!" mode in an attempt to remain in contact.
This isn't good for battery life; but it also doesn't do much to reduce your EM exposure.
If he doesn't mind the risk of spending a month of nights on the couch, he should tell her to use a bluetooth headset so that she can keep her dangerous cellphone's danger rays away from her brain. Hilarious, until she finds out that you've advised shoving an RF transceiver in your ear canal in order to reduce RF exposure, then things get ugly...
Historically, the cause of these problems has almost always the indiscriminate overuse of herbicides during tower construction.
Usually, the parent company that contracted for erection of the tower or pole is not even aware that the contractors used 10,000 times the recommended concentration of herbicide because "more must be better, right?".
You pretty much have to do on-the-spot soil sampling to confirm this. The local people who actually sprayed will deny everything, because if they don't the local people who are suffering will lynch them.
If no real testing has been done, you have no evidence. You need blood samples and soil samples and you need them as soon as possible - after a year it will be impossible to prove or disprove anything.
But hey, don't let me interfere with the pile-on here... I can think of ten other plausible scenarios but apparently people would rather mock than sympathize.
Looks both ways.
It's ok, you wife either doesn't read slashdot, or already knows she is a loon.
Actually, no, no you can't.
I can't believe you don't know what a Hasemalphaginnojinglanaporphomism is.
You can't cook an egg with 2 cellphones.
http://urbanlegends.about.com/library/bl_cook_egg_cell_phones.htm
Wait, how do you compare something that has never been proven dangerous (power lines) to a manufacturing plant knowingly using a metal that is known to be both highly toxic and carcinogenic in children's toys?
Check out my sci-fi/humor trilogy at PatriotsBooks.
The frequency of the alternating current transmitted on high tension lines is the same as the frequency of the alternating current you get in your house. Usually, either 50 Hz or 60 Hz. Grounded chicken wire will block nearly all the radiation from a power line. Unless South Africa has some mondo chickens.
RTFA. They're not continuing their lawsuit by still insisting that the tower radiation causes their health problems. Instead they're talking about how it obstructs their view, violates the zoning laws that preserve the picturesque image of their town, and in general lowers their property values. Turns out there are interests with money behind the hypochondriacs.