Latest Podcast



Featured Articles

Ofcom says mobile contracts should ditch inflation-related price rises

Ofcom says mobile contracts should ditch inflation-related price rises

UK telecoms regulator Ofcom wants to ban inflation-related rises in phone and broadband contracts. Instead, it says any potential mid-contract price rises should be set out in pounds and pence.
Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating

Global smartphone market is set for recovery, says new forecast

A new forecast from research specialists Canalys shows the smartphone market is set to recover next year. Worldwide shipments declined by 12% last year but that decline is expected to slow to 5% this year.
Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating
Vodafone and Three plan to merge their UK businesses

Vodafone and Three plan to merge their UK businesses

New Hutchison/Vodafone network would be biggest UK operator

Vodafone Group plc and CK Hutchison Group Telecom Holdings Limited have agreed to combine their UK telecommunication businesses, respectively Vodafone UK and Three UK. The merger will create a large new network operator to compete with Virgin Media O2 and EE.
Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating

UK mobile payment service Paym to close in March 2023

UK mobile payment service Paym will close on 7th March 2023. The service, which allowed users to make and receive payments using their mobile phone numbers, was launched in 2014.
Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating
Qualcomm legal action moves forward in the UK

Qualcomm legal action moves forward in the UK

Which? seeks payout for Samsung and Apple smartphone owners

Consumer protection organisation Which? has been given permission by the UK's Competition Appeal Tribunal to represent Apple and Samsung smartphone buyers in a legal case against chip manufacturer Qualcomm.
Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating
RSS

Opinion Articles

Thursday, August 27, 2009

Mobile phones cause brain tumours?

Mark Bridge writes:

Mobile phones fry your brain. That’s been a warning from some people pretty much since the first cellphones appeared. And although the mobile phone industry has changed and the technology has advanced, the warnings haven’t gone away.

Ten years ago, the Independent Expert Group on Mobile Phones under chairman Sir William Stewart was set up to look at concerns about the possible health effects from the use of mobile phones, base stations and transmitters.

The report from the working group – known as The Stewart Report – was called Mobile Phones and Health and was published on 11th May 2000. Although Sir William’s report recommended that the subject was reviewed again in three years time, it’s still The Stewart Report that’s become the UK’s definitive document on mobile phone safety for many people.

And that’s hardly surprising, given the amount of publicity that surrounded it and the commonsense advice it offered. “Most evidence suggests that mobile phones won’t harm you but it’s worth being careful and taking a closer look anyway” would be my personal summary.

Now, I hear you say, you work in the mobile industry. How can we trust you? (Well, I don’t just work in the mobile industry, but I take your point). The answer: because I don’t want my head to melt. I don’t want anyone’s head to melt. And if the mobile phone business is cooking brains, I’ll find something else to do – like warning people not to use those evil brain-melting devices.

Which is why I was rather worried when I saw a headline that said Cellphones Cause Brain Tumors. It directed me to a publication from the International EMF Collaborative entitled “Cellphones and Brain Tumors: 15 Reasons for Concern, Science, Spin and the Truth Behind Interphone”. Interphone is the name of an international study that’s exactly the kind of thing Sir William Stewart was talking about. It ran for six years, cost millions of pounds and saw dozens of scientists looking at data from thousands of people. The research ended around three years ago but conclusions haven’t yet been published. Some say the data was skewed and relied too much on memory, which could easily lead to subjects deliberately or unintentionally blaming health problems on mobiles. The International EMF Collaborative suggests the data is skewed the other way. Its report says telecom-funded studies are highly questionable when compared with independent studies that “consistently show there is a significant risk of brain tumors from cellphone use”.

Warning - melty brain!Personally, I’m not convinced by that risk. Early mobile phones were certainly higher-powered than current devices – but I wouldn’t be using a mobile phone today if I thought there was a significant risk of it harming me. And I certainly wouldn’t be promoting their use without a big “warning: melty brain” sticker being placed on every mobile phone as a minimum requirement. Mind you, I’d also appreciate an explanation from someone who knows a fair bit about research – Dr Ben Goldacre would be good – telling me whether or not I should really be worrying. Oh, and some research into WiFi and DECT as well.

Print
Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Rate this article:
No rating

Categories: OpinionNumber of views: 7502

Tags:

Leave a comment

This form collects your name, email, IP address and content so that we can keep track of the comments placed on the website. For more info check our Privacy Policy and Terms Of Use where you will get more info on where, how and why we store your data.
Add comment

Recent Podcasts

Tesco gets into smartphones, Facebook gets into advertising... and O2 gets into trouble

Podcast - 7th May 2014

We start this week's podcast with Tesco's plans for a Hudl-branded smartphone. Next comes some potentially good news about the 'patent wars' affecting the mobile industry - although there's certainly no sign of a ceasefire.

Later we discuss an announcement from Facebook about its mobile advertising scheme, an unfortunate mistake for O2's Travel service, a new 20 megapixel camera-phone and an automotive investment by Nokia.

Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating

Bringing video services to smartphones: interview with Jijesh Devan of QuickPlay Media

Podcast - 2nd May 2014

In this interview Mark Bridge talks to Jijesh Devan of QuickPlay Media about the opportunities and challenges of bringing video services to smartphones and other internet-connected devices.

Their conversation took place on the QuickPlay stand inside the App Planet area of Mobile World Congress in February.

Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating

Faulty phones, network closures, court cases, payment apps... and much more mobile industry news

Podcast - 30th April 2014

We have something for everyone in this week's podcast. There's bad news as Samba Mobile closes, bad news as Apple and Samsung suffer product faults... and bad news as wearable devices are criticised for the poor user experience they offer.

Yet there's plenty of good news as well, including the launch of a new UK mobile payment service.

Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating

Seven days of mobile industry news, from money transfers to monster tracking

Podcast - 23rd April 2014

Telefonica sets up its own mobile advertising business, Mozilla puts an interim CEO in place and Nokia suspends sales of its flagship Windows 8.1 RT tablet: all topics for discussion in this week's podcast.

We're also talking about the future growth of Orange Money, EE's online activity, mobile broadband growth and the Loch Ness monster being spotted on Apple iPhones.

Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating

An introduction to embedded mobile security with Loic Hamon of Inside Secure

Podcast - 18th April 2014

When the topics of mobile technology and security are discussed, the conversation can end up focussing on third-party software solutions.

Inside Secure has a different perspective. It's a specialist in embedded security; building protection in from the start. To learn more, Mark Bridge caught up with Loic Hamon, Vice President of Corporate Development at Inside Secure, at the company's hospitality suite during Mobile World Congress.

Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating
RSS
First34568101112Last

Follow thefonecast.com

Twitter @TheFonecast RSS podcast feed
Find us on Facebook Subscribe free via iTunes

Archive Calendar

«March 2024»
MonTueWedThuFriSatSun
26272829123
45678910
11121314151617
18192021222324
25262728293031
1234567

Archive

Terms Of Use | Privacy Statement