May 22 SAFE TECH INTERNATIONAL NEWS AND NOTES
Tom Butler re Children; Yuri G. Grigoriev; Media, More
FEATURED
ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH TRUST NEWS sharable newsletter link with videos/images here. Breaking News! Major News Coverage on 5G and Cell Phone Radiation We are elevating the conversation. Two news reports feature EHT this week! Watch the latest investigative report by Emmy Award-winning reporter Sharyl Attkisson who interviewed Dr. Devra Davis, founder of Environmental Health Trust, for the news program Full Measure about the U.S. government's decision to halt further research into cell phone radiation. 9 minutes and Why Did the U.S. Government Halt Research on Wireless Health Effects? In the Full Measure interview, Dr. Davis comments on the National Toxicology Program (NTP) of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) announcement that it will no longer study the issue of cell phone radiofrequency (RF) radiation, despite its previous research that found “clear evidence” of cancer and DNA damage. AND EHT's Dr. Rob Brown Featured on CBS News Report about Resident Fighting a Verizon Cell Tower The CBS Report is on the KDKA website and YouTube.
AI: Civil society groups have teamed up to trash the Senate’s AI “roadmap” published last week — and also to propose some alternatives. A group that includes the Electronic Frontier Foundation, Georgetown Center on Privacy and Technology, AI Now Institute chief advisor Meredith Whittaker, a researcher from Data & Society and many more wrote in a “Shadow Report to the US Senate AI Policy Roadmap” that a “bespoke, industry-driven process unsurprisingly led the Senate to an industry-friendly destination,” and that the roadmap is “a massive commitment of taxpayer money to ‘innovation’ without a vision for how this innovation will serve the public.” “Lobbying dollars, campaign contributions and revolving door relationships have had a material impact on federal policy related to big tech and artificial intelligence,” the authors conclude. “We compile the evidence here as a glimpse of what could have been… Congress must do more than namecheck the issues and offer token participation to those affected by AI.” https://www.politico.com/newsletters/digital-future-daily/2024/05/21/the-ai-elections-fracas-is-well-underway-00159179
NEWS AND NOTES
BROADBAND Solar Storms and Broadband We only get about a one-hour warning about a pending solar storm. The United States Geological Survey operates observatories that monitor the Earth’s magnetic field. NOAA and NASA also operate satellites at about 1 million miles from Earth that monitor the sun. It’s highly unlikely for solar storms to directly affect people since the Earth’s outer atmosphere absorbs the worse of the ions and particles from the storm. However, geomagnetic storms can cause a lot of damage to electronics and wired networks. Solar storms tend to only last a few days, but some of the damage can be devastating. Radios can go dark during a bad storm, making it impossible to communicate with airplanes and ships. Solar storms can play havoc with telecommunications networks. Particularly vulnerable are undersea cable networks, which, due to their long length, can pick up and magnify the disruptions and blow out electronics. Strong storms can knock out electric grids, and a storm in 1989 knocked out the entire power grid in Quebec, affecting six million people. The USGS along with NOAA provides maps and advice to electric utilities about pending storms. Some of our most vulnerable electronics are in the many satellites that now circle the globe. Satellites sit outside the protective upper atmosphere and the storms can damage electronics. This could force satellites to veer off course or even fall to Earth. One of the problems caused by the recent solar storms was to precision GPS. People driving in cars wouldn’t have noticed any issues, but there are applications that rely on locating things precisely. One of these applications is precision agriculture. 404 Media published an article that documented problems experienced by the GPS navigation systems in John Deere and other brands of tractors. There are steps that can be taken to avoid the worst damage from bad solar storms. One of the best defenses for the electric grid is to turn off the grid during the worst part of a storm. That sounds drastic, but it’s better than losing large numbers of transformers. It’s possible for electric companies to install modern transformers that provide some protection against the kinds of surges created during a solar storm. It’s also possible to design undersea fibers with some protection against solar storms. The ultimate protection is to place electronics inside a Faraday cage, which is a wire mesh box built around all sides of the electronics device. But that’s expensive, and the Foundation for Resilient Societies estimates that putting new electronics in these cages each year would cost $25.5 billion. But maybe that’s not expensive when considering the alternative. The National Academy of Science estimated that a disastrous solar storm could cost $2 trillion worldwide and cause a global recession when electric grids stay out of service for months. https://potsandpansbyccg.com/2024/05/22/solar-storms-and-broadband/
BROADBAND: INDUSTRY: Nextlink CEO compares fixed wireless to fiber Of about 3,000 active towers in Nextlink’s footprint, the company has built about 1,500 structures. The company often relies on existing construction. “I’m in church steeples, school buildings, water tanks, grain siloes,” said Baker. CBRS spectrum allows Nextlink to provide gig service as far as a 5-mile radius. “Tarana has really moved the needle when it comes to fixed wireless,” said Baker. [] He said if there’s middle-mile infrastructure and vertical infrastructure to hang radios in a given area, Nextlink can provide FWA in a matter of days. “Conversely if there’s no middle mile, no vertical infrastructure, that’s a different beast,” he said. In that case, deploying FWA takes more time. In 2017, Nextlink moved into fiber, with its first market being a Dallas suburb. The company now has close to 80,000 fiber passings in development. Baker said that even though it takes a lot of work to build infrastructure for FWA, doing fiber has its own challenges, largely because of permitting requirements, deployment costs and educating local governments and citizens. You would assume that small, rural towns would be dying of thirst for fiber. But apparently, that is not always the case. “Sometimes, they’re happy with their DSL 10 megs. In a rural environment you only have a very small percentage of people buying your fastest plan,” []Of course, one of the big differences between FWA and fiber is the cost of deployment. According to Nextlink, the cost to deploy FWA is about $1,000 per subscriber compared to fiber, which can cost anywhere from $5,000 to $20,000 per passing. https://www.fierce-network.com/broadband/nextlink-ceo-compares-fixed-wireless-fiber
BROADBAND: Verizon bets big on the Preakness Verizon deploys temporary 4G and 5G assets to support the Preakness The operator has already rolled out more C-band and mmWave 5G in Baltimore The company's network handled nearly 50 Gbps of additional data at 2023 race. The MEOW (MatSing Equipment on Wheels) is basically a mobile network with a large antenna that will bolster 5G capacity available to race-goers. Verizon bets big on the Preakness (fierce-network.com)
BROADBAND: Open Vault Broadband Insights Report Quarter 1 2024 Broadband providers’ upstream capacity continues to be subject to ongoing increases in consumption that are putting more pressure on the most capacity-constrained parts of the network—a key takeaway from this first quarter 2024 edition of the OpenVault Broadband Insights (OVBI) report. While the overall upward rise in downstream usage includes seasonal spikes and dips, the trend in upstream consumption is more consistently upward. This 1Q24 edition of the OVBI also continues tracking the new category of extreme power users who consume 5 TB or more of data per month, and their massive impact on upstream usage. Extreme power users consume almost 1 TB of upstream capacity per month, on average, meaning that their impact on the network is magnified. https://www.benton.org/headlines/open-vault-broadband-insights-report-quarter-1-2024
BROADBAND: US broadband subscriber pace slows across the board Fixed wireless and fiber subscriber growth slowed in Q1 2024, creating a supposed positive trend for US cable. However, cable broadband losses accelerated in the quarter amid slower housing formation and a halt on ACP enrollments. Among categories, it's becoming clear that FWA subscriber growth has peaked. https://www.lightreading.com/broadband/us-broadband-subscriber-pace-slows-across-the-board
CELLPHONES/RF/MEDIA JOEL M: Which wireless radiation risks are covered most by TV news in the USA? Since June 2014, television stations in the U.S have aired more than 300 news stories about the health risks from wireless radiation exposure. Almost half of these stories focus on radiation risks from cell phone use, including risks to children. About a third discussed cell tower radiation risks with four dozen stories focusing on cell towers (or Wi-Fi) on school campuses. Other technologies of concern include wireless smart meters and Wi-Fi-emitting devices.
Since 2018 more than a hundred news stories have reported on health concerns about the rollout of 5G, the fifth generation of cellular technology. Public concern about this issue has been covered by national network news and by local TV stations in more than 20 states and the District of Columbia.
CBS and its affiliates have provided the most news coverage about wireless radiation and health. Besides its national news coverage, all major CBS stations have run stories including stations in the following cities: Atlanta, Baltimore, Boston, Burlington, Charleston, Chicago, Cincinnati, Dallas, Denver, Des Moines, Detroit, Eugene, Houston, Kansas City (MO), Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Miami, Minneapolis, New York City, Oklahoma City, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Pittsburgh, Portland (OR), Raleigh, Sacramento, Salt Lake City, San Antonio, San Diego, San Francisco, Spartanburg (NC), Spokane, Tampa Bay, and Washington, DC. The above statistics are based upon Google searches for TV news stories about wireless radiation health risks where a video was posted online; thus, the overall amount of TV news coverage is under-estimated for this time period. AND CBS's 60 Minutes has won every broadcast journalism award. In June, 2017, the show aired a story on smartphone addiction,"Hooked on Your Phone?", and in December, 2018, a story on the adverse effects of digital device use on children, "Phones, Tablets, and their Impact on Kids' Brains." However, 60 Minutes has never reported on the health risks from the wireless radiation produced by these devices. Do conflicts of interest prevent 60 Minutes from covering the story about why our government has not updated the obsolete wireless regulations that the FCC originally adopted in 1996 and reaffirmed in 2019 which fail to protect us from harmful levels of wireless radiation. Links to more than 300 televised new stories with online videos appear below. The list is sorted by TV network. https://www.saferemr.com/2018/04/wireless-radiation-tv-news.html courtesy Joel
CELLPHONES: Don’t touch this for at least 20 minutes after waking up, warns neuroscientist “Our brain is transitioning between sleep and waking. Our brain is really suggestible. Lots of people are reading stressful things – prompting you to be stressed,” McDonald says in one of her posts. “What you put into your mind is super crucial. Going on your phone first thing messes with your dopamine. It creates a craving to keep you wanting to pick up your phone. I wake up and listen to or say positive affirmations. I put sleep mode on. Try to not look at your phone for at least 20 to 30 minutes after waking up,” McDonald recommends. https://studyfinds.org/dont-touch-this-after-waking-up/
CELLPHONES SCHOOLS OHIO: DeWine to sign bill limiting student cellphone use in school https://www.msn.com/en-us/lifestyle/lifestyle-buzz/dewine-to-sign-bill-limiting-student-cellphone-use-in-school/ar-BB1mo1ZN
CELLPHONES CHILDREN SCHOOL SCREENSTRONG Dear Teacher, My child will no longer bring a smartphone to school. You are now committed to a smartphone-free childhood. The next step? Send this letter to your school. Jumping headfirst into new cultural trends is common… Initially, the pendulum swings far from the center. Remember these? The days before car seats and seatbelts? Adults hated to wear seatbelts; they wrinkled our clothes, and we never dreamed that kids would sit still long enough to put them in a car seat. What a crazy idea. Cigarette Ads: Nicotine was advertised as a “calming” drug, great for asthma, and so healthy that doctors smoked. Drinking and driving: The public thought they had the right to drive even after a few drinks. We dove in with both feet! What could go wrong? A lot. Those most affected voiced their concerns, but they were ignored until enough time, research, and tragedies highlighted the need for change. Eventually, the pendulum swung back to the center, and we realized our responsibility to make countercultural changes. More here.
CENSORSHIP/REGULATION/SOCIALMEDIA/VIOLENCE/AUSTRALIA: Australia Rules Social Media, OK? The case comes in the wake of a high-profile mid-sermon knifing of an Assyrian Christian bishop and at least three others in Sydney last month by a 16-year-old boy [] The incident was captured on the church’s livestreamed video of the sermon and subsequently widely distributed on social media. As the stabbing was deemed an act of terrorism, the eSafety Commissioner requested media platforms to take down the content, not just in Australia, but worldwide. [] Most international social media platforms immediately complied (or arguably had taken the content down anyway because of commitments to the Christchurch Call to eliminate terrorist content online). X removed the content from its Australian servers, but not worldwide, as it deemed it would be a violation of free speech to do so beyond Australia. Eventually, the judge ruled in X’s favor, overturning the interim injunction on May 13. However, that will not be the end of the matter. On Friday May 11, Prime Minister Albanese announced a parliamentary inquiry into “the impacts and influence of social media on Australia ”As well as addressing the civic responsibility social media owes to its Australian users “and our society more broadly”, it will also address “the decision of Meta to abandon deals under the News Media Bargaining Code” – that other “world-leading” Australian political activism threatening regulation if big tech companies failed to come to “voluntary” content use agreements to compensate traditional Australian media companies for revenues lost to online advertising. https://www.aei.org/technology-and-innovation/australia-rules-social-media-ok/
CHD: Is Radiofrequency Killing You? How does technology affect human biology? Dr. Paul Heroux has been studying this invaluable topic for many years, looking into the testing mechanisms for radiofrequency exposure and the way the body responds to wireless infrastructure. He joins ‘Good Morning CHD’ with co-hosts Greg Glaser and CJ Dimarco for an insightful dialogue about his research. Be sure to watch! https://live.childrenshealthdefense.org/chd-tv/shows/good-morning-chd/is-radiofrequency-killing-you/ 53 minutes
CHD This week’s CHD.TV update on all things electrostatic radiation and wireless is jam-packed with news on data privacy litigation, cell tower installation, public facial recognition software implementation and more (May 15) https://live.childrenshealthdefense.org/chd-tv/events/emr-news/emr-news-update-may-week2/ 8 minutes
CHILDREN IRELAND TOM BUTLER: New research overview on children, learning, mobile phones and screens in schools Professor Tom Butler of University College Cork has conducted a comprehensive review of the latest research in neuroscience, cognitive psychology and education. The study shows that it is not least about biological processes that are disturbed by electromagnetic fields from wireless and digital equipment. The pyschologists' and educators' explanations are not enough: The radiation interferes with the children's ability to learn and also has significant other harmful effects, including on the students' sleep, vision and attention. Sleep problems, Vision problems, Effects on the brain, Learning outcome, What should we do? Butler shares the opinion that children under 12 should not use screen-based technologies in school. He says, "Considering what neuroscience researchers have discovered about the dysfunctional and addictive effects of screen-based applications on the human brain, giving children and adolescents smartphones or tablets is akin to giving them a cannabis plant with lots of fertilizer." The study shows that it is not least about biological processes that are disturbed by electromagnetic fields from wireless and digital equipment. The pyschologists' and educators' explanations are not enough:Einar Flydal, 21 May 2024 PDF version: EFlydal-20240521-Ny-forskningsoversikt-om-barn-laering-mobiler-og-skjerm-i-skolen.pdf PS. The text is an adapted and adapted reproduction of Lyn McLean: "Digital tech and education – part 1" and "part 2", from EMR Australia PL, https://emraustralia.com.au Reference Butler, T. (2024, March 29). A Critical Review of Digital Technology in Education: A Pause for Thought in 2024. SocArXiv, or https://doi.org/10.31235/osf.io/5q8vg
CHILDREN YOUTH MENTAL HEALTH JEAN TWENGE: Is the adolescent mental health crisis real, or just an illusion? What the New York Times got (spectacularly) wrong – and why the time for denial is over, But what if that’s all an illusion, simply a product of changes in screening practices and medical records? Maybe there isn’t an adolescent mental health crisis after all. That’s the case made by David Wallace-Wells in a recent piece in the New York Times
CHILDREN YOUTH SOCIAL MEDIA UK: Social media companies make significant child privacy and safety changes as a result of UK legislation New legislation and regulations are driving social media companies such as Meta and TikTok to make major child safety and privacy changes, according to a new report launched in the House of Lords on Monday, 20 May 2024. The report, "Impact of Regulation on Children's Digital Lives," from researchers at the Digital Future for Children center at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) and 5Rights Foundation found 128 changes related to child safety and privacy were made during the period 2017–2024 by Meta, Google, TikTok and Snap. However, despite the positive steps made, the report reveals companies are significantly relying on tools such as parental controls in response to legislation and regulation. Evidence indicates these measures have low levels of use and efficacy. There is a risk of over-reliance on this measure, to the exclusion of other changes. https://techxplore.com/news/2024-05-social-media-companies-significant-child.html
DATA/ELECTRICITY: An Ohio power company wants data centers to pay their fair share of electricity use as demand surges amid the AI boom https://www.businessinsider.com/aep-ohio-data-centers-pay-for-electricity-demand-2024-5
FCC 5G: INCOMPAS Wants FCC to Hit Pause on 5G Fund The group seeks a multiyear delay for the FCC to await the results of the $42.45 billion BEAD program. WASHINGTON, May 19, 2024 – A major wireless broadband initiative of FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel is meeting resistance. Rosenworcel wants to spend $9 billion over 10 years from the Universal Service Fund to deliver mobile voice and broadband service to about 14 million rural Americans that lack advanced wireless services. “Allowing NTIA to complete its allocation will give the [FCC] a better understanding of where gaps in wireless 5G service exist and will help ensure that funding efforts are not duplicated and that USF funding will reach the areas where there is still a funding need,” INCOMPAS said in a May 16 filing signed by Christopher Shipley, executive director of public policy. INCOMPAS also believes that if the FCC hits pause on the 5G Fund, the agency will ensure that the USF’s shaky financial structure won’t incur additional stress. https://broadbandbreakfast.com/incompas-wants-fcc-to-hit-pause-on-5g-fund/
5G MILITARY: Industrial Base Readies to Meet DOD’s New 5G Needs The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2024 was signed into law at the end of 2023. Among its various mandates were that the Department of Defense cultivate private 5G networks at its service branch bases and outposts. These bases total around 800 globally, representing a clear opportunity for telecommunications providers to offer their services. Each of the 800 military compounds in need of 5G connectivity can host at least a few 5G transmission sites, analyst Joe Hoffman of Omdia told Light Reading. Thus, the DOD could contract several thousand cell sites. This comes as part of a wave of 5G spending for the Pentagon — it has devoted no less than $650 million since 2020 to telecommunications R&D, mostly focused on 5G. Beyond being ordered to implement it by the NDAA, 5G is valuable to the DOD for its Combined Joint All-Domain Command and Control, or CJADC2, effort, which seeks to create a communications fabric that sends information to warfighters stationed even at the most remote locations. 5G will play a pivotal role in this plan, which spans all DOD components. Additionally, it is a crucial element of the Spectrum Access System, which helps ensure that government agencies, service branches and fixed satellite stations have priority usage of radio spectrum. SAS is built to circumvent radio and communication interruptions. https://www.govconwire.com/2024/05/industrial-base-readies-to-meet-dods-new-5g-needs/
5G HEALTH: 5G and Demyelination "Frequencies used in Telecommunications – An Integrated Radiobiological Assessment can be downloaded for free frequencies_used_in_telecommunications__an_integrated_radiobiological_assessment_draft_v3.pdf (orsaa.org) (198 page pdf) By Yuri G. Grigoriev, translated by ORSAA [Oceania Radiofrequency Scientific Advisory Association Inc (www.orsaa.org)] Professor Grigoriev is one of the world’s leading authorities on wireless radiation. Professor Yuri G. Grigoriev (PhD, DMedSci) 1925-2021 Grigoriev's book refers to studies showing harmful effects of 5G millimetre waves (MMWs). They include:
demyelination of nerve cells
changes to cell membranes, including changes to ion channels
inhibition of cell cycle progression
changes to levels of enzyme and proteins in the brain’s hippocampus
double-strand breaks in DNA
effects on reproduction
changes to the sensitivity of the skin
effects on peripheral and central nervous systems
effects on the hypothalamus and pituitary glands and changes to cortisol and testosterone hormones
changes to heart rate
changes to immune function
degranulation of mast cells in the skin (that can cause allergic-type symptoms).
5G CANADA HUAWEII: Huawei Enlisted Entire Nortel Team for 5G, Team Leader Now a Royal Society of Canada Fellow https://ntdca.com/huawei-enlisted-entire-nortel-team-for-5g-team-leader-now-a-royal-society-of-canada-fellow/ AND Huawei still filing patents tied to work with Canadian universities after Ottawa’s restrictions
HEALTH Gliomas Now Most Common Cancer in 15-19 year olds, Increasing Worldwide A report published in 2015 in the journal Neuro-Oncology finds that gliomas are the most common cause of cancer-related deaths in adolescents and young adults aged 15-39 and the most common cancer occurring among 15-19 year olds (see p. 18 of study http://neuro-oncology.oxfordjournals.org/content/18/suppl_1/i1.full.pdf+html?sid=fe341f7a-b6c5-4ac2-ae9f-6c2d4f54cc08) GBM has increased according to studies from around the world, with the highest increases in the frontal and temporal lobes https://www.saferemr.com/search?q=glioblastoma
4 Studies: Wireless radiation causing gliomas, Schwannomas, myelin damage
1) The US government National Toxicology Program's $30 million study showed that 3% of rats that were exposed to cell phone radiation developed gliomas, whereas rats that were not exposed did NOT develop gliomas. The rats also developed malignant Schwannomas. Results were statistically significant Report of Partial findings from the National Toxicology Program Carcinogenesis Studies of Cell Phone Radiofrequency Radiation in Hsd: Sprague Dawley® SD rats (Whole Body Exposures) | bioRxiv
In November 2018, the NTP published its cell phone safety sheet based on its study. It states: https://www.niehs.nih.gov/health/materials/cell_phone_radiofrequency_radiation_studies_508.pdf Clear evidence of tumors in the hearts of male rats. The tumors were malignant schwannomas. Some evidence of tumors in the brains of male rats. The tumors were malignant gliomas.
2) Kim, Ju Hwan, et al. “Long-term exposure to 835 MHz RF-EMF induces hyperactivity, autophagy and demyelination in the cortical neurons of mice.” Scientific Reports, vol. 7, no. 41129, 2017. found that RF-EMF exposure led to myelin sheath damage and hyperactivity-like behaviour in mice exposed to 835 MHz RF-EMF at a specific absorption rate (SAR) of 4.0 W/kg for 5 hours/day during 12 weeks. Demyelination was induced in cortical neurons following prolonged RF-EMF exposure and suggests a potential cause of neurological or neurobehavioural disorders. Full text https://www.nature.com/articles/srep41129.pdf
3) Redmayne M, Johansson O. Could myelin damage from radiofrequency electromagnetic field exposure help explain the functional impairment electrohypersensitivity? A review of the evidence. Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health, vol. 17, no. 5, 2014, pp. 247-58. "considers the evidence for an association between myelin integrity and exposure to low-intensity radiofrequency electromagnetic fields (RF-EMFs) Overall, evidence from in vivo and in vitro and epidemiological studies suggests an association between RF-EMF exposure and either myelin deterioration or a direct impact on neuronal conduction, which may account for many electrohypersensitivity symptoms. The most vulnerable are likely to be those in utero through to at least mid-teen years, as well as ill and elderly individuals." Full Text http://www.avaate.org/IMG/pdf/redmayne_johansson_2014.pdf
4) Johansson O, Redmayne M, “Exacerbation of demyelinating syndrome after exposure to wireless modem with public hotspot”, Electromagn Biol Med 2016, 29:1-5 This is a case study of a Colorado woman who experienced a return of her demyelination symptoms (seizures, vertigo, headaches, sleeping problems) following exposure to her neighbor's (Comcast/Xfinity) Home Wi-Fi Modem with Public Hotspot in August 2014. After her neighbor replaced the modem with one without the hotspot feature, the seizures stopped immediately, and the other symptoms faded gradually, after which she was fine and again could sleep well. Later, when another neighbor obtained the same modem with activated hotspot, her symptoms returned. Full Text https://comitatotutelamonteporziocatone.files.wordpress.com/2016/09/johansson-redmayne-2016.pdf
HEALTH: Long-Wear, Noise-Canceling, and Wireless: How Earphones Damage Our Hearing Earphones may be convenient, but convenience doesn’t come without a cost. https://www.theepochtimes.com/health/long-wear-noise-canceling-and-wireless-how-earphones-damage-our-hearing-5614488
MILITARY/WARFARE; Another Dead End for Airborne Lasers: Air Force Scraps Effort to Mount Directed-Energy Weapon on Fighter Jet With drone and missile attacks on the rise, the Pentagon has increasingly eyed directed-energy weapons such as lasers and high-powered microwaves that, with a low cost-per-shot and a virtually unlimited magazine, could eventually provide efficient low-cost alternatives to existing -- and costly -- air defense systems such as the $125,000-a-pop Coyote interceptor or the $2 million-a-shot, ship-launched Standard Missile-2. But developing effective and reliable airborne laser weapons has proven challenging compared to their ground vehicle- and warship-based counterparts, as former Pentagon research and engineering chief Mike Griffin detailed in 2020, according to Breaking Defense. The first problem is power generation. []The second problem is the beam itself. https://www.military.com/daily-news/2024/05/17/air-force-abandons-plan-mount-laser-weapon-fighter-jet-after-scrapping-similar-gunship-project.html
LINKS TO: Top General in Mideast Calls for Microwave Weapons for 'Layered' Defense Against Drone Swarms [] the top general responsible for U.S. troops in the region is already looking ahead to bigger and better directed-energy systems amid a rising tide of adversary drones. Speaking during a Senate Armed Service Committee hearing on Thursday, U.S. Central Command chief Gen. Michael "Erik" Kurilla argued that lawmakers should continue to invest in directed-energy weapons like high-powered microwaves rather than just high-energy lasers to combat the potential future threat of drone swarms. High-energy laser weapons are designed to defeat incoming drones and missiles by employing a narrow beam of energy to burn incoming threats out of the sky. In contrast, high-powered microwaves create a cone of electromagnetic interference that disables electronics across both a wider area and a wider range of target systems, according to the latest Congressional Research Service report on directed-energy weapons. Kurilla echoed McLane's comments on Thursday, stating that he "would love to have the Navy produce more directed-energy [weapons] that can shoot down a drone, so I don't have to use an expensive missile to shoot it down." https://www.military.com/daily-news/2024/03/08/top-general-mideast-calls-microwave-weapons-layered-defense-against-drone-swarms.html
MINING BUSINESS AND HUMAN RIGHTS: Transition Minerals Tracker: 2024 Global Analysis Water resources are most at risk with 125 allegations associated with either/or impacts on access to water and pollution. "The increasing demand for transition minerals will deeply affect the global workforce and the very fabric of our societies – and risks further entrenching global inequalities. This year Tracker’s records of gross negligence in occupational health and safety procedures at mining sites – and an unacceptable number of workers’ deaths, should make the sector pause and prompt immediate action. Respect for the collective rights of workers and their unions to raise their voices and good faith collaboration between states, the private sector, affected communities, workers and their representatives are critical in meeting the climate change challenge. The transition also represents an enormous opportunity to build shared prosperity with workers and their communities: there will not be any energy transition without them.” https://www.business-humanrights.org/en/from-us/briefings/transition-minerals-tracker-2024-global-analysis/
NATURE: Biologists discover caterpillars are able to sense electrostatic fields generated by predators [] the researchers found that all three species responded very clearly to an electrostatic charge—some flailed their bodies, others coiled in a defensive posture. https://phys.org/news/2024-05-biologists-caterpillars-electrostatic-fields-generated.html (Now we need to study how humans react to EMF- including via the meridians and fascia)
NUCLEAR and ACTIVISTM : Chris Keefer: "Empowering the Future: from Nuclear to Podcasting" The Great Simplification with Nate Hagens Nate is joined by ER doctor, nuclear power advocate, and podcast host Chris Keefer for a broad ranging conversation including the basics of nuclear energy, how he engages with opposing opinions, and hypotheticals for a future medical system. Coming from a broad background, Chris understands what it means to have a human to human conversation and put together the pieces of our systemic puzzle in a clear and compelling way. What role could nuclear play for our future energy needs - and how are different countries making use of it today? How can we prioritize the health and safety of people under energetic and resource constraints? Most of all, how do we listen to others that we don’t agree with - regardless of the issue - to foster the diverse perspectives necessary to navigate the coming challenges of the human predicament? (2 HOURS) Courtesy Kate
SMART METERS UK: Why you should say no to getting a smart meter How do smart meters work, will it save you money – and can you refuse one? The rollout has been plagued by problems https://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/consumer-affairs/smart-meter-why-say-no-get-one/ (courtesy Tanja)
EVENTS
The National Call registration link, Friday May 24, 2024, 1-3pm ET https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZwtc-uurzopH9LjvXuI1LqsRKIt71rgFKrl
*After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.
Canadians for Safe Technology C4ST Tues 11 June 2024 7:30 pm ET Cece DOUCETTE -Addressing Wireless Radiation at the Local Level, Massachucetts USA newsletter here.
World Localization Day – June 21 https://mailchi.mp/6a95636e33c6/meet-the-worldwide-movement-10314097?e=965dd3d81b and https://worldlocalizationday.org/share-the-campaign/