New York (CNN Business) Despite the high expectations surrounding the rollout of 5G, rumors and conspiracy theories have also been circulating. A theory recently circulated on social media that wireless network technology accelerated the coronavirus pandemic.
It didn’t.
Although unsubstantiated, the theory has become so popular that social media platforms have been forced to take action to stop its spread after a series of arson attacks on cell phone towers.In response to this rumor, the US Federal Emergency Management Agency responded that “5G technology is not the cause of the coronavirus,” and UK government officials also responded. called it “A terrible conspiracy.”
Theories that try to link the pandemic to 5G are nonsense. Coronavirus disease (Covid-19) is caused by a contagious virus that is spreading in parts of the world where 5G technology has not yet been deployed.
However, such theories are not new. Concerns about the health effects of 5G were widespread even before the coronavirus. Experts say these concerns are also unfounded.
“Is there anything to be concerned about? The short answer is no,” says Chris Collins, professor and principal investigator in the Department of Radiology at New York University School of Medicine.
“If people aren’t worried about current cell phone technology, they don’t need to worry even more about 5G.”
What is 5G?
5G is the next generation of wireless network technology that is being steadily rolled out in the United States and around the world. It is expected to provide faster data speeds and network capacity than existing 4G LTE technology and enable new innovations such as smart cities and robotic surgery.
Let’s have a little chat to understand why a few people are into it. At the heart of 5G is a set of technical specifications that wireless devices across the radio frequency spectrum use to communicate with cell networks. This is the same way that only 3G and 4G worked, but 5G devices have access to a wider range of radio frequencies than before, resulting in faster speeds and bandwidth.
There are three different types of 5G networks. A network that uses the low, medium, and high bands of the radio frequency spectrum. Low-band networks offer greater coverage, but slightly faster speeds. Mid-band networks offer a good balance between speed and coverage, while high-band networks offer lightning-fast speeds, but the signal doesn’t travel as far.
Eventually, low- and medium-band networks are expected to cover most of the country. High-band networks are primarily built in cities, as they require multiple small cell sites to be installed in a given area to compensate for the fact that the signal is difficult to travel.
Debunking fears about 5G
Many of the conspiracy theories about the dangers of 5G focus on the radio frequencies over which the signal travels. However, experts point out that low- and mid-band 5G networks will operate on roughly the same frequencies as existing networks.
“There’s no difference in terms of exposure,” says Kenneth Foster, a bioengineering professor at the University of Pennsylvania. His research focuses on the health and safety aspects of electromagnetic fields interacting with the human body.
The major advances made by 5G will come as a result of high-band networks, where signals travel at millimeter wave frequencies.
However, New York University’s Collins points out that millimeter-wave frequencies cannot penetrate surfaces such as walls, trees, and human skin (which is one reason why millimeter-waves don’t travel well). said there would be even less cause for concern.
“It’s a little ironic that there’s so much concern about 5G, because the difference is that 5G operates at a higher frequency,” Collins said. “It doesn’t actually penetrate deep into the body…it doesn’t really pass through the skin.”
Millimeter wave frequencies are already used in other technologies that people are familiar with, such as airport security scanners.
“If you think about these airport scanners, they’re using millimeter wave energy,” Collins said. “We know it doesn’t penetrate the body, because the image on the screen only shows the outside of the body.”
Like FM radio waves and visible light, radiofrequency waves are a type of “non-ionizing” radiation, meaning they don’t have enough energy to damage DNA in cells and cause cancer, unlike, say, X-rays. Decades of research has shown that the only way wireless technology interacts with the body is by heating the skin, but the power levels are so low that this is not a problem, experts say.
What is the government doing?
The Federal Communications Commission, like other government agencies, regulates radio frequency exposure levels from wireless devices such as cell phones. Exposure levels from 5G radio frequencies are well below government agency limits.
“The weight of scientific evidence does not effectively link exposure to radio frequency energy from mobile devices to any known health problems,” the FCC said on its website.
Still, some critics argue that too little research has been done on 5G’s potential impacts. In response, most government agencies emphasized that they will continue to track research on 5G as network infrastructure expands.
In a response to critics who called on the Commission to put a hold on 5G rollout in 2017, European Commission Minister Vytenis Andriukaitis said: “Firstly, how will this new technology be applied? “We need to see how the scientific evidence develops.” Concerns about possible health effects.
“Rest assured that the European Commission will keep abreast of developments with a view to protecting the health of Europeans to the highest possible level,” Andreukaitis said.
Foster said such a response is the best course of action to address 5G concerns.
“We can only do so from dangers that we know exist,” Foster said. “The EU’s approach is as good as it can be. If something suggests that the issue is reasonable, we will look at the literature.”
