Mobile phones dangers when used inside cars

[jmorgan]

rikNorad said:

The funniest part of all this discussion is that there is a great debate worldwide between scientists and experts about the dangers of mobile phone radiation (yes RADIATION,

Comes in many flavours, good and bad and we are bombarded but it day and night from many sources. What is bad about this and why?

[Simpo Two]

jmorgan said:

Comes in many flavours, good and bad and we are bombarded but it day and night from many sources. What is bad about this and why?

A good point. We'll start with alpha (helium nucleus), beta (electron), and electromagetic. This is the latter, but then so is light, heat and radio - so it's all down to wavelength and power.

I recall about 10 years ago there was a trend for people to use earpieces with their mobiles, but now they don't. So was that just a fad/drive to sell gadgets, or has the radiation been fully investigated and discounted?

[eldar]

Simpo Two said:

A good point. We'll start with alpha (helium nucleus), beta (electron), and electromagetic. This is the latter, but then so is light, heat and radio - so it's all down to wavelength and power.

I recall about 10 years ago there was a trend for people to use earpieces with their mobiles, but now they don't. So was that just a fad/drive to sell gadgets, or has the radiation been fully investigated and discounted?

Ionising/non-ionising discussion. All the research indicates that wifi/cellular isn't ionising in normal usage even for prolonged periods.

[Simpo Two]

Is 'ionising' down to wavelength or power? Does it depend on what's being ionised?

[jmorgan]

Tis why I ask. I find out stuff, I know radiation occurs in many devices and where energy is moved (moved? converted perhaps), radiators in your house for example are a culprit that you can combine with that dreaded word.

Non ionising I thought was for phones but a very low level, my understanding that is and not putting myself up as an expert. There are levels for H+S when up a mast and devices to measure. In the old analogue cell phone days, one phone set off our Raham hazard detector. Only blipped off the scale on a call and every time it called in to the mast to say where it was but only one make, we had several makes in the room that day. But there are a few reason why that should not be taken as any proof.

[Lowtimer]

Simpo Two said:

Is 'ionising' down to wavelength or power? Does it depend on what's being ionised?

It is to do with the charge on the particle
http://www.who.int/topics/radiation_non_ionizing/e...
http://www.who.int/ionizing_radiation/about/what_i...

[Simpo Two]

Lowtimer said:

It is to do with the charge on the particle
http://www.who.int/topics/radiation_non_ionizing/e...
http://www.who.int/ionizing_radiation/about/what_i...

Thanks - seems to be wavelength and type:

'Alpha particles and beta particles are considered directly ionizing because they carry a charge...'

'Only the high frequency portion of the electromagnetic spectrum which includes X rays and gamma rays is ionizing.'

And as mobile phones operate lower down in the EMS it would seem they are not...

[PoleDriver]

Thank god that's cleared the air!

[LordGrover]

Max_Torque said:

<<<SNIP>>>
If this was the "General Gassing" room, well, fair enough, if you wanna spout b*ll*cks, go right ahead, but i for one would like the "Science" section to remain about real science, and not Tin Foil Mad Hattery!! (hmm, TFHM, sounds like a suitable acronym for future use ;-)

TBF to OP, he posted in General Gassing and it was moved by mods.

[eldar]

Simpo Two said:

Thanks - seems to be wavelength and type:

'Alpha particles and beta particles are considered directly ionizing because they carry a charge...'

'Only the high frequency portion of the electromagnetic spectrum which includes X rays and gamma rays is ionizing.'

And as mobile phones operate lower down in the EMS it would seem they are not...

This is a reasonably interesting..

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banana_equivalent_dos...

[Toaster]

To be honest the mortality rate of using a mobile phone in a car is the distraction it causes for the driver which is a much higher risk than the any of the transmission signals generated by the phone.....discuss