5G

 'Corona? 5G? Or both?': An article describing the eventual spread of a conspiracy"

With me always talking about how I always get COVID articles relating to 5G on the library database, I thought the first article I would delve into would be one that would talk about exactly that. This article split the spread of the 5G/COVID conspiracy theories into "phases", describing how a conspiracy theory can swell from being something quite niche to a widespread social media topic involving high-level celebrities and inciting outright attacks. I only quickly skimmed this one but will return to it to better absorb its contents.

'An Overview of 5G Technology': an IEEE introduction to the technology

It's pretty useless to be talking about 5G conspiracy theories if one does not know how 5G, or even its predecessor, 4G, work. So its important to find that information. I did a bit of digging around on the Shapiro Library database and found an excellent document from the IEEE, a trusted technology industry group, that provided what 5G is and what it aims to achieve over the older standards. I will be looking more into what exactly may be behind the health risks 5G is associated with, but from what I have previously read, it has to do with the mmWave technology that it utilizes to transmit, which purportedly is bad for human tissue, among other claims.

'Backlash against 5G in Welsh town threatens to leave ambitions in flames': Just one example of public action

As said in my research proposal, some municipalities have taken action to prevent the construction of 5G facilities in their areas. Here's a news article vetted by Gale with a story from town in Wales that has blocked build permits and has said that they would not "endorse" it. The article also features a person who tries to tie the construction of 5G towers to the spread of COVID, along with what people are doing to keep these 'effects' at bay, such as painting surfaces with a special material.

'Is It Safe Living in the Vicinity of Cellular Towers? Analysis of Long-Term Human EMF Exposure at Population Scale': A look into previous standards

One important thing to note is that 5G uses different technology as compared to the previous 4G standards. Even then, compare 4G to even older standards such as 3G, 2G, and even radio and television broadcast apparatus. EMF isn't exactly new, as all of these forms of wireless communications all emit EMF, but 5G is perceived to emit more. Although this particular article doesn't cover 5G specifically, it provides insight into what older standards presented in terms of frequency exposure safety.

'Health Risks Associated with 5G Exposure: A view from the Communications Engineering Perspective': A holistic approach to dealing with 5G frequency exposure, with mitigation proposals

Many studies relating to frequency exposure in general tend to focus on one single facet of the problem. For example, in terms of health, a study may focus only of the effects of the exposure without focusing on other aspects of it. On top of that, those studies may use some very extreme test setups that do not necessarily reflect real-world scenarios. For communications engineers who are actually building these networks, this can preset a problem as they do not have any really useful information to work with. This article tries to take a holistic approach to assessing the health risks of 5G, and provides mitigation techniques to lessen their effect.