Health physics
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This review summarizes the current state of research on possible health effects of Wi-Fi (a commercial name for IEEE 802.11-compliant wireless networking). In response to public concerns about health effects of Wi-Fi and wireless networks and calls by government agencies for research on possible health and safety issues with the technology, a considerable amount of technology-specific research has been completed. A series of high quality engineering studies have provided a good, but not complete, understanding of the levels of radiofrequency (RF) exposure to individuals from Wi-Fi. ⋯ S. and international exposure limits for RF energy. While several studies report biological effects due to Wi-Fi-type exposures, technical limitations prevent drawing conclusions from them about possible health risks of the technology. The review concludes with suggestions for future research on the topic.
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While it has been known for more than a century that radiation presents risks to both the physician and the patient, skin injuries from fluoroscopy became increasingly rare after the 1930s, and radiation risk from fluoroscopy appeared to be adequately controlled. However, beginning in approximately 1975, new technologies and materials for interventional devices were developed. ⋯ Four central issues were identified: equipment, quality management, operator training, and occupational radiation protection. Recognition that these were areas for improvement provoked changes in technology and practice that continue today.
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Standard-setting agencies such as the U. S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the U. ⋯ As long as the policy-decision environment is characterized by high scientific uncertainty and a lack of values consensus, advisory groups should present unbiased evaluations of all scientifically plausible alternatives and recommend selection criteria that decision makers can use in the policy-setting process. To do otherwise (e.g., by serving as single position advocates) weakens decision-making by eliminating options and narrowing discussions of scientific perspectives. Understanding uncertainties and the limitations on available scientific information and conveying such information to policy makers remain key challenges for the technical and policy communities.
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The ETHOS Project, supported by the radiation protection research program of the European Commission (EC), was implemented in the mid-1990's with the support of the Belarus authorities as a pilot project to initiate a new approach for the rehabilitation of living conditions in the contaminated territories of the Republic. This initiative followed a series of studies performed in the context of the EC Community of Independent States cooperation program to evaluate the consequences of the Chernobyl accident (1991-1995), which clearly brought to the fore that a salient characteristic of the situation in these territories was the progressive and general loss of control of the population on its daily life. Furthermore, due to the economic difficulties during the years following the breakdown of the USSR, the population was developing private production and, in the absence of know-how and adequate means to control the radiological quality of foodstuffs, the level of internal exposure was rising significantly. ⋯ This paper discusses the post-Chernobyl context in the early- and mid-1990's, which led Belarus authorities to look for new approaches to protect the population residing in the long-term contaminated territories of the Republic. It then describes the ETHOS methodology and its main results. It also summarizes the general conclusions that can be drawn from the ETHOS Project.