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Hillsborough Opposes So-Called “Small” WTFs

Residents of Hillsborough have been protesting plans to build 16 so-called “Small Cell” cellphone towers in their town and it looks like their efforts have paid off. Kiet Do reports. (12/21/17)

See KPIX news coverage here.

Patrick Shannon, an attorney who specializes in government regulation:

The issue is not over. What we really need now is to reform our process of government so that the citizens have a meaningful opportunity to participate in the process. We are going to seek reforms to ensure that that happens.

Reporter:

Verizon has the option to appeal to the full City Council within 15 days.

I spoke to Katharine Leroux, Hillsborough City Manager at Noon on 1/4/18. She confirmed that on 1/4/18 Verizon appealed her decision to the Hillsborough City Council. She posted the Crown Castle Appeal to https://www.hillsborough.net/482/Wireless.

  • Hillsborough City Manager decision letter here
  • Disucssion about Part V of the decision here
  • Transcript from 12/7/17 hearing here

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Reinventing Wires Event, Feb 5, 2018

The Future of Landlines & Wireline Broadband Networks

A new report to be issued by the National Institute for Science, Law & Public Policy (NISLAPP), Re-Inventing Wires: The Future of Landlines and Networks, concludes that blanketing the nation’s residential neighborhoods with densified so-called “Small Cell” cell towers is technologically unsound, unsustainable and will not meet the nation’s immediate or long-term communications needs.

JOIN US at the Commonwealth Club Feb 5, 2018 at 5:30 p.m.

  • 110 The Embarcadero, San Francisco, CA 94105
  • Registration begins at 5:00 p.m.
  • Reception with panelists following the program until 7:45 p.m.
  • $8.00 members, $20.00 non-members, $7.00 students

Panelists biographies listed here:

  • Timothy Schoechle, PhD; more info here
  • Martin L. Pall, PhD; more info here
  • Duncan A. Campbell, Esq.; more info here
  • James S. Turner, Esq.; more info here
  • Camilla Rees, Panel Co-Chair; more info here
  • Ellen Marks, Panel Co-Chair; more info here

Dr. Timothy Schoechle:

Government officials have been misled about the adequacy of wireless communications. Legislators should stop enabling the wireless industry’s plans for massive new deployments of 4G LTE and soon 5G millimeter wave antennas throughout American neighborhoods, and instead commit to supporting reliable, energy-efficient and enduring hard-wired telecommunications infrastructure that meets the nation’s immediate and long-term needs.

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Hazardous Electromagnetic Power Through the Air Coming to a Lamppost Near You

Merinda Teller, MPH, PhD 12/1/17; Read the original article here.

In an exceptionally short period of time, cellular technologies have become a dominant fixture of modern-day life. When the first clunky cell phones became commercially available in the early 1980s, only the military and “affluent geeks” could afford the four-thousand-dollar price tag.1 A mere three decades later, more than three-fourths (77 percent) of all Americans willingly spend hundreds of dollars for sleek smartphones (a proportion that has more than doubled since 2011)2, and more and more people rely on their smartphones as their sole computer.3 Global projections indicate that over six billion people worldwide will be using a smartphone by 2020.4

Most current cell phone carriers offer fourth-generation (4G or 4G LTE) wireless cellular service, which represents the latest iteration in the “exponential evolution” that began with analog first-generation (1G) service in the early 1980s.5 Each subsequent decade has ushered in a new generation of mobile networks, with 2G going digital in the early 1990s, 3G emerging in the early 2000s and implementation of 4G/4G LTE unfolding in the early part of the current decade.

With the advent of the dramatically faster 4G service — the first generation designed primarily for data rather than voice — mobile phone users have been able to stream video and music to their heart’s content.6 Yet, with perpetually data-hungry consumers flocking to newer applications such as virtual reality and videoconferencing, it appears that even 4G is being stretched to its limits.

As the telecommunications industry anticipates “billions of users, billions of devices and billions of connections,”7 it is avidly preparing for the next generation of cellular service, called 5G, which is likely to be ready for rollout well before 2020.8

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Open Letter to Ira Flatow

January 2, 2018

Mr. Ira Flatow
National Public Radio’s Science Friday
19 West 44th Street, Suite 412
New York, NY 10036

Dear Mr Flatow,

In the 12/22/17 episode of Science Friday, I was disappointed to hear that this National Public Radio program participated in such misleading and one-sided coverage of the proven hazards of exposures to Wireless pulsed, data-modulated, Radiofrequency Microwave Radiation — at the same time that the Trump-FCC is attempting to vote on setting Wireless data transmission of 10M Mbps download/1 MBps upload as the new standard for Broadband for rural America — replacing the current FCC Broadband minimum of 25 Mbps download/3 Mbps upload, which can be easily achieved via fixed, Wireline connections (copper, coaxial and fiber optic).

I will refute much of what was said in this episode in my comments, below that include links to the primary research and analysis that NPR’s Ira Flatow should be referencing and discussing with experts from both sides of the issue: whether or not it is appropriate to allow/encourage 24/7/365 exposures to a proven toxic agent (RF Microwave Radiation) in our homes, workplaces, schools, other public buildings, parks and wilderness areas.

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Nerdy Debate About p-Values

By Brian Resnick 7/31/17 @ 12:00pm EDT; Original article here

The article explains the findings of Revised Standards For Statistical Evidence by Valen E. Johnson, (See 2013 pdf), but keep in mind, this is all just a proposal, something to spark debate. To the author’s knowledge, journals are not rushing to change their editorial standards any time soon.

The debate is considering “What counts as solid evidence?”

When researchers calculate a p-value, they’re putting to the test what’s known as the null hypothesis: a statement that there is no difference in the results measured between test and control groups, when observing the effects of varying a single variable.

For a long while, scientists and the journals that publish their work have thought p<.05 represented something rare. They still do, however, new work in statistics shows that it’s not. The biggest change for which Johnson’s paper advocates is that results that currently meet the .05 level should be called “suggestive,” and those that reach the stricter standard of .005 should be called statistically significant.

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Hazards of Microwave Radiation

A Review from 1960.

Kuo-Chiew Quan. 1960. Hazards of Microwave Radiations – A Review. Industr. Med. Surg. 29:315-318, July 1960 and reprinted in Occupational Medicine, Medical News Letter, Vol. 36, No. 10. November 18, 1960, pp 29-34.

This document, written nearly 60 years ago, discusses the hazards associated with levels of RF Microwave Radiation exposure that might be experienced by those who work near radar installations, radio frequency heat sealers, or medical diathermy machines. Note: this article also applies to those who repair both broadcast and cell phone antennas.

Kuo-Chiew Quan makes several statements about energy absorption and thermal effects of microwave radiation.

Statement 1:

“any biological effects, beneficial or harmful, produced by microwaves can result only from absorption of energy by the tissues.”

Statement 2:

“all biologic effects of microwaves cannot be attributed solely to temperature increases that result from energy absorption or whether these effects are produced in part by mechanisms other than simple thermal elevation.”

Statement 3:

“at this time it is impossible to rule out the possibility of athermal effects of microwaves.”

The thermal vs athermal debate was well underway in 1960.

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Problems with Palo Alto Verizon Cell Tower Project

Challenges in Scaling So-Called “Small Cell” Cell Towers

By Sean Kinney, Managing Editor on June 16, 2017 |
Original article here

In California, challenges to [so-called “Small Cell” cell towers] at scale include selecting the correct paint color and addressing concerns about health impacts [human health hazards].

Actual deployments of small cells has lagged behind perhaps ambitious projections for years. The problem is that, given the unique nature of each site and the regulatory process that governs a particular location, it’s difficult to establish a scalable, predictable process. With deployment estimates ranging from $25,000 to $50,000 per small cell, carriers have struggled to develop a one-size-fits-all approach; coupled with regulations that vary from city to city, it can take months of lead up for field work that can be completed in hours or days.

Case in point, Verizon Wireless is currently working with the city of Palo Alto, Calif., to install 92 small cells, 80 on wooden utility poles owned by the city, and 12 on metal street lights , according to a project description received by the city on Jan. 30. Verizon contemplates three configurations, all containing one antenna, three radios and one disconnect. The variations are in whether the battery back up is located on the pole, on the ground next to the pole, or not needed at all.

Note: the 12/7/17 Architectural Review Board (ARB) voted to require that all radios and ancillary equipment and other ground equipment must be below grade, which you can view here. Liquid cooling technology can be used to ensure that undergrounded equipment does not use noisy fans. The 4-1 ARB vote can be viewed here.

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Restore Net Neutrality

The Problem: The FCC Repealed Net Neutrality

by Aylin Woodward on December 14, 2017; The following was selected from the original article here.

In a 3-to-2 decision on December 14, 2017, the Federal Communications Commission voted to repeal the rules that regulate how internet service providers (ISPs) connect us to the world wide web. Termed “net neutrality,” these rules ensured that companies like Verizon, AT&T, and Comcast couldn’t charge more for higher quality service or block certain websites. In short, these rules helped guarantee equality for all voices and prevented censorship.

With net neutrality in place, ISPs had to treat all data — no matter what the content was, who owned it, or who created it — passing through their networks the same. But with this repeal, which rolls back regulations passed under the Obama administration in 2015, high-speed Internet is no longer a utility regulated by the federal government. Now, providers can prioritize the content and data from companies that pay more, shifting them to the Internet “fast lane,” while smaller companies that can’t afford the higher costs are left behind with slower streaming speeds.

The Solution: Take Back the Internet

1. How We Take Back the Internet | Edward Snowden
2. Sue the FCC
3. Fight The Filter Bubble

Here’s What The Experts Are Saying

We asked experts in business and media to weigh in on what the death of net neutrality means. Here’s what they had to say:

Roger Kay

Technology market analyst at Endpoint Technologies Associates, Inc.

When we allow an industry to divide us into castes, it allows them to make the experience bad for everyone. First class people don’t want to meet other’ eyes. Some people become jealous of others’ privileges. These social dynamics are likely to play out in Internet domain as Verizon, Comcast, and AT&T benefit from them.

Aram Sinnreich

Professor at American University School of Communication

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The FCC Repeals Net Neutrality

. . . so, we have to Battle for the Net!

The FCC just voted to gut net neutrality rules, letting Internet providers like Verizon and Comcast control what we can see and do online with new fees, throttling, and censorship. But we can still get Congress to stop this—by passing a “Resolution of Disapproval” to overturn the FCC vote. We can win. Write and call Congress now!

Congress can overrule the FCC vote. This is how.

The FCC vote to destroy the Net Neutrality protections on Dec. 14 should not stand.

Text BATTLE to 384-387 to contact Congress and stop the FCC.

Write to your elected representatives:

Dear Senator/Representative:

I’m calling on you to work with your colleagues to use the Congressional Review Act to pass a “resolution of disapproval” reversing the FCC’s vote.

The FCC’s Dec. 14 decision willfully ignored the outcry from tens of millions of people, and it abdicated the FCC’s responsibility to protect the internet from ISP blocking and discrimination. The FCC has injured our economy and free speech in just one action, all without so much as a single public hearing.

We need members of Congress to stand up for the open internet and for the digital civil rights of their constituents now. Please use the CRA to pass a Resolution of Disapproval to overturn the FCC’s December 14 “Restoring Internet Freedom” vote.

Thank you.

Ajit Pai’s Cringeworthy Net Neutrality Propaganda PSA: 223,000 Thumbs Down

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City of Palo Alto: Take Heed

The City of Palo Alto is allowing the placement, construction and modification of 120+ so-called “Small Cell” Cell towers in the public rights of way in Palo Alto’s residential zones, while the City of Palo Alto ignores substantial evidence and their non-prempted duties to regulate the operations of these so-called “Small Cell” Cell towers.

When regulating the operations of the so-called “Small Cell” Cell towers in the public rights of way, the City has both the freedom and the duty to consider the latest science that establishes health hazards from RF Microwave Radiation exposures, including the following: