Let us therefore go in order, reconstructing the theories carried out by some currents of thought and those which are the realities highlighted by science, without forgetting some controversies that must be taken into due consideration.
Conspiracy theories
There are numerous conspiracy theories and hoaxes that are circulating on the Net in these days, some decidedly spans in the air and others that at first glance may seem plausible. In most cases these are assumptions and unfounded rumors circulated by “self-styled” experts, who base their theories on personal interpretations of some events.
The most sensational hoax concerns the possibility that the virus uses the electromagnetic waves of the 5G network to communicate and spread faster. This is completely false news, which is based on research, the results of which are controversial and never proven in a certain way.
It is a pity, however, that the research in question refers to bacteria, while the invisible enemy we are dealing with in this period is a virus, which is not equipped with its own intelligence, still needing a host cell to replicate itself. The theory is therefore quickly dismantled and in essence exploits the little knowledge of ordinary people on scientific questions.
This is not the only completely groundless hoax, but before talking to you about a couple of very particular conspiracy theories, we must delve into one of the many controversies related to 5G networks but more generally to all wireless signals and electromagnetic emissions.
Some currents of thought argue that prolonged exposure to electromagnetic waves would cause a decrease in immune defenses, leaving our body more exposed to external threats, such as the current coronavirus. Dr. Martin Pall, an emeritus professor of biochemistry and medical sciences at Washington State University, claims that the electromagnetic fields caused by 5G antennas lead to the activation of calcium channels for the electrical activation of neurons.
In this way, viral replication would be accelerated and the effects of the infection would be amplified, which in the case of COVID-19 would mean a rapid worsening of pneumonia, the main cause of coronavirus-related deaths. It must be said that Dr. Pall claims that 5G networks have a massive impact on reproduction and could lead to the extinction of mankind within seven years. We will talk about what science says about it in the dedicated paragraph.
Linked to this theory, to be demonstrated, there are three rather bizarre theses, and directly related to each other, which make those on chemtrails pale. The first states that the coronavirus would actually be a cover to hide the deaths due to 5G networks, in particular to the effect of radio signals at 60 GHz on the human body (more on this later). In support of the theory there would be some videos showing people, in China and in other countries, who inexplicably fall to the ground at the moment (so the theory claims) when the 5G antennas are turned on.
In reality, most of the videos are related to drunken people with masks, who fall for other reasons. Directly connected to this theory there are two more, which are rapidly taking hold: the containment measures, in fact, which force billions of people into the house, would allow on the one hand the installation of new 5G antennas without the population being aware of it , and on the one hand they would force people to absorb more radiation, to get sick, die and reduce the population on the planet, in favor of a new world order.
Very close to this theory we find another, according to which the COVID-19 it is actually a disease created by a phantom group that created 5G for the purpose of creating a vaccine. The purpose of this vaccine would be to inject a chip to control the entire population, in perfect Big Brother style.
Among the studies most cited by conspiracy theorists are those attributed to Ronald Neil Kostoff, who in his research speaks of the “largest unethical medical experiment in human history“. To an inexperienced eye, the research, signed by a doctor affiliated with the Georgia Institute of Technology, may seem authoritative and worthy of attention.
It is a pity that Dr. Kostoff is not a virologist or an epidemiologist, since he can boast a PhD in aerospace sciences and no other member of the prestigious technological research center has participated in the creation of the dossier.
On the other hand, in the voluminous publication, consisting of 1086 pages, Kostoff limits himself to making a series of conjectures, taking up all the studies that go to satisfy his prejudices, with a technique called cherry picking. The whole work is a set of spurious correlations between events, with a final consideration bordering on the absurd: if it is not possible to demonstrate that the electromagnetic emissions of 5G networks are not dangerous, amplifying the effects of COVID-19, then it means that these emissions are harmful.
If the theory seems somewhat fallacious, it must be said that it is somehow married to Gunter Pauli, first economic adviser to the current Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte. In a tweet of March 22 Pauli makes a statement that somehow reinforces the conspiracy theory saying verbatim:
“Science must demonstrate and explain the cause and effect relationship. Science, however, must first observe the correlations: phenomena that seem apparently associated. We apply scientific logic. What was the first city in the world to be covered by 5G? Wuhan. What was the first European region with 5G? Northern Italy.”
Said in this way, Pauli’s statement would suggest that the ignition of the 5G antennas and the spread of the coronavirus are in close correlation, even without directly mentioning the disease. The numbers supporting the theory are available to everyone: 30,000 5G antennas were activated in Wuhan in October 2019, on the occasion of the world military games, which according to some would be the true trigger of the pandemic. Again, these are assumptions without any scientific evidence, as we will explain later, also denied by the associations of telephone companies.
These were therefore the main ones conspiracy theories that mainly circulate on the web. Now is the time to talk about those hypotheses that may seem more realistic and that highlight some contradictions of science.
Disputes and doubts
In recent weeks, a video has been depopulating on the web, which YouTube has removed along with all those who have no scientific basis, with the hypotheses of Dr. Thomas Cowan, an American holistic doctor.
Dr. Cowan says that every major pandemic in human history has been linked to increasing levels of electrification on Earth. L’Spanish influence, which in conjunction with the First World War caused the death of between 50 and 100 million people, would have occurred when the first radar systems were turned on.
The launch of the first satellites would later cause the1968 flufrom Hong Kong, allegedly causing the death of two million people. Again, at first glance, the claims may seem valid, except that they were released by a doctor who was suspended for questionable medical practices.
His hypotheses also do not explain the great epidemics of the past, which cyclically hit the earth: the Asian influence that cost the lives of over a million people and the flu between 1957 and 1960 is missing swine that killed more than 500,000 people between 2009 and 2010, just to mention the most recent cases.
If we go back in time, technology and electromagnetic emissions cannot explain the black Plague, which left in Asia around 1330 and arrived in Europe in 1346, causing, according to some estimates, the death of at least 20 million people, about a third of the European population of the time. Still further back, and further away from electromagnetic emissions, is the Justinian’s plague, which around 500 caused a number of deaths between 25 and 100 million.
It is therefore evident that Dr. Cowan’s theory seems to have a scientific foundation, raising many doubts in the population, but in reality it limits itself to underlining some coincidences without however providing scientific evidence. The only hypotheses carried out concern 5G radiation, which would be more dangerous in relation to the quantity of metals (aluminum in particular) present in our body, thus facilitating the reproduction of the virus. Again science responds without delay, remembering how a virus needs an organism with which to bind its genetic material, not of cells poisoned by metals.
However, not all the statements are without foundation and in some cases science is not able to provide certain answers, as we will see shortly. And it is precisely to this problem that the more moderate fringes of the protesters of the 5G networks appeal, regardless of a possible link with the coronavirus and the disease related to it.
Like most of the previous technologies, careful scientific tests have not been carried out on the possible side effects related to electromagnetic emissions, so much so that some say that at this moment the human race is unaware of a great long-term scientific experiment.
It should be said that, in the impossibility of obtaining absolute data, ten-year studies would be needed to measure the possible effect of a prolonged exposure to the electromagnetic waves emitted by the 5G control units and to understand if there can be certain correlations with a greater spread of viruses.
From the point of view of technology, these are unworkable premises, given that studies related to first or second generation cellular networks, with all that derives, would still be ongoing. Precisely for this reason science is based on evidence, by imposing limits not to be exceeded, much lower than those that could cause problems to arise.
The claims of science
About 5G and the possible health risks, we have already discussed some time ago in our in-depth analysis. So let’s see what science says about possible correlation between 5G networks and coronavirus, with a more general look at technology. The data that deny the hypotheses, from the most absurd to the most realistic, all come from accredited institutes and from the highest Italian and world health organizations.
If it seems likely that 5G has an effect on the spread of the coronavirus, as the data relating to Wuhan and northern Italy, as well as Switzerland, would seem to indicate, there are data that cannot be explained by this theory. Iran is one of the countries most affected by the pandemic, yet it still has no hint of 5G infrastructure. And most of the affected countries do not have 5G infrastructures that can justify the rapid spread.
It should also be said that Wuhan is only one of the sixteen Chinese cities covered by the 5G pilot project, and that the other cities concerned have not been affected so significantly. On the other hand, in Italy the experimentation involved, in addition to Milan, also Bologna Rome and Naples, cities in which the incidence has been decidedly lower than in the whole of Lombardy (which includes numerous provinces where 5G has not yet been activated ). And Bergamo and Brescia, the most affected provinces of Lombardy, they have no active projects for 5G.
L’Higher Institute of Health states that there is no scientific evidence related to the carcinogenicity of electromagnetic fields. The studies that have shown contradictory results are linked to tests on mice and with non-homogeneous levels of radiation, which in some cases have been decidedly above the limits established by law.
Even the Ministry of Health, in its note linked to fake news circulating around the coronavirus, remember that there is no scientific evidence on a possible correlation between viruses and 5G, just as there is no causal evidence that the latter affects the immune system.
Even an independent body like the ICNIRP (International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection) states that, respecting some strict limits, the radio frequency emissions of 5G are absolutely not harmful. In particular, the commission focuses on 60 GHz band, responsible according to conspiracy theorists for numerous sudden deaths. Also on this topic, we proposed a study some time ago.
High frequency electromagnetic fields cause relatively superficial exposure, with less penetration capacity into the human body. Proof of this is the fact that these waves can be heavily attenuated by the leaves of the trees (that’s why branches and trees are cut at the 5G antennas) and completely shielded from metals.
According to ICNIRP, the first studies highlight how exposure to electromagnetic fields is similar to that of 3G and 4G networks. It should also not be forgotten that these fields are also generated by the numerous household appliances present in our homes (microwaves, refrigerators, televisions, computers), without permanent damage to humans having been reported so far. In fact, we recall that these are non-ionizing radiation, which have no deleterious effects on humans, unlike ionizing ones (high frequency ultraviolet rays, X rays, gamma rays) whose damage on living tissues has long been proven.
It should also be said that low intensity radiation in the millimeter band (from 30 to 300 GHz) is being studied in medicine. In Eastern Europe, for example, they are used for therapeutic purposes as they would alleviate stress reactions, stimulate tissue repair and regeneration.
The internationally recognized results are promising and millions of people have already undergone millimeter wave therapy (mmwave) for over forty years and the results have been published in a complete study.
Recall that the Soli technology, used by Google on the recent Pixel 4 series, uses a radar chip that operates precisely at 60 GHz. We talked about it in our article a few months ago, also reminding you that in some countries this technology is disabled precisely for avoid interference with aviation radar.
In the same way, since it is a frequency not yet subject to a license, there are many companies that intend to use this band for transmissions related to electromedical equipment or vital signs monitoring.
Intel, Qualcomm and other manufacturers have already made several products that support the WiGig standard, which operates precisely at the frequency of 60 GHz and is defined by the IEEE 802.11 ad standards and by the next IEEE 802.11 ay standard. In this way it is possible to obtain transfer rates that can reach 7 Gbps at a maximum distance of 10 meters from the router and will go up to 30 Gbps at 30 meters from the router with the 802.11 ay standard.
WiGig adapters, cards and routers have already been available on the market for some time, which apparently have gone unnoticed in the eyes of conspiracy theorists, as well as other technologies that have been in use for some time.
Final thoughts
This long dissertation obviously has no scientific ambition, which we leave to the competent authorities, but rather the desire to clarify many uncontrolled rumors circulating on the Net. At a unique moment in our history, in which even the people who have not been affected since the pandemic they are put to the test, the circulation of false news is potentially dangerous, since it could lead to disproportionate reactions with a deleterious effect.
We brought what is scientific evidence without wanting to hide any problems that could arise in the future. On the other hand, there is no question that we must give credit to science and to what has emerged in the course of the studies conducted so far, net of some exceptions that almost always find a rational explanation.
