Effects Of Electromagnetic Wav Essay Research Paper

Effects Of Electromagnetic Wav Essay, Research Paper

The Effects of Living Under

Electro Magnetic Fields

Power Lines

Electric power is a fact of life in America in the world today. Ever since electric power was introduced society has thought nothing of the harmful effects of electromagnetic fields or electricity as long as they had it at their disposal. I will not be able to answer the question for you about how harmful it is but I will be able to enlighten you with information to help you decide how harmful it really is. For many years there have been studies to see if electromagnetic fields are the cause of many some cancers and other health issues. There are many questions that people have about power lines. People often wonder if they are safe to live near powerlines. Scientists all over the world have been tackling these questions as far back as the 1960 s. Recently, a new question has emerged about the electric power we all depend on: Does it have anything to do with cancer or brain tumors. Some epidemiological studies have suggested that a link may exist between exposure to power-frequency electric and magnetic fields (also known as EMF’s) and certain types of cancer, primarily leukemia and brain cancer. Other studies have found no such link. Laboratory researchers are studying how such an association is biologically possible. At this point, there is no scientific knowledge about the EMF issue-except a general agreement that better information is needed. A national EMF research effort is under way, and major study results are expected in the next few years..(http://www.niehs.nih.gov/oc/factsheets/emf/humanhlth.htm)

In order for you to fully understand what I am talking about I will inform you about power lines or else known as transmission lines and explain to you what they look like and how they work. There are two basic types of power lines there are transmission lines and distribution lines. Transmission lines are high-voltage power lines. The high voltage allows electric power to be carried efficiently over long distances from electrical generation facilities to substations near urban areas. In the United States, most transmission lines use alternating current (AC) and operate at voltages between 50 and 765 kV. . (http://www.niehs.nih.gov/oc/factsheets/emf/epbasics.htm) Transmission lines end at transformer substations where the voltage is increased or decreased as required for further transmission. Transmission lines are made up of metallic conductors, each is designed to carry specific electrical voltages. The structures that support the conductors are made from single or double wooden poles, or lattice steel. A single circuit transmission line consists of a set of three metallic conductors to create a complete electrical circuit. A double circuit towers carry two sets of conductors. The conductor must clear the ground at the low point between the towers by at least seven meters, height may vary according to different CSA standards. A lighting guard is or called sky wire is installed at the high point of the tower to avoid lighting outages. (Fur, 2) . Then we have distribution lines which, utilities use that are lower-voltage to bring power from substations to businesses and homes. Distribution lines operate at voltages below 50 kV. (http://www.niehs.nih.gov/oc/factsheets/emf/epbasics.htm)

Before I inform you about the effects of electromagnetic radiation, here is some information to give you an idea what I am talking about. Electromagnetic Radiation Electromagnetic radiation is defined as the emission and transmission of energy in the form of electromagnetic waves (Chang, pp. 246). An electromagnetic wave consists of two waves at perpendicular planes, on representing the electrical field while the other represents the magnetic field. This spectrum is split up into about 81 octaves, much like the octaves of sound, which scientists have categorized in order to depict the usefulness of the different properties. Theoretically electromagnetic waves can be as long as the expansive width of the universe in one wave, to a wavelength the size of a quanta (the smallest amount of energy that can be transmitted). That, however, is at this point in time negligible because we either cannot detect wavelengths so extremely large or infinitesimally small. So generally the spectrum is regarded to be set between 30,000,000 km and .0001 angstroms (1 km is equal to 1 X 10^13 angstroms). The longest and least energetic of the accepted wavelengths are radio waves. Their wavelengths range from 300,000 km to 30 cm and a frequency of 30 kHz to 3,000,000 kHz. The waves are used in the transmission of radio and television signals. AM and FM radio signals fall in the long-wave radio range, while TV signals use the short-wave radio range, somewhere in the 3 m wavelength. Radio waves take up about 30 of the 81 octaves. The next slightly more energetic and shorter wavelength is microwaves. Obviously, most are familiar with microwaves since they are always being used to cook food, but microwaves are also used in radiotelescopes and radar, even the radiation from a neutral hydrogen atom falls in this range. Microwave range extends from wavelengths of 30 cm to .3 cm and frequencies of 1-100 billion cycles per second. This corresponds to 6 1/2 octaves. Then comes the infrared range. While much of the radio spectrum passes easily through our atmosphere, infr