Cellular Phones, Public Fears, and a Culture of Precaution

Earlier this month UK government scientists released a report dripping with equivocation over the issue of mobile phone safety. The Advisory Group on Non-Ionising Radiation provided no evidence that mobile phones or transmission masts harmed health but called, anyway, for more research and a cautionary approach meanwhile (www.nrpb.org/advisory_groups/agnir/). While the report stated that the published research “does not give cause for concern,” it nevertheless endorsed a previous recommendation of limiting children's exposure to mobile phones. In the absence of any evidence that mobile phones pose a risk, such cautionary advice boils down to a …