Word: slesin
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CAPTION: Probably no individual has collected more information about extremely low-frequency fields -- or done more to sound the alarm about the dangers they may pose -- than Louis Slesin, editor of a newsletter called Microwave News. Here is his ranking of the worst hazards -- and some advice...
...Brodeur who first brought Slesin's work to widespread public attention. Much of the information in Brodeur's influential book Currents of Death was gleaned from the files of Microwave News. In a chapter titled "Watchdog" he describes Slesin's unrelenting coverage of the landmark studies linking low-level electromagnetic fields to the increased incidence of miscarriage, birth defects and various forms of cancer, especially brain tumors and leukemia. In the July 9 issue of the New Yorker, Brodeur returned to the subject with a detailed story about a cancer cluster in Guilford, Conn. Over a period of 20 years...
...Slesin and three assistants publish Microwave News out of a three-room Manhattan apartment that used to be his home. In addition to major reports on the hazards of electric blankets, microwave ovens and medical imaging systems, a typical 16-page issue will summarize the latest health studies, monitor ongoing litigation and track various government activities, like this week's congressional hearings on the status of federal research efforts. Subscribers include utilities and communications companies and officials in some 30 government agencies...
...everybody appreciates Slesin's work. Despite having a reputation for evenhandedness, he is seen in some industry circles as a crusader. "He's not alarmist or inflammatory," admits Bruce Dickerson, executive director of the Center for Office Technology, an industry-sponsored clearinghouse for information about VDT safety. "But he does represent a constituency that is not in the mainstream of science. ((The government agencies concerned with worker safety)) certainly don't believe there are adverse health effects...
...Slesin, the fact that the government has not taken the issue seriously is part of the problem. In his opinion, the studies linking higher incidences of cancer to low-frequency electromagnetic fields raise questions about the whole electromagnetic spectrum, including radiation from such ubiquitous sources as broadcast antennas, walkie-talkies and cellular telephones. But despite all the warning signs, there has been almost no research on the effects of long-term low-level exposure. "The U.S. has gone to extraordinary lengths not to study this problem," says Slesin. "It's as if we're terrified of what we might find...