On Sunday, January 09, 2005 6:02 PM, Ted Harding
[SMTP:[log in to unmask]] wrote:
> Hi Folks,
>
> Happy New Year! I know it's a bit late in the Festive Season
> to be setting puzzles now, since people are beginning to get
> back to serious work ... but I can't resist putting up the
> following for your consideration.
>
> Today's Sunday Telegraph (UK) carries the following in its
> Science section (Questions and Answers, byline of Robert
> Matthews) -- page 35 if you have the paper edition.
>
> "Could mobile phones cause artificial joints to become painful?
> S Appleby, London.
>
> Mr Appleby explains that he has an artificial hip made from
> steel, and he has been having pain from the joint since he
> began carrying his mobile in his right trouser pocket, right
> next to the joint. While he is reluctant to join those who
> see mobiles as the cause of every medical ailment, he still
> harbours suspicions. They strike me as well-founded, as mobiles
> emit microwaves even when they are not being used to make calls,
> in order to signal to the nearest base-station. Dr Michael Clark
> of the National Radiological Protection Board tells me it's
> possible this could induce a tiny stimulus to the nerves around
> the joint. If so, then carrying the mobile in another pocket
> should solve it -- though anyone with persistent symptoms
> like this should seek medical advice."
>
> Interesting. And the puzzle is: devise a clinical trial to test
> the hypothesis. I'd suggest carrying two mobile phones, one on
> each side. And of course the experimenter should randomly (and
> unknown to Mr Abbleby) ensure that one is switched on, and the
> other not, at the start of each day. Mr Appleby should record
> whether or not he feels pain in the joint.
>
> The tricky bit is that, in the course of the day, he might
> receive calls on his active mobile, or have to make calls,
> thereby finding out which one is switched on, which is likely
> to bias his perception of pain (given that he suspects that
> the hypothesis is true).
>
Have Mr Appleby carry two mobile phones one on each side in just the way
you stipulated so that just one is switched on, neither of which is his or
will ring and either forgo using his own mobile phone at all for awhile or
carry it in a breast pocket.
Regards & Happy New Year,
Anne Peticolas
Austin, Texas
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