5G networks and the development of the telecommunications sector, specifically infrastructure, are important for the economic and technological development of Colombia.

 

https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=2609955575918816

 

After his participation in the recent Forum "Myths, Reality and Future of Fifth Generation Mobile Communications Systems (5G), Professor Víctor Quintero, professor in the Department of Telecommunications of the Faculty of Electronic Engineering and Telecommunications of the University of Cauca , said that the beliefs and unfounded concerns of some people were analyzed in relation to the possible health effects that radio signals from fifth-generation (5G) mobile communication systems can generate. He clarified that these unjustified claims have been the result of the increasing number of videos published on social networks on this subject.

 

In this regard, he explained that radio waves generated by mobile communication systems are a type of electromagnetic radiation that correspond to non-ionizing radiation. This means that these radio waves do not have the ability to remove electrons from atoms, break molecular bonds, or have considerable health effects, such as those caused by X-rays (ionized radiation).

 

The academic activity organized by the electronic engineer Cayo Betancourt, graduated from the Faculty of Electronic Engineering and Telecommunications, had the participation of the Unicaucane engineers Patricia Fierro, Secretary of Information and Communication Technologies of Barrancabermeja (Santander); Juan Ceballos and Tulio Sandoval, and the Radiologist Unicaucano German Ruiz.

 

Professor Quintero stated that fifth generation (5G) mobile communication systems are the evolution of fourth generation (4G) systems, the latter being those currently in operation in the country; He also indicated that these systems will allow mobile devices to achieve higher data transmission speeds and with this, more and better high-speed internet services, games in real time, virtual reality and augmented or mixed reality can be provided.

 

5G systems imply a change in the model of this type of systems, since communication will not only be centered on people, but also on devices or objects (machines), which will be connected to the Internet generating and sharing information. Therefore, 5G systems will complement or promote the development of what has been called the Internet of Things (IoT, Internet of Things), and therefore its infrastructure will be adapted to also allow low data transmission speeds or transmission of small data packages that can be the result of information from sensors of environmental variables in houses, buildings, cities, or sensors for monitoring the operation and operation of factories, explained the teacher.

 

Additionally, 5G systems will improve their response time (latency), which will enable different services, among others, autonomous car driving, drone control and remote surgeries, services that require very short response times and a high reliability of communication networks. All of the above implies the need for the installation of additional communication infrastructure and the enabling of new frequencies or channels for communication. Not only people, also machines and objects will be generating and sharing information, and current networks with their characteristics will not be enough, so it is necessary to install new telecommunications infrastructure that will initially be installed on top of the existing one.

 

Countries such as South Korea, Japan, China, the United States and Canada already have 5G networks in operation, but their massification will take several years. In Latin America there are test networks in Puerto Rico and Uruguay. The other countries in the region, including Colombia, are implementing pilot networks. "In the country, there is a report that Movistar and Huawei have installed a pilot network in the Bogota District Secretary of Health, in which this pilot network will allow information on the temperature measurement of people who pass through a thermal camera to be transported urged on said secretary.

 

The effects of non-ionizing radiation are of heating, which depend on the intensity of the signals, their frequency and the time of exposure. In this sense, operators in Colombia and around the world must ensure that the population is exposed to radiation levels that do not exceed certain limits.

 

In Colombia, studies carried out by various institutions, many of them academic, have shown that in almost 100% of cases, people are exposed to levels that are well below these limits. And the World Health Organization WHO has considered electromagnetic fields as a possible carcinogen, although it also clarifies that the evidence is very limited in humans and insufficient in animals.

 

"With the current health emergency, many videos have appeared on social networks that assure without any responsibility and foundation that 5G networks are being used for the mental control of the population and that due to their appearance many people are suffering from respiratory infections chronic and other types of diseases. All of the above is not true and is only generating panic, which does aggravate the current situation”, the academic finally pointed out.

                       

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Faculty of Electronic and Telecommunications Engineering

Email: decafiet@unicauca.edu.co