Sunday, May 7, 2017

Week 6 — Jennifer Zhang

Jennifer Zhang
SID# 916016940
ASA 002 / A03

Is Wi-Fi in Schools Safe?

In Brian Spero's "Is Wi-fi in Schools Safe?" from the Boston Parents Paper, he discusses the possible dangers that electromagnetic fields (EMF) pose to our health. With scientifically supported research, Spero shifts the articles focus on how schools are no strangers to EMFs, and how our children are constantly exposed to them. Personally, I found no surprise in reading about constantly being surrounded by EMFs in this day and age, with technology advancing more rapidly than ever and social media becoming and increasingly prevalent part of our daily lives. As such, I was also unfazed while reading the part of the article that put emphasis on schools normalizing wi-fi usage and making it a routine investment—what caught my interest was the focus on schools and universities using wi-fi as a means to stay on top. I always find it fascinating (and a bit sad) to be able to connect each week's readings to each other, as it demonstrates the intersectionality and overlap in Asian American studies; Spero's piece is an obvious display of more corporatization of the university. The university spends more in order to attract more students, make more money, and compete with other universities, at the price of basic physical health. As institutions with duties of putting the students first and missions to educate, I find it incredibly sad, disappointing, but also not surprising that something as harmful as EMFs that could easily be reduced is so often overlooked because of how big a role technology plays in our modern lives. 

Attached is an image not specific to EMFs, but one I found simple, charming, and straightforward while on the topic of technology in modern day society.



Question: The article gave us many tips on what we could do to reduce EMF exposure, but what are some steps we could take to make bigger changes, like in the universities, on an institutional level?


Works Cited:

Cartoon school technology tech cartoons in a perfect world this kind of curriculum would be. Cartoonsmix. Retrieved from http://cartoonsmix.com/cartoons/cartoon-school-technology.html 

Spero, B. (2017). Is wi-fi in schools safe? Boston Parents Paper. Retrieved from http://bostonparentspaper.com/article/print.php?id=3009522

No comments:

Post a Comment