Criteria for the Design or Selection of a Bioelectromagnetics Experiment.
Abstract
By athermal one normally means an effect which i) has been explained explicitly and unambiguously in terms of mechanisms other than increased random molecular motion (i.e., heating), or ii) occurs at absorbed power levels so low that a thermal mechanism seems unlikely, or iii) displays so unexpected a dependence upon some experimental variable that it is hard to see how heating could lie behind it. The aim of this report is to discuss guidelines by which and experiment directed toward the discovery or elucidation of an athermal effect might be designed or evaluated. It will consist of three main sections. First, the great commandment of athermal bioelectromagnetics will be discussed: that any reported, putatively athermal bioeffect be robustly reproducible. Six criteria are propounded for judging the credibility of a reported experiment in athermal bioelectromagnetics. It is concluded that experimentation in athermal bioelectromagnetics would be markedly facilitated by the identification of the mechanisms underlying the observed effects. Originator supplied keywords include: Experimental design; Nonionizing radiation; Biological effects of electromagnetic fields.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jun 28, 1985
- Accession Number
- ADA156575
Entities
People
- W. F. Pickard
Organizations
- University of Washington