Tuesday, July 19, 2011

Scientific genius at the TSA

Right here.  Apparently, a TSA agent told an angry mother--whose child was about to be groped by TSA agents--that the Rapiscan (yes that is its real name) used for screening used the same technology as a sonogram.

For reference, the Rapiscan uses microwave energy, while a sonogram (ultrasound) uses sound energy at a much lower frequency.  Moreover, given that the frequency used for a Rapiscan is far different from a cell phone, it's really hard to tell which is safer, especially given that most clinical tests of the effects of microwave and RF radiation are inconclusive.

Now I don't expect TSA agents to be experienced in clinical trials, but I do expect them to know that their tool works with microwave radiation, not sound.

No comments: