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A
correlation exists between clusters of both traditional TSEs and
new variant TSEs and environments where high intensities of natural
infrasound and environments where excessive intensities of man made
infrasound (from supersonic turbojet aircraft) occurs respectively.
Naturally
generated sources of infrasound are either perennial or seasonal.
Perennial sources stem from waterfalls (98), sites of geothermal
activity (99) and seismic induced movements at tectonic plate junctions
(99). Winter seasonal sources of infrasound stem from oceanic waves
(100), marine storms (100) and wind storms (101), whereas summer and
other seasonally related sources stem from thunder/lightning storms
(102), auroral disturbances (103), geomagnetic activity (104),
atmospheric turbulence (105). Acute sources of natural infrasound are
radiated from volcanic eruptions (106) and the seismic shock waves of
earthquakes (107) produced by the tectonic movement of rift plates sited
along mountain ranges and coastal locations.
Interestingly,
all of the long standing clusters of traditional sporadic/familial TSE
are located on the major tectonic fault lines across the globe where
earthquakes occur – notably on the mid atlantic rift and the infamous
“ring of fire” (108) (See map 3)
Map
3
This recent observation of
a ‘tectonic’ connection to TSE cluster locations could offer a
decisive explanation for the previously stated more generalised
observation that “all traditional, long standing TSE clusters erupt in
areas located in volcanic, pre cambrian, high altitude, mountainous
terrain” (4).
Furthermore,
the well recognised TSE clusters investigated in Iceland,
Colorado, Slovakia, Calabria, Sardinia, Sicily and Japan (5) have
all implicated populations residing in parabole shaped mountain valleys
where the valley mouth opens into the full brunt of the prevailing
winds.
Interestingly,
certain topographical landforms are predisposed to serving as acoustic
beacons or tannoys of amplified infrasound. For instance, parabole
shaped mountain valleys or coastal cliffs can refract and/or channel
incoming prevailing infrasonic waves (radiating from windstorms,
oceanic waves, thunderstorms, explosions, etc), into wind tunnels so
that they converge to form acoustic beacons of concentrated infrasound
at spot locations (109).
Acute,
high volume sources of artificial infrasound are perhaps more relevant
in respect of the aetiology of TSEs, whilst the lower volume artificial
infrasound which radiates from industrial/domestic air
conditioners, boilers, transformers, extractor fans, blast furnaces,
asphalt plants, stationary autocar, train engines, ship foghorns,
sirens, church bells, organs etc (30)(98), provides a constant
source of low to medium intensity background infrasound in western
industrial countries. However, the locations which radiate high decibel
acute infrasonic shock bursts from rocket/missile/ bomb/nuclear
testing sites, quarry/mine explosives or beneath intensively used
flight paths of supersonic turbojet passenger and low flying military
aircraft/helicopters (98) seem to correlate with locations where TSE
clusters emerge.
Examples
include the recent outbreak of CWD in deer residing in the White Sands
Missile testing facility in New Mexico where infrasonic shock bursts are
well known to be high (110)(98).The CWD cluster around Mt Horeb,
Wisconsin, also adjoins a missile testing facility. Likewise, the
deer in the Colorado and Wyoming clusters of CWD (1) all reside in
specific areas that are chronically exposed to quarry/mine/gun
explosions as well as turbulence derived infrasound (105), the New
Quinea Fore tribes folk had accidentally exploded bombs from crashed
world war two bombers before they developed the Kuru TSE (111), whilst
the CJD foci in Slovakia (112) Calabria (113) and the scrapie foci in
Sardinia (114) reside in areas where intensive blasting for open cast
stone quarries is practised, as well as being chronically exposed
to infrasound derived from tectonic plate margins where severe
earthquakes have occasionally erupted(115)(116).
Locations
which are subjected to ‘shockwave’ boom carpets of supersonic/subsonic aircraft
over-flights - where a high intensity of select
low frequency infrasound is radiated from the “afterburner” employed
for the high thrust acceleration/deceleration (116)(109)(98) -
correlate precisely with the locations where clusters of new strain BSE
and vCJD have emerged in the UK and France, being regions where a high
intensity of Cu chelating warble insecticides and Mn feed supplements
have been concurrently used on cattle (4)(5)(6) .
Known
Health Effects of Infrasound.
Infrasound
is an insidious force to be reckoned with. High intensities of certain
low frequencies of sound present a lethal environmental commodity that
has not been fully recognised as yet. Even low intensity natural
infrasound from ocean waves is known to significantly influence the
biorhythms of the human brain (32)
Infrasound
receptors have been identified in special infrasound sensitive neurones
in the cochlear ganglion of birds, elephants and other infrasound
sensitive species (31). These neurones originate from the papilla
basilaris (hair cell receptors) and extend into the auditory cortex
which ultimately interconnects with the vestibular pathways. Free
radicals generated by any phonooxidative stress at these receptors (33)
are scavenged by copper/zinc SOD antioxidants (117)(118) – once again
demonstrating how copper/zinc deficient individuals (eg those residing
in Cu/Zn deficient TSE ecosystems (4) ) may be hypersensitive to the
oxidative effects resulting from high burst exposure to infrasonic and
other audio frequencies.
Considering
the ability of infrasonic radiation to penetrate all biological tissues
(98) and significantly influence the bio rhythms of the brain (32), it
must be assumed that intensive bursts of infrasound can exert a
biological impact at a diverse array of electromagnetic receptors
located in the retina, pineal, etc, regardless of the capacity for
conscious perception of infrasound expressed by the species involved.
Low
intensity infrasound from autocar engines has been well recognised to
induce car sickness (30)(98) - a mild serotonergic-vestibular
disturbance involving nausea, giddiness, headache. Furthermore, the
infrasound radiated from boilers and air conditioning (30)(98) has been
controversially implicated in the aetiology of ‘sick building
syndrome’- an increasingly common mystery condition which affects a
high proportion of people working/living in the internal environs of
certain buildings.
At
higher intensities, infrasound can produce resonances in body cavities
such as the chest and stomach, producing lethal damage to internal
organs (30). The resonance effects on the brain have not been
researched. Some low frequencies radiated from hi-fi equipment have
caused sudden unexpected deaths at techno-type dance parties, where
infrasonic sensitivity may have been induced by concurrent exposure to
abusive psychotrophic drugs which impact serotonergic circuits in the
CNS. Furthermore, experiments to develop a miltary infrasonic weapon by
Vladimir Gavreau in France (98) had to be abandoned due the
uncontrollable and lethal nature of the infrasonic radiation that
could decimate buildings and biological life following a few seconds of
application.
Intensive
sources of infrasound generated from the application of man made
appliances in the modern environment – rocket/missile launches and
over-flight of supersonic aircraft (98)(119)(120)(121)(122)(123) which
employ the ‘afterburner’ turbofan thrust technology – pose one the
greatest health risks associated with infrasound.
Several
field and laboratory research studies which began to substantiate the
physiological effects of infrasound/sonic booms on human
subjects were carried out by Von Gierke and others during the 1960s/1970s (98)(119)(120)(121)(122)(123). Pathological effects had also been
observed in the middle ear of servicemen who worked on German submarines
during world war two and had been exposed to the infrasound radiated by
the suction strokes of the engine cylinders (98)(124).
Apprehension,
fatigue, headache, lowered intelligence, salivation, coughing, voice
modulation, increase of middle ear pressure, chest wall/nasal cavity
vibration, visual field vibration, interference with respiration,
hypopharyngeal gagging, cutaneous flushing and tingling where instantly
invoked during several tests on human subjects exposed to two minute
bursts of infrasonic frequencies of 5 cycles per second upwards at sound
pressure intensities up to 150 decibels (120). Other tests had
demonstrated the severe impact of infrasound on the vestibular system
resulting in vertigo, feeling of falling, nystagmus, spatial
disorientation, tinnitus (98)
With
an increase in intensity and lowering of the frequency of the
noise radiated from the larger modern afterburners employed on the
supersonic passenger aircraft (98), there is a need to carry out updated
studies on the possible long term delayed neurological effects of these
more intensive sources of infrasound that are permeating our the modern
environment.
One
intriguing study by Jonathan Hagstrum (109) reported the disruption of
pigeon races following permanent loss of homing orientation ability in
pigeons who had flown into the 100km boom carpet of the Concorde
supersonic transport on several separate occasions. Concorde’s intense
infrasonic acoustic shock waves were considered to have disrupted the
pigeon’s navigational ability to follow naturally occurring infrasonic
microseism cues which radiate from steep sided topographical
features.
This
observation is interesting in that navigational orientation skills of
migrating birds, bees, dolphins, sharks and mammals are thought to be
centred upon a physiological ability to simultaneously detect specific
frequencies of both light and geomagnetic field from the earth(125)(126). These radiations are thought to be detected at special blue light
‘cryptochrome’ receptors in the retina (127) and at magnetoreceptors
in the retina, sinus, pineal, midbrain, etc, (20)(88)(89) which
are all integrally interconnected to the circadian pathways.
The
magnetoreceptors are biomineralized with ferrimagnetic magnetite (128) also present in humans, (129), and this metal is thought to form the
basis of an internal compass for magnetic field detection in mammals.
Perhaps some pathogenic impact of the acoustic shock wave from Concorde
had somehow disturbed/metamorphosed the magnetic status of the atoms in
the metal domains in magnetoreceptors, to the extent that the
pigeons permanently lost their navigational abilities?
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