From ER to E.T.

This book covers the study of electromagnetic wave theory and describes how electromagnetic technologies affect our daily lives.
From ER to ET: How Electromagnetic Technologies Are Changing Our Lives explores electromagnetic wave theory including its founders, scientific underpinnings, ethical issues, and applications through history. Utilizing a format of short essays, this book explains in a balanced, and direct style how electromagnetic technologies are changing the world we live in and the future they may create for us. Quizzes at the end of each chapter provide the reader with a deeper understanding of the material. This book is a valuable resource for microwave engineers of varying levels of experience, and for instructors to motivate their students and add depth to their assignments. In addition, this book:

• Presents topics that investigate all aspects of electromagnetic technology throughout history

• Explores societal and global issues that relate to the field of electrical engineering (emphasized in current ABET accreditation criteria)

• Includes quizzes relevant to every essay and answers which explain technical perspectives

Rajeev Bansal, PhD, is a professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Connecticut. He is a member of IEEE and the Connecticut Academy of Science and Engineering. He is a Fellow of the Electromagnetics Academy. His editing credits include Fundamentals of Engineering Electromagnetics and Engineering Electromagnetics: Applications. Dr. Bansal contributes regular columns to IEEE Antennas and Propagation Magazine and IEEE Microwave Magazine.

Autorentext

*Rajeev Bansal, PhD, is a professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Connecticut. He is a member of IEEE and the Connecticut Academy of Science and Engineering. He is a Fellow of the Electromagnetics Academy. His editing credits include Fundamentals of Engineering Electromagnetics and Engineering Electromagnetics: Applications. Dr. Bansal contributes regular columns to IEEE Antennas and Propagation Magazine and IEEE Microwave Magazine.*

Inhalt
ABOUT THE AUTHOR ix PREFACE xi

1 ON THE SHOULDERS OF GIANTS 1

1.1 He(a)dy Stuff / 1

1.2 From Russia without English / 3

1.3 On the Shoulders of Giants / 5

1.4 Do-it-yourself Execution? / 8

1.5 Franklin: Did He or Didn't He? / 10

1.6 De Magnete (On the Magnet) / 12

1.7 A Eureka Moment / 15

1.8 Auld Lang Syne / 17

1.9 As Singular as a Delta Function? / 19

1.10 Publish or Perish? / 21

DID YOU KNOW? 24

2 THE EARTH AND BEYOND 27

2.1 In the Eye of the Beholder / 27

2.2 Roses are Red, Violets are Blue / 30

2.3 2003: An Earth Odyssey? / 32

2.4 Which Came First: Big Bang or Big Crunch? / 34

2.5 Whistling in the Dark? / 36

2.6 Going Beyond a Selfie / 38

DID YOU KNOW? 41

3 SEARCH FOR EXTRATERRESTRIAL INTELLIGENCE (SETI) 45

3.1 Little Green Men: A Phantom Menace? / 45

3.2 Waiting for Godot? / 47

3.3 Is There Anybody There? / 49

3.4 Science or Science Fiction? / 51

DID YOU KNOW? 54

4 PROFESSIONALISM: ETHICS AND LAW 59

4.1 Did Maxwell Pull a Fast One? / 59

4.2 Cell Phones and Cancer: Anatomy of a Legal Opinion / 61

4.3 Happy 200th Anniversary! / 64

4.4 Einstein Doesn't Work Here Anymore / 66

4.5 It is a Bird. It is a Plane. It is / 68

DID YOU KNOW? 71

5 HEALTH EFFECTS OF ELECTROMAGNETIC FIELDS 75

5.1 Say Au Revoir to Cell Phones? / 75

5.2 Electromagnetic Hypersensitivity / 78

5.3 From Bell Tower to Cell Tower / 80

5.4 Nocebo: Reading This Column may Affect Your Health / 83

5.5 Magnetic Pull: Biological Effects or Medical Applications? / 85

5.6 Close Encounters With Radiation of the Other Kind / 88

DID YOU KNOW? 91

6 BIOMEDICAL APPLICATIONS 95

6.1 How Many Biologists Does it Take to Fix a Radio? / 95

6.2 The Grand Challenges / 97

6.3 Biomedical Applications: Taking Stock / 99

6.4 Tugging at the Heartstrings / 101

6.5 A Jolt from the Blue? / 103

6.6 Channeling the Voice Within / 105

6.7 Battling Cancer: Microwave Hyperthermia / 107

DID YOU KNOW? 110

7 DEFENSE APPLICATIONS 113

7.1 Where is Waldo? / 113

7.2 Antimagnet / 115

7.3 Cutting to the Chase / 117

7.4 Twenty-First Century Warfare / 119

7.5 On a Wing and a Prayer / 121

7.6 ELF Communication: An Obituary / 122

7.7 Catching up with Professor Scarry / 124

7.8 Criminal Interference / 126

7.9 Wireless Networks: An Electronic Battlefield? / 130

DID YOU KNOW? 133

8 DOMESTIC AND INDUSTRIAL APPLICATIONS 137

8.1 Blowin' in the Wind / 137

8.2 Sharing the Road / 139

8.3 Rare no More? / 141

8.4 Local Heating? / 143

8.5 Coming Soon to a Wal-Mart Near You / 145

8.6 Has Your Cat Gone Phishing? / 148

8.7 The Future of Wireless Charging / 150

8.8 Electropollution or Sustainable Energy? / 151

DID YOU KNOW? 154

9 COMMUNICATION SYSTEMS 157

9.1 Small is Beautiful / 157

9.2 Gigabit Wi-Fi / 159

9.3 Open Spectrum: A Tragedy of the Commons? / 161

9.4 Near-Field Communication / 163

9.5 A New Digital Phone? / 165

9.6 Electronic Countermeasures / 167

DID YOU KNOW? 170

10 LIFELONG LEARNING 175

10.1 Back to Basics / 175

10.2 Preaching to the Choir? / 177

10.3 The Other Davos? / 180

10.4 Mirror, Mirror on the Wall; who is the Fairest of Them All? / 182

10.5 Equations Redux / 184

10.6 New Year's Resolutions Laws / 185

10.7 Through a Glass Darkly / 187 10.8 Str...