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Interesting facts
Mobile telecommunications is a global industry that impacts billions of people, with over 75% of the world's population living under the umbrella of mobile coverage. This industry is now responsible for millions of jobs, contributing significantly to the wealth of nations, and Egypt is no exception.

Studies in Egypt and other countries have shown that 62 % of Small Business in South Africa and 59% of Small Business in Egypt respectively had increased profits as a result of mobile phones.

Also, it was found in Egypt that for every job created in the mobile sector, eight other jobs are created in different sectors of the economy.

The conclusion was also reached that if Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) investment in Egypt were doubled, it would create 1.3 million new jobs and the rate of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth would rocket from 4 % to 8 % and more.

Mobiles have evolved from bulky, expensive devices with limited range and reliability to simple, cheap and reliable communication tools, making them a necessity for many people throughout the world.

The ability to constantly be in touch with family and business associates is one of the many benefits of mobile communications. Today's technically advanced handsets are capable of storing data, taking pictures, browsing the internet and providing entertainment.

Another key importance of mobile communications is providing users with a sense of security. In the event of an emergency, a mobile phone can help reach people quickly and possibly save lives. One can confidently say that mobile communications is now an integral part of our modern day living.

The wide spread use of mobile phones has been accompanied by concerns about possible harmful effects on health arising not only from exposure to the radio waves that are produced by the phones but also from the base stations that serve the phones. We take people's concerns seriously - the health and safety of our customers, employees and stakeholders forms an important part of our agenda.

This issue focuses on safe levels of exposure to the radio waves emitted from mobile phones and base stations. Our approach is to ensure we operate safely and well within precautionary exposure guidelines that protect against alleged health effects. We also try to engage with others by explaining exactly How Base station works.


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How do mobile networks work?
Mobile phone network operates with two communicating elements; the handset and the base station.

Mobile phones work by converting voice, text or multi-media messages into radio waves or radiofrequencies (RF).

Mobile phone base stations transmit and receive these calls - and connect callers to other phones and other networks.

Mobile phone base stations are usually mounted either on top or on the side of existing structures. The antenna needs to be located high enough so they can adequately cover specific area.

Mobile phone networks are divided into thousands of overlapping, individual geographic areas or cells, each with a base station.

The size of a cell depends on the area of coverage that's needed and the number of calls that are made in that area. So, the biggest demand is usually in crowded urban settings with high buildings and heavy population density.

When a mobile phone caller is on the move, calls are automatically routed from a base station in one cell to a base station in another, thus providing the best signal and available capacity.


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Beam shape & direction
The power from antenna used with macrocellular base stations is radiated in conical fan-shaped beams, which are essentially directed towards the horizon with a slight downward tilt.

The beams from the antenna spread out with distance and tend to reach ground level at distances of 50 to 300 meters from the antenna. The radio wave levels at these distances are much less than those directly in front of the antenna.

Types of radiation
Scientists have agreed to classify types of radiation into two: Ionizing and non-ionizing radiation. The more energy contained in a radiation, the more impact it has and consequently more precautions should be taken in handling it.

  • Ionizing radiation
  • Non-Ionizing radiation
Mobile phones and base stations operate at a part of radiofrequency [RF] that is non-ionizing; just like AM and FM radio waves, microwaves, and infrared heat lamps.

Unlike gamma and x-rays; radio waves have too little energy to enter any tissues or break the molecular bond in cells.

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Frequencies used for mobile telephony
There are two quantities used to describe simple radio signals which are frequency and field strength. The field strength of radio waves oscillates in time as shown in the following graph and the frequency is the number of cycles in field strength that occur every second.


Frequency oscillation in a second of time

When considering people’s exposure to radio waves from base stations it is more usual to consider the power density than the field strength because this is more closely related to the quantities in which restrictions on exposure are specified.

Typical frequencies used for radio communications are shown in the diagram below.

# Item Frequency
1. Power lines [66. 110. 220. 500 KV] 50 Hz
2. Radio frequency stations:

AM radio
FM radio
VHF TV
UHF TV
130 – 160 KHz
87.5 – 108 MHz
174 – 230 MHz
470 – 890 MHz
3. Mobile phones [890.2 – 914.6] 900 – 1800 MHz
4. Microwave ovens 2.45 GHz
5. Microwave therapy 2.45 GHz
6. Heating lamps 9 X 1013 Hz
7. Medical X-Ray 1020 Hz


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