Project NEMESIS: perception of a 50 Hz electric and magnetic field at low intensities (laboratory experiment)
Mueller CH, Krueger H, Schierz C · 2002
View Original AbstractEleven percent of people can consciously detect household-level electromagnetic fields, but sensitivity symptoms don't predict detection ability.
Plain English Summary
Researchers tested 63 people to see if they could detect weak electrical fields from household wiring. Seven participants could reliably sense these fields during blind testing, but having electromagnetic sensitivity symptoms didn't predict detection ability, suggesting perception and symptoms are separate phenomena.
Why This Matters
This controlled study provides important evidence that some people can genuinely detect electromagnetic fields at levels we encounter daily around electrical wiring and appliances. The 50 Hz frequency and field strengths tested (100 V/m electric field, 6 μT magnetic field) are comparable to what you experience standing near household electrical panels or under power lines. What makes this research particularly significant is that it separates two often-confused concepts: the ability to consciously perceive EMF versus experiencing health symptoms from EMF exposure. The fact that 11% of participants could detect fields regardless of whether they reported electromagnetic hypersensitivity suggests our understanding of EMF sensitivity needs refinement. This challenges both skeptics who dismiss all EMF perception claims and those who assume sensitivity symptoms always correlate with detection ability.
Exposure Details
- Magnetic Field
- 0.006 mG
- Electric Field
- 100 V/m
- Source/Device
- 50 Hz
- Exposure Duration
- 2 min
Exposure Context
This study used 100 V/m for electric fields:
- 333.3x above the Building Biology guideline of 0.3 V/m
This study used 0.006 mG for magnetic fields:
- 300x above the Building Biology guideline of 0.2 mG
- 60x above the BioInitiative Report recommendation of 1 mG
Building Biology guidelines are practitioner-based limits from real-world assessments. BioInitiative Report recommendations are based on peer-reviewed science. Check Your Exposure to compare your own measurements.
Where This Falls on the Concern Scale
Study Details
The double blind laboratory experiment tested the hypothesis that there are subjects with the ability to perceive 50 Hz EMF at 100 V/m and 6 μT (EMF sensitive) and to investigate the prevalence of EMF sensitivity in a group consisting of subjects with or without self-reported EHS.
A total of 63 volunteers, 49 with EHS and 14 controls, took part in the EMF perception experiment, w...
Seven out of 63 subjects reached a statistically significant result which points to the existence of...
The results of the EMF perception experiment suggest that EHS is not a prerequisite for the ability to consciously perceive weak EMF and vice versa.
Show BibTeX
@article{ch_2002_project_nemesis_perception_of_499,
author = {Mueller CH and Krueger H and Schierz C},
title = {Project NEMESIS: perception of a 50 Hz electric and magnetic field at low intensities (laboratory experiment)},
year = {2002},
doi = {10.1002/bem.95},
url = {https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/bem.95},
}