Re: Deaths from fossil fuel burning air pollution

[Bernard L Cohen <blc+@pitt.edu>]

Bernard L. Cohen
Physics Dept.
University of Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh, PA 15260
Tel: (412)624-9245
Fax: (412)624-9163
e-mail: blc+@pitt.edu


On Tue, 21 Nov 2000, Otto G. Raabe wrote:

> At 09:05 AM 11/21/00 -0600, Prof. Cohen wrote:
> >
> >	--You can call it what you like as long as you don't apply it
> >outside the region where there are data. Names don't matter, but LNT has a
> >bad name because it is applied outside of the region where there are data.
> >That aspect of the bad name for LNT does not apply to the air pollution
> >studies.
> ***********************************************************************
>  YES, the regression fits are being used to calculate risk
> outside the region where there are data!

	--Not that I am aware of. Can you cite an example?

 This is the basis of assuming that
> there is a 2% increase in deaths per 50 microgram per cubic meter increase
> in airborne particulate matter and that this ratio can be applied to even
> very small increases in particulate matter concentration.
> 
	--The key word here is "increases". As long as these increases
stay within the range of available data, I see nothing wrong with this and
I don't see why it should be called LNT. The problem with LNT as applied
to radiation is that it is *extrapolated* far outside the region where
there are data. In the case of air pollution, it is *interpolated*,
staying within the region where there are data.


Bernard L. Cohen
Physics Dept.
University of Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh, PA 15260
Tel: (412)624-9245
Fax: (412)624-9163
e-mail: blc+@pitt.edu


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