A new form of technophobia is gripping university administrators in Canada.

The president of Canada’s Lakehead University, in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Fred Gilbert, has put a ban on any use of Wifi on campus because inconclusive studies can’t prove its safety.

Wifi is an acronym for wireless fidelity. It allows people with a wireless-enabled computer or PDA to access the Internet or other services within the proximity of an access point, otherwise known as a hotspot.

They are believed to be the only institution in Canada to take such a step against the possibly damaging wireless signal.

In one case from a suburb in Chicago, a plaintiff attributed memory loss and other neurological harm to extended exposure to wifi. To date, there is no scientific evidence to support the claim.

“All I’m saying is, while the jury’s out on this one, I’m not going to put in place what is potential chronic exposure for our students,” Gilbert said. “Admittedly that’s highest around the locations of the antenna sites and the wireless hotspots, but those are the places people tend to gravitate to because they get the best reception.” 

BYU–Idaho introduced a wireless network during the Fall 2003 Semester, using wifi technology. On campus wifi is available in 12 buildings, mostly in the high traffic areas such as lobbies. 

“Wireless transmissions are all around,” said Brandon Bruning, a sophomore from Jerome, Idaho. “I use wireless Internet on campus and in our apartment. So far, I don’t feel any different. But I guess I don’t think about it that much.”

With wireless, students have the freedom to roam about still connected to the Internet. Students can even access print documents through the wireless network. It is especially convenient for the students who must take their work with them.

Gilbert told the school newspaper there “will not be wireless networks while [he is] president of the university, except in circumstances where there is no other alternative ... until such time that there is adequate proof that there is not a health risk involved with wireless networks, there will be no wireless networks.”