The
Hum Phenomenon
The Hum came to prominence in the
1970s as an inexplicable, low-frequency noise which persisted in Taos, New
Mexico. Stories of the Taos hum circulated throughout the popular press with
newspapers and magazines regularly publishing articles, none of which was able
to pin down a source or explanation.
Although the Taos hum was certainly
a popular topic for publication, the hum had in fact been around for very much
longer. A quick Google search reveals 354,000 results for ‘Taos Hum’ alone.
Many other locations have since coined their own local name, such as Bristol
Hum, Bondi Hum etc.
What
is the Hum?
The Hum is defined as a persistent,
low-frequency humming, rumbling or droning noise, not audible to all people.
The origin of the sound is largely unknown. It is suspected that somewhere
between 2% to 10% of people can hear it in a normal population. This suggests a
difference in audible ability to low-frequency sound between individuals.
The perception of hearing is indeed
unique to an individual. It is well-known that hearing varies with age and
certain medical conditions. Some individuals in a normal population will have
enhanced sensitivity to one part of the spectrum.
Where
is the Hum heard?
The Hum is heard in many parts of
the world. What is significant is that it is not reported everywhere as the
World Hum Map shows. If the hum was only heard by a small percentage of a
normal population, it would be reasonable to conclude that it would be heard in
every country and every city. This is not the case. Accordingly, the conclusion
is that the Hum is in fact specific to only some locations.
The Hum is reported outside, in
dwellings and vehicles. Perception appears to be different for every individual
and every location. It is frequently reported as being more predominant inside
a building than outside, suggesting the phenomena of resonance. This phenomena
is also reported by people affected by the noise emissions of wind turbines.
The frequencies appear to be similar to naturally occurring resonances within
rooms, causing heightened problems for sufferers.
With respect to those who can
perceive the hum, the fact that they report it in some locations and not others
is strong evidence for a real, environmental phenomena, rather than an aberration
of individual hearing perception. The problem is, there is little understanding
world-wide as to the cause(s).
History
of the Hum
London
and Southampton, United Kingdom 1940s
More than 2,000 people reported hearing sounds dating back to the 1940s in the
London and Southampton areas of Great Britain. Deming cited Glasgow, Scotland’s
Sunday Herald 1995 report claiming that the Hum was, "first reported in
the late 1950s when people in Britain began to report hearing a most unusual
noise—a combination of a humming, droning and buzzing sound”. Deming, David
(2004).
"The Hum: An anomalous sound heard around the
world".
Journal of Scientific Exploration 18 (4):
571–594.
Bristol
Hum, Bristol, Britain 1979
In Britain, the most famous example was the Bristol hum that made headlines in the
late 1970s.[BBC News. 2009-05-19.]
Largs,
Scotland 1980s
Since
the 1980s, the hum has been bothering people living in coastal towns in the
west coastal area of Scotland including Largs, a coastal town about 31 km
west of Glasgow.[Deming, David (2004).
"The Hum: An anomalous sound heard around the
world".
Journal of Scientific Exploration 18 (4):
571–594.]
Taos
Hum, Taos, New Mexico, USA 1992
It was in 1992 that the Hum phenomenon began to be reported in
North
America following complaints from many citizens living near the town
of
Taos, New Mexico.[Deming, David (2004).
"The Hum: An
anomalous sound heard around the world".
Journal of
Scientific Exploration 18 (4): 571–594.]
The University of New Mexico undertook studies of hum sufferers in Taos.[
The Elusive Hum In
Taos, New Mexico".
University of New
Mexico. 22 November 1995.] One of the researchers reported that the
hum was close to 66 hertz, two octaves below middle C, although it could go as
low as the lowest E on a piano.[
Reverberations:
Move Over, Middle C: The Speculative Case for the Cosmic B Flat".
New York Times. 30 January
2004.]
An
ongoing low frequency noise, audible only to some, is thought to originate
somewhere near this town and is consequently sometimes known as the Taos Hum.
Those who have heard the Hum usually hear it west of Taos near Tres Orejas. The
Taos Hum was featured on the TV show
Unsolved
Mysteries,[
"Unsolved
Mysteries: Ghosts (2005)".
Amazon.com. Disc 4,
"Mystery Hum".] and it was also briefly mentioned in an episode of
The
X-Files.[
In A Tiny English
Town, A 'Hum' Pierces Each Night". NPR. 15 June 2011.]
Kokomo,
Indiana, USA 1999
Kokomo, a city of 47,000, allocated $100,000 in 2002 to investigate a hum after nearly
100 complaints were made since 1999. Some suffers blamed physical symptoms on
the hum, including headaches, nausea, diarrhea, fatigue and joint pain, with
one reporting that her health improved when she moved out of the town.[^
"Hum Haunts
Indiana City; Its Source Is a Mystery". New York Times. 23 June
2002.] [
"The Kokomo
Hum".
Indianapolis
Monthly. December 2002. pp. 157–163, 188–194.] In November
2002, Acentech was hired by the Board of Public Works and Safety of the City of
Kokomo to investigate the hum. Following a public meeting held 2 December 2002,
Acentech investigation of acoustic sources did not find any conclusive cause
and suggested non-acoustic phenomena, such as microwave (radio frequency) hearing,
electrosensitivity, chemical sensitivity, hypersensitivity to natural
geomagnetic phenomena may cause the "types of symptoms that these people
are experiencing."[Cowan, J. P. (October 2003).
"The Kokomo
Hum investigation". Acentech Project No. 615411 (Cambridge, MA:
Accentech Incorporated).]
Vancouver,
British Columbia, Canada pre-2003
The Hum has also been heard since before 2003 by residents on Canada’s southwest
Coast in the region around the city of Vancouver. [“
A Review of
Published Research on Low Frequency Noise and its Effects".
Defra. May 2003.]
Woodland,
County Durham, England 2011
In June 2011, residents of the small rural village of
Woodland, England reported experiencing a hum
that had already lasted for over two months.[
"In search of
the thing that goes hum in the night".
The Independent. 18 June
2011.]
Windsor,
Ontario, Canada 2011
This phenomenon, first noticed in 2009, has also been reported since 2011 throughout
Windsor and
Essex County in
Ontario,
Canada.[
"Rumblings
may prompt lawsuit".
Windsor Star. 5 August
2011.] A 2011 study by
Earthquakes Canada indicated that it may be originating
from the heavily-industrialised
Zug
Island area on the US side of the Detroit river.[
"The Sound
and the Fury".
OnEarth.
24 June 2013.] A two-hour telephone town hall meeting in 2012 received calls
from 13,000 residents, with another 9,000 leaving comments over the next week,
although not all of those were from people who could hear the hum.[
"22,000
residents dial in to Windsor hum telephone town hall". Windsor
Star. 23 February 2012.]
In 2013 the Canadian Government allocated $60,000 for research by the
University of Windsor to determine the source
of the noise.[
"Windsor’s
mysterious hum research to be funded by Ottawa".
CBC News. 21 Jan 2013.] As
of April 2013, a Canadian scientist is using sound-level meters and a portable
"pentangular array" of cameras and microphones to try and precisely
identify the source of the sound, in order to know who exactly to ask to fix
it.[
"The Sound
and the Fury".
OnEarth.
24 June 2013.]
Calgary,
Alberta, Canada 2008
The volunteer Ranchlands Noise Investigation Team began investigating the
Ranchlands hum in 2008. Marcia Epstein, an acoustic ecologist at the
University of Calgary and a member of the
Ranchlands Noise Investigation Team, described the hum as "a concentration
of frequencies around 40 hertz, and 40 cycles per second", [
"Ranchlands
hum eludes residents two years on". CBC News. 29 September
2011.] sometimes described as a "vibrational feeling", [
"Probe of
unexplained humming noise widens past Calgary".
Metro (Calgary). 7
June 2013.] affecting "12 to 20 per cent of the community." [
"Ranchlands
hum eludes residents two years on". CBC News. 29 September
2011.]
County
Kerry, Ireland 2012
The Hum has also frustrated residents in
County
Kerry, Ireland.[^
"‘The Hum’
leaves village ears ringing".
Irish Examiner. 1 March
2012.] This led to it being raised in the Irish
Parliament
by
Michael Healy-Rae, who personally heard the
Hum. The official response was described by Healy-Rae as "away with the
fairies
gobbledygook."[
"Locals
despair as ‘The Hum’ makes life a living hell". Irish Examiner.
3 April 2012.]
Seattle,
Washington, USA 2012
The phenomenon was also recorded in 2012 in
Seattle,
where some residents report having heard it in previous years.[
"Mysterious
hum in Seattle".
KSDK. 6
September 2012.]
Wellington,
New Zealand 2012
In
Wellington,
New Zealand the City Council was flooded with complaints about a mysterious
hum.[^
"Wellington
'hum' becomes nationwide obsession".
3 News. 11 October 2012.]
Science
of the Hum
Very few scientific articles have
been published. Notable exceptions include: Deming, 2004; Broner, 1978; Cowan,
2003 and Leventhall, 2003;[14].
References
Deming, David (2004).
"The Hum: An anomalous sound heard around the
world".
Journal of Scientific Exploration 18 (4):
571–594.
Broner, N. (1978). "The effects
of low frequency noise on people—A review".
Journal of Sound and Vibration 58: 483–500.
Cowan, J. P. (October 2003).
"The Kokomo Hum investigation".
Acentech Project No. 615411 (Cambridge, MA: Accentech Incorporated).
Leventhall, G.
"A Review of Published Research on Low Frequency Noise
and its Effects".
Defra. May 2003.
Hum
in New Zealand
Hum has been recorded in New Zealand
for many years, but it has come to prominence in recent weeks with significant
numbers of people reporting the Hum in both Auckland and Wellington.
Smart Technologies in association
with Astute Engineering and Atkinson & Rapley Consulting have developed a
unique environmental analysis instrument capable of analysing acoustic
environmental sound in air or water, as well as vibration of solid surfaces
including geophysical applications (seismic). The latest development of the SAM
technology now combines EMF (Electro Magnetic Field) energy with sound and
vibration.
As the origin of the Hum is largely
undetermined, it could conceivably come from sound (acoustic/seismic) or
electromagnetic fields. Both forms of energy are known to affect biological
systems.
Smart Technologies are now embarking
on a New Zealand research project to find the source of the Hum. You can help.
If you have ever heard the Hum, then filling out the questionnaire on this site
will be of immense value.
This survey is totally CONFIDENTIAL
and no personal information will be made available on any website or to any
other individual. The data will only be used for scientific purposes and will
be aggregated into reports in such a way so that no individual can be
identified.
Personal information such as
addresses will only be used to generate ‘hot spots’ in the New Zealand
geography, and no individual residence will be identifiable. Personal
demographic data will be used to collate population-based reports and no
individual will be able to be identified.
If you have heard the hum and would
like to be part of this research, please click on the Survey Tab and let us
hear your story.
Should you have any queries about
the survey, please feel free to contact Smart Technologies through the
Questions Page.
