Low frequency faint noise at night

Of course it is all happening inside your head Jerry, but why on earth should that mean that it is not real?

a’ la: Dumbledore

“If it sounds like the same direction when you rotate your head, then isn’t that fairly certain?”

yes

but, Feynman said that the easiest person to fool is yourself, so maybe I just wanted to think it stayed in the same direction regardless of head rotation.  I am a skeptic.

If I could get a recording of it that would be pretty definitive.

You’re good Jeffrey.  That is definitely a common thing to want to prove you’re right and your partner is wrong.  And a good subject for humor.

I really need to watch all the Harry Potter movies so I can understand common cultural references.  I believe Dumbledoor is a Harry Potter character.

[chuckles]

Jerry, actually you’ve described your wife in other posts in ways that make me jealous. She seems quite the catch!

There’s a good song covered by Bonnie Raitt that applies here, in reverse: “Women be wise/ keep your mouth shut/don’t advertise your man!” Clearly Jerry is confident enough about his love not to worry. lucky man!

But if his low humm obsession continues into a full blown psychosis,  I might make a move.

I do seem to be obsessed with something so insignificant

not at all, you’re curious and having fun.

I keep trying to make this serious, when really you’re just noticing something and joking about it.

Jerry, if you are correct, the phenomenon is serious. We do not know what parts of the biosphere may be having trouble communicating because of it. And a lot of energy is involved at frequencies that may affect physical interaction among small subterranean organisms.

Ignorance about aspects of ecosystems is the norm. I was talking with an ecologist a few months ago, a retired professor, but he’s still working on forest health and management problems. I asked about possible changes in insect numbers and the harvesting of grasses, since I had noticed some growth patterns near clear cuts I did not remember seeing in the past. Turned out that in his work he had not surveyed insectovora and had no idea about possible changes in their distribution. Time is limited, requiring too much specialization to do complete fieldwork.

Jerry, I’m all ears about what you may find.

I don’t think the hum is loud enough to bother anyone.  Although if you were closer to the source it could be.  And I’m not saying closer to my head : )

Yeah, I too have read that the number of insects is way down.  Light pollution is one reason.

And sound pollution is a problem, for example in the ocean where sounds carry better.  Marine mammals can’t communicate with each other over long distances, and their sonar doesn’t work as good.

I thought Insectovora was the name of a teenage mutant turtle.

I’d like to eavesdrop on one of those surveys.

–O.K. Mrs. Arachnid, do you identify as Democrat, Republican or other?

–Oh Republican , definitely. Make America safe for Black Widows!

–alright. Now, what do you rank as the number one issue facing you today? The economy, the war in Ukraine, school choice or other?

–I’d say overuse of insecticides

–etc etc.

Maybe it’s high voltage lines off in the distance you hear:

Why do high voltage power lines hum or crackle?
The hum is being made by Corona Discharge. This basically happens when the electrons in the wire want to go to the air around it because it has such a high electromagnetic field. What’s going on is that the electric field gets so strong in the air around a wire that the electrons start to get pulled off their atoms and into the air. Usually air is an insulator around the wire but in this case it ionizes and becomes conductive plasma! So the noise happens when the voltage is too high for the air around it to handle before it breaks down and becomes a conductor.
Facts:

It is loudest at sharp points, corners, bolts, or any surface irregularities.
It can be affected by the condition of the temperature or air such as humidity, air density, wind, fog, rain, snow because they all change the electrical resistance of the air around the wire.
Dry air changes its mind about being an insulator and becomes a conductor at about 10 thousand volts per inch.
It’s not just loud but it actually wastes power, like a leaky pipe.
The voltage on distribution lines is low enough that this doesn’t happen, only transmission lines.

Dan, that sounds plausible.

Cell phone towers emit a hum, different towers, different frequencies.

SO, like an electromagnetic pulse modulated frequency then?

“SO, like an electromagnetic pulse modulated frequency then?”

or…Aum?

Just the mmm….. part, continuously

I watched a TED talk today on tinnitus. They theorized that it was hearing loss and what you hear is the brain compensating for the lack of sound .

Jerry,

I don’t know what the sound is.

But to reassure you that you aren’t crazy I’ve seen the question asked before. Two members (husband and wife)  of the Seattle Mountaineers posted the observation and question in the monthly bulletin about 40 years ago.  They asked for feedback/input to be sent to them but I didn’t see that input.

that makes me feel much better, I’m not crazy : )

the funniest line I can think of on BPL was when after some MYOG discussion Daryl (and Daryl) said “can we get back to talking about me?”

Thanks for encouraging  me&me with your funniest line compliment……………..in spite of everyone saying “don’t encourage him”.

Hum(or) is where you find it……..or hear it.

” Daryl (and Daryl) said “can we get back to talking about me?”

Yeah, but which one?

Interesting recording jscott. The non verbal sounding and low frequency or background..MmmMMmmMM… as Jerry puts it.

Electromagnetic noise sounds more like this>[https://m.youtube.com/] ..Or tinnitus, at certain waveforms and lengths.

Give it some rhythm and beats, you’ve got the latest techno underground sensation.

Andromeda galaxy is the barely discernable blob in the middle.  S23, 1x lens, 4 minute exposure.  Maybe I can do better than this.

Seems many things can affect hearing as those “hairs” can break and age just means more exposure (see loud rock musicians from the late 1960s).

Then there’s chemicals.  On another forum taking about military veterans, a former Air Force flight line technician recalled after being bit by a rattler at Nellie AFB (Las Vegas NV) on the desert flight line, he developed a case of tinnitus.  I’ve had on again/off again tinnitus after my last COVID booster that I’ve never had before, though aggravated by altitude.  May as well increase my 1-to-10 music volume, … turning it up to 11!  … (… Spinal Tap reference for those not in the know)