Hmmm.....interesting concept

Why gangs of youths buzz off when they hear the hum of a Mosquito
April 21, 2007
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/crime/article1680234.ece
For years the hooded youths of Britain have been free to roam the country’s shopping streets. In the evenings and at the weekends they have loitered outside the shops of their choice.

But that is all beginning to change, and no thanks to ASBOs. Across the nation a mysterious high-pitched whine has been driving the youngsters from their natural habitats outside supermarkets, stations and leisure centres.

The source of the sound is a high-frequency ultrasonic device called the Mosquito that is inaudible to anyone aged over 25 but intolerable to anyone under that age.

More than 3,000 Mosquitos have been sold since they went on the market last year and they are being used by a growing number of police forces, shops, train companies, banks and local authorities to move on troublesome groups of youths. The devices cost £495, have a range of 15 to 20 metres and are harmless, according to the manufacturer, Compound Security Systems.

Co-op and Spar have ordered about 100 each, the manufacturers say. Sainsbury and McDonald’s have a dozen, Aldi at least nine, Tesco a couple, and Waitrose two.

Simon Morris, commercial director of Compound Security, said: “As soon as the Mosquito goes in, theft goes down, trade increases and profits go up. One of the Co-ops said their trade went up £3,000 in the first week. They were amazed by it. If there are no kids hanging around, people feel more comfortable going into the shop and hence spend more money.”

Marks & Spencer has a device on trial outside its latest Simply Food shop in Blackheath, southeast London on the recommendation of the police.

An M&S spokeswoman said that the Mosquito was perfectly safe and completely legal. “It is definitely only a trial for that store, not a national roll-out,” she said. No decision had yet been made on whether to keep the device, she said.

The Mosquito is supplied with a warning sign to alert people to the presence of the device, but no sign was in evidence outside Simply Food in Blackheath Standard when The Times visited yesterday. Sophie O’Dowd, 14, who lives locally, noticed a strange noise while she waited outside the shop for a friend after school. She said: “It is like a constant buzzing. It is really annoying and you just want to move away from it.”

Her mother, Suzanne O’Dowd, was annoyed that M&S is testing the device without giving any warning. “I do not agree with it at all,” she said. “I want to know how it affects babies and children: is there any risk? There should be some sort of warning.”

Arriva trains, Northern Rail and Chiltern Railways have also invested in the technology. At least eight police forces, including the Metropolitan Police, have been supplied with the device, and JNE Marketing, which distributes the Mosquito, said that it had supplied councils across the country.

Ken Povey, the company’s managing director, said: “Lots of schools and colleges are now using the unit too.”

Sainsbury confirmed that it was testing about a dozen of the devices in a handful of shops around the country.

Sound bites

— The Mosquito, right, automatically adjusts its volume so that it is only five decibels above local noise levels, an increase equivalent to a whisper

— The device, which went on the market in January last year and modified in August, now has an inbuilt cut-off after 20 minutes’ use

— Its average volume level is 85 decibels, the same as the dialling tone on an average telephone, and far less than playing the violin (120 decibels) or an iPod (104 decibels at volume level 5)

— The manufacturer, claims that 90 per cent of people aged over 25 cannot hear the device because of natural age-related hearing loss

— This week the company, which is based in Merthyr Tydfil, brought out a new model, the GSM Mosquito, which can be turned on and off simply by sending a text message to the device by mobile phone

Source: Compound Security Systems

So they start pulling that here and I gotta listen to my 9yr old complain of a headache. Wonderful .

Quoted: So they start pulling that here and I gotta listen to my 9yr old complain of a headache. Wonderful .

Seems like you wouldn't notice it so much if you were just entering or leaving
a place of business, OTOH if you were hanging out outside of the business.......

Plop one of those outside our local Dunkin Donuts. I'm all for it.

Quoted: So they start pulling that here and I gotta listen to my 9yr old complain of a headache. Wonderful .

Yeppers.......

Can it also play 92 cents below the lowest octave of E flat?

Interesting.
Yesterday a ring-tone was going around work.  The younger
workers said they could hear it, us older workers could hear
absolutely nothing.  The idea was kids could use it on their
phones when they didn't want the parents to hear the ring.

I sent it to my 14 year old, he said he could hear it - the
sound of "an anoying, whiney mosquito" is what he said.
Bet there is a connection.

download.npr.org/anon.npr-mp3/atc/atc_teenbuzz.mp3

DanM

I can't hear it and I'm 32, but my husband, who is 36, can.  He says it wouldn't get his attention if he weren't listening for it, but he can hear it.  

I can hear it and I am no teenager.  

Quoted: Plop one of those outside our local Dunkin Donuts. I'm all for it.

Yep. Reserve the D&D for the old cops. Riiight.

I hear it if the volume is way up. I also FEEL it behind the ear!

23 and I can hear it,

Dog went nuts!!!

I could kinda hear it, I'm 41

My 7 yo daughter was out in the other room and asked what that was.

I'm 26 and I could hear it.

 I could just barely hear a very high pitch and kind of a mild hum.  My wife said she could feel it behind her eyes and could hear the very high whine.  The cat jumped up on the computer table and flopped down next to the speaker...

 I'd like to try a suitable outdoor speaker, hooked to an endless loop of it, aimed towards the neighborhood teen asshats who blare their bumpin' base, near our kitchen window on the little dead end sidestreet, only when they have their stereo on... It would probably drive them NUTS wondering what's wrong with their car stereo!!

eta- We're 44 and 43, cat's 1 YO.

I'm 31, I can't only hear it but it gave me a mind splitting migraine and made my stomach turn over; my dog is looking around like "wtf".

Quoted: Interesting. Yesterday a ring-tone was going around work.  The younger workers said they could hear it, us older workers could hear absolutely nothing.  The idea was kids could use it on their phones when they didn't want the parents to hear the ring. I sent it to my 14 year old, he said he could hear it - the sound of "an anoying, whiney mosquito" is what he said. Bet there is a connection. download.npr.org/anon.npr-mp3/atc/atc_teenbuzz.mp3 DanM

O.K. I'm 32 and heard that perfectly clear..... In fact my speaker's weren't even turned up and I heard it. I thought this wasn't supposed to be heard by anyone over 25.....?

- Clint

I can hear it no problem and I am 38.

26 and I heard it.  

I'm used to the electronic whine of computers and this was killer.  My speakers were turned down due to being at work and it was making my left ear drum ache.

My 10 year old just listened to it...

I asked "If you were somewhere and heard that sound, what would you do?"

He said "Go somewhere else, it hurts my ears!"

- Clint

yup 32 and I hear it just fine...

27 I heard it and now I have a headache

I'm 43 and I can't hear it. My wife, who is 34, and all my daughters can hear it.

Nothing that can't be deafeted with some $1.09 counter-measures

That made my right ear ache like heck.  I'm 23 fwiw.

I'm 31 and I can hear it. It's annoying.

I have very sensitive ears, however. I can "hear" television sets that are on but not set to any inputs just from the ultrasonic whine they produce.

-Mark

Quoted: I can't hear it and I'm 32, but my husband, who is 36, can.  He says it wouldn't get his attention if he weren't listening for it, but he can hear it.

I'm 33 and can definitely hear it.  Strange considering that I figured I would've had more hearing loss due to listening to music with headphones and shooting without ear protection when I was younger.

Im basically deaf in one ear and I could hear it.

Peltors are gonna become cool new headwear in England.

NOw are these youths that you speak of.....Are they REAL youths? OR are the "youths"?
Come on now, you know what i mean.

Quoted: Nothing that can't be deafeted with some $1.09 counter-measures www.uvprocess.com/products%5CSAFETY%20PRODUCTS.A4.HEARING%20PROTECTION.HEARING%5CTRIPLE%20FLANGE%20EAR%20PLUGS.HEARING%20%20F%5CHEARING%20%20F_primary_WebPic1.JPG

+1, its amazing nobodys figured this out yet.

Can't hear it. I'm 41. Called the cat over.... he definitely heard something. Interesting. Also, thanks for making me feel old today.

Nothing new under the sun...

Hell I have bad hearing flunk testing every year almost 50, and I can hear the buzz ?

Quoted: Dog went nuts!!!

Hahaha, the dog does NOT like that sound.

I had to really crank it to hear it. My 11 year old was screaming at me to turn it down.

25 here. on a laptop with very quiet crappy speakers (even worse than most laptops) and it fscking hurt!

-Foxxz

Quoted: Yup, 34 and I can hear it. Almost as bad as a TV with the volume all the way down. Sam

Yup, sounds like the old flyback whine.  I'm almost 52 and I can hear it.

Im 28 and can hear it turned down to volume level 3.

Wife is 32 and can only hear it with the volume set to 50 using Media Player.

I can hear it but wouldn't discern it if I were not specifically listening for it.

However, I'm enjoying making dogs in the six condos near mine lose their shit right now!  

Hear what? That must be just a blank file you're passing around to try and fool people - sort of like the emperor's new clothes.

All I can hear anymore is the creak of my walker shuffling along..........

I think, perhaps, there is a difference between the sound being transmitted from its device in the open air, and listening to it on your headphones or speakers at home...

...which would account for why virtually everyone on this thread can hear it.

Quoted: Interesting. Yesterday a ring-tone was going around work.  The younger workers said they could hear it, us older workers could hear absolutely nothing.  The idea was kids could use it on their phones when they didn't want the parents to hear the ring. I sent it to my 14 year old, he said he could hear it - the sound of "an anoying, whiney mosquito" is what he said. Bet there is a connection. download.npr.org/anon.npr-mp3/atc/atc_teenbuzz.mp3 DanM

I'm 21 and that felt like my ears were being fucked by a dog whistle.

height=8

Quoted: I think, perhaps, there is a difference between the sound being transmitted from its device in the open air, and listening to it on your headphones or speakers at home... ...which would account for why virtually everyone on this thread can hear it.

That's what I was thinking. Outside the sound will be competing with traffic and other  everyday noise. Ostensibly the younger folks will notice it over these distractions but I'm not sure I would.
                                  For the record however I'm 45 and have played in Rock bands for 25 years. I easily heard the sound.

33 here and I can hear it fine. I'm sure my hearing is damaged from working in car audio industry for 5 years too.

Quoted: Hear what? That must be just a blank file you're passing around to try and fool people - sort of like the emperor's new clothes.

That is exactly what I first suspected at work.  That the youngsters were all in on
a prank.  I hear stone-cold nothing when that noise is played, on any speakers,
at any volume.

Getting old sucks.

DanM

HOLY FUCK - I can hear it!

And I am 31!

Go to this link and the mp3 has this like high pitch pulse. It DOES get fuckin annoying QUICK.

www.bbc.co.uk/wiltshire/audio/mosquito_sound.mp3

ETA: looks like lots of you found this out.

Yep, wife 37 and myself 36 can hear it.