Scientists finally solve mystery of buzzing sound 4% of world's population can hear
Researchers have investigated 'The Hum,' a low-frequency buzzing sound reported by 4% of the global population for decades. A study by Professor Markus Drexl suggests that some individuals possess an exceptional ability to perceive low-frequency sounds that are otherwise inaudible to most.
Why it matters
This research provides a scientific explanation for a long-standing mystery that has caused significant distress for a portion of the population.
There is no cure for their suffering, though
A perplexing phenomenon known as 'The Hum' has seemingly been figured out by a team of researchers, 50 years since it was first documented.
In the 1970s, the Bristol Evening Post received letter after letter from locals about their trouble with an unexplained sonic disturbance in the area.
Suggestions of a warehouse's immense industrial fan system being the cause were quickly rubbished, and so the mystery persisted.
Fellow UK-based coastal communities like Southampton, Swansea and Plymouth began suffering from the sound too, as did individuals in London, before reports of cases across the US emerged in the 1990s.
Residents of Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and Norway have all encountered this low-frequency buzzing sound in their ears as well, which has finally led to a scientific study.
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