Could Beach Boys fans be to blame for the Kokomo hum?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the mysterious hum reported by residents in Kokomo, Indiana, with some participants humorously speculating about the involvement of Beach Boys fans. The conversation touches on the potential sources of the hum, its effects on health, and the nature of the claims surrounding it.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Debate/contested
  • Meta-discussion

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants mention that industrial fans may be among the sources of the Kokomo hum, which residents believe is affecting their health and sleep.
  • One participant questions whether the frequency of the hum is too low to affect mastoid air cells, which could cause dizziness and imbalance, noting that nausea was reported but not dizziness.
  • Another participant expresses disappointment in the story, humorously suggesting it could have been about Beach Boys fans disturbing the peace by humming "Kokomo."
  • There are references to the Taos hum and other similar phenomena, indicating a broader interest in unexplained sounds.
  • Some participants discuss the potential health effects of infrasound, including nausea and other symptoms, citing various levels of sound exposure and their alleged impacts on human health.
  • Humor is present in the discussion, particularly around the interpretation of the thread title and the nature of "hummers."
  • Concerns are raised about the lack of interest in the Kokomo hum compared to other phenomena, with some participants expressing boredom with the topic.
  • There is a playful exchange about the interpretation of jokes and misunderstandings regarding the nature of the discussion.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants do not reach a consensus on the cause of the Kokomo hum, with multiple competing views and humorous interpretations present throughout the discussion.

Contextual Notes

Some claims regarding the health effects of sound exposure are presented without definitive scientific backing, and the discussion includes speculative elements about the nature of the hum and its sources.

Who May Find This Useful

Readers interested in unexplained phenomena, acoustics, health effects of sound, or humorous interpretations of serious topics may find this discussion engaging.

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KOKOMO, Ind. -- An acoustics consulting firm concluded two industrial fans appear to be among the sources of a mysterious hum that some Kokomo residents believe is to blame for their health and sleeping problems.

http://www.indystar.com/print/articles/3/076174-1153-009.html
 
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Interesting. Is that frequency too low as to not affect mastoid air cells causing dizziness, imbalance etc.? The reason I ask this is these sx's were not included - but nausea was. These often go hand-in-hand.
 
I found this story to be a disappointment. I thought it was going to be about two Beach Boys fans who were given tickets for disturbing the peace by humming "Kokomo".
 
Originally posted by zoobyshoe
I found this story to be a disappointment. I thought it was going to be about two Beach Boys fans who were given tickets for disturbing the peace by humming "Kokomo".

Zooby, I don't think you have the right stuff for investigating unusual phenomena. This option was way down on my list.

And we still have the Taos hum to figure out.
http://www.eskimo.com/~billb/hum/hum.html

There are some similar claims elsewhere.
In the end, we may still find your hummer.
 
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Originally posted by Tsunami
Interesting. Is that frequency too low as to not affect mastoid air cells causing dizziness, imbalance etc.? The reason I ask this is these sx's were not included - but nausea was. These often go hand-in-hand.

This was some of the best information that I could find.

With respect to effects on humans, some of the allegations are: Infrasound at 110-130 dB would cause intestinal pain and severe nausea. Extreme levels of annoyance or distraction would result from minutes of exposure to levels 90 to 120 dB at low frequencies (5 to 200 Hz), strong physical trauma and damage to tissues at 140-150 dB, and instantaneous blastwave type trauma at above 170 dB (for an explanation of the level unit decibel see below). At low frequencies, resonances in the body would cause hemorrhage and spasms; in the mid-audio range (0.5-2.5 kHz) resonances in the air cavities of the body would cause nerve irritation, tissue trauma
and heating; high audio and ultrasound frequencies (5 to 30 kHz) would cause heating up to lethal body temperatures, tissue burns, and dehydration; and at high(er?) frequencies or with short pulses bubbles would form from cavitation and micro-lesions in tissue would evolve.
p 7 of 70

There are a few allegations concerning high-power sound effects on humans which make a strong impression when being read, but are difficult to confirm from the scientific literature. This concerns mainly vomiting and uncontrolled defecation.152 Whereas vertigo or nausea in the vicinity of strong sound sources has been
reported in scientific articles - often characterized as slight or transitory - actual vomiting was not reported with high audio frequencies nor with ultraAltmann 222 sound (here dizziness seems rather to have been caused by audio contributions). 153 In close vicinity to jet engines, in a systematic study unsteadiness
and imbalance were observed, but nausea occurred only in some employees sometimes after an exposure, and there was no vomiting. These authors mentioned “American reports” where one source had stated that at 13 kHz and 1 W power irritability and headache would be followed by nausea and even vomiting; however, no source for this was given.154
p 57/58 of 70

http://www.princeton.edu/~globsec/publications/pdf/9_3altmann.pdf
 
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Originally posted by zoobyshoe
I found this story to be a disappointment. I thought it was going to be about two Beach Boys fans who were given tickets for disturbing the peace by humming "Kokomo".
I'm not completely sure from your response you got the joke. The above must be read in conjunction with the thread title: Two fans cited in Kokomo hum.
 
Originally posted by Ivan Seeking
And we still have the Taos hum to figure out.
I have actually thought about this quite a bit since I first heard of it and it is one of the few strange phenomena that somehow fails to pique my interest. I get to a certain point in my speculation and then am overcome with boredom. I guess it lacks the shock value of cattle mutilations or alien abduction to spur me on.
 
Originally posted by zoobyshoe
I'm not completely sure from your response you got the joke. The above must be read in conjunction with the thread title: Two fans cited in Kokomo hum.

This option was way down on my list
way, way, way, way, way, way, way down.

In the end, we may still find your hummer.

I don't know about you, but in my world a hummer could be many things. :wink:
 
Originally posted by zoobyshoe
I have actually thought about this quite a bit since I first heard of it and it is one of the few strange phenomena that somehow fails to pique my interest. I get to a certain point in my speculation and then am overcome with boredom. I guess it lacks the shock value of cattle mutilations or alien abduction to spur me on.

Just another check mark on my "potential mysteries to be solved" list.
 
  • #10
Originally posted by Ivan Seeking
This option was way down on my list
way, way, way, way, way, way, way down.
It is clear from your response that I did not get your joke. What do you mean by "this option"? I did not present an option.

In the end, we may still find your hummer.

I am not aware I was looking for a hummer.

I don't know about you, but in my world a hummer could be many things. :wink:
One who hums, the"HUMVEE"(military vehicle) or the sexual "hummer". These are all the hummer's I can think of. Are there others?
 
  • #11
Originally posted by zoobyshoe
It is clear from your response that I did not get your joke. What do you mean by "this option"? I did not present an option.

That two Beach Boys fans who were given tickets for disturbing the peace by humming "Kokomo" were the explanation.

or the sexual "hummer".

Well, it seemed funny at the time.
 
  • #12
Originally posted by Ivan Seeking
That two Beach Boys fans who were given tickets for disturbing the peace by humming "Kokomo" were the explanation.
You did miss the joke! I was not presenting that as an option. The humor lay in pretending to jump to the conclusion the thread title "Two fans cited in Kokomo hum" was going to be a story about Two fans
(that is: persons who are especially fond of, as opposed to machines for moving air) of the Beach Boys who were cited (that is given tickets for committing a misdemeanor, not: "specified") in Kokomo hum ( for humming the Beach Boys 1980s hit "Cocomo" in some way that disturbed the peace so that giving them a ticket seem warranted.) I was not, you see, offering the expanation that the Kokomo hum was being caused by these two fans humming. In my humorous response to the thread title I wasn't addressing the cause of the kokomo hum at all. I was pointing out that the title could have been about a completely different situation and I was pretending disapointment that it wasn't.

Well, it seemed funny at the time.
Yeah, I know how you feel.
 
  • #13
Originally posted by Ivan Seeking
Just another check mark on my "potential mysteries to be solved" list.
I'm worried that I'm not more concerned about it, especially since one of the suspected causes is government ELF signals used to communicate with submarines.
 
  • #14
Originally posted by zoobyshoe
You did miss the joke! I was not presenting that as an option. The humor lay in pretending to jump to the conclusion the thread title "Two fans cited in Kokomo hum" was going to be a story about Two fans
(that is: persons who are especially fond of, as opposed to machines for moving air) of the Beach Boys who were cited (that is given tickets for committing a misdemeanor, not: "specified") in Kokomo hum ( for humming the Beach Boys 1980s hit "Cocomo" in some way that disturbed the peace so that giving them a ticket seem warranted.) I was not, you see, offering the expanation that the Kokomo hum was being caused by these two fans humming. In my humorous response to the thread title I wasn't addressing the cause of the kokomo hum at all. I was pointing out that the title could have been about a completely different situation and I was pretending disapointment that it wasn't.

Hence the need to find your hummer; in this case, a Cocomo hummer who is a Beach Boys fan not located in Kokomo. I suspected that this may actually be the cause of the Taos hum. I hear the BBs are big in Taos.
 

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