Ness 'hum' saga is a global issue

THE Loch Ness humming noise mystery has gone global.

After our story last week on the unexplained phenomenon, the Highland News website was inundated with hits.

And an American scientist has revealed he has been carrying out international research into the strange noise after similar reports from around the world.

Our story triggered an immediate response from Kevin Barber in Mount Vernon, Washington, who endures the same problem highlighted by Loch Ness webcam master Mikko Takala. He now claims there is another Loch Ness mystery to solve.

Mr Barber told the Highland News: "I see these types of articles getting more attention these days, as they should. I am also a hum sufferer here in the USA.

"This topic deserves international attention as it really is a disturbing worldwide physical phenomenon."

Mr Barber alerted us to research by Professor David Deming of the College of Geosciences at Oklahoma University, who has had a 24-page dossier on the subject published by the Journal of Scientific Exploration.

He described the hum as a mysterious un-traceable sound that is heard in certain locations around the world by two to 10 per cent of the population.

"Historically the area that has been most affected by the hum is the United Kingdom, where reports have been frequent since the early 1970s," states Professor Deming.

In the United States, reports date from the early 1900s with the two most publicised locations being Taos, New Mexico and Kokomo, Indiana.

He adds: "The source of the hum has never been located. The hum does not appear to be a form of tinnitus and may not be an acoustic sound. More than just a noise, the hum is also capable of manifesting itself as vibrations felt through the body and is often accompanied by physical symptoms that include headaches, nausea and pain in the ears."

Among the hypotheses considered as possible sources of the hum in the US include cellular telephone transmissions and aircraft operated by the US Navy for submarine communications.

Mr Takala, who lives in a cottage at Bunloit, overlooking Loch Ness, reported the phenomenon was being experienced by himself and a neighbour after reading an article on the web about residents in the Suffolk town of Sudbury.

Mr Takala added: "It is reassuring to know that, far from being just another 'Loch Ness monster hunter losing his marbles', I am in fact suffering from a phenomena that has been around since at least the early 1970s and which actually affects thousands of people around the world."

Mr Takala believes the source of the noise could be the Foyers hydro electric plant by Loch Ness. But his concerns have been rejected by its operators, Scottish and Southern Energy, which has insisted there are no problems with the plant.

And Professor Deming's studies support the energy company's response.

"Thirty years of research into the cause of the hum have proven fruitless because of the repetitive and thoughtless use of standard acoustic techniques," Professor Deming told the Highland News. "Although sound measurements are an indispensable starting point, it should be clear by now that routine approaches are inadequate. Future investigations should start with some recognition that local manifestations of the hum are only one aspect of a global problem.

"Ten years ago, the British Medical Journal noted: 'Hums are associated with noise problems that cannot be routinely solved by acoustic consultants or environmental health officers (Rice, 1994)'.

"I warned people in Kokokmo, Indiana, of this in 2001. But they ignored my advice. The Kokomo city council spent $100,000 on an acoustic noise consultant who did all the usual things. He found industrial sources of low-frequency noise, and they were abated. But the hum remained.

"Every scientist who has investigated this phenomenon in the past has concluded that it is real, and not a delusion on the part of those who hear it. Anyone who ridicules hearers just because they cannot hear it themselves are simply ignorant."

To ascertain the scale of the problem, Mr Takala is creating a webpage where residents in the Highlands, and elsewhere, can log on and record their experiences.

He added: "This story is obviously of international interest and importance. I hope people will contact us so that we can start to build a picture of the hum and how it is affecting the Highlands.

"One thing is for sure – Loch Ness has a genuine mystery to solve."

Source (Image taken from different site)