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Mosquito noise maker will annoy young people

A park in Tokyo is hoping that a new device will prove annoying enough to drive away loud young people:

[This video does not contain the sound because it was recorded from an analog source. Apparently digital TV viewers under 25 should have been able to hear the buzzing.]

The Mosquito, a device developed by a British scientist, will be turned on from 11 p.m. to 5 a.m. daily at Kita-Shikahama Park, where youths loiter and make noise at night.

Nearby residents complained they couldn’t sleep because of the noise.

The high-frequency sounds of about 18 kilohertz are inaudible to older people, officials said. Human hearing abilities typically peak at around age 20.

In fiscal 2008, vandals caused about 700,000 yen in damage at the park, including broken windows at a park office and broken toilets.

More details can be found in this Mainichi article.

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23 comments - What do you think? Posted by James - May 22, 2009 at 7:35 am

Categories: Technology Tags: gadgets, mosquito, tech

Aruma

While watching this video clip on my computer, my dog jumped up when the sound turned on! I thought that was rather amusing!
^_^

http://www.japanprobe.com James

I am pretty sure the sound should not actually be in the video (as the warning was for digital viewers, not analog).

Unfortunately, I was too old to hear the sound on the digital broadcast when I watched that too, so I cannot be sure.

http://npc.talkingincircles.net/ NPC

Yea I heard nothing in this video an I’m an annoying “young person” myself. I can easily hear 20KHz or more.

Who knows how long that will last though. lol

Montsan

They’ve tried this in other places and I believe the results were favorable. I also seem to recall classical music being a deterrent as well – though I cannot recall which was more effective.
http://www.japaneconomynews.com Ken

How long will it take the kids to figure out how to disable the machine?

Chris

Just out of boredom, I tried to imagine how one would go about disabling the device… Spraying a can of aerosol insulation into the box they have it in would probably do the trick.

William

They have these all over my neighborhood. Sometimes they even have them going during the day. I’m 33 and can hear them fine. I don’t understand why annoying people in a public place is worth the waste in tax money for expensive sonic weapons. I guess it’s easier than making parents have responsibility. Heaven forbid that the police or parents have to DO something…
Jake

A park in Tokyo is hoping that a new device will prove annoying enough to drive away loud young people

…and quiet young people?
…and toddlers and other little kids who can’t communicate what it is that is driving them crazy?
…young people who don’t yet have the legal right to challenge the use of such a device?

The idea that such a device can be used to repel a select demographic in a public place is mind-boggling to me, not to mention the fact that the people who are deciding whether or not to use this thing can’t even hear the sound it makes in the first place.

jikku

Toddlers and little kids should not be outside at a park between 11 p.m. to 5 a.m.

http://victorymanual.com/ Alex

There’s a house near my place that has a similar device. I can hear it but my wife can’t, and I assume our daughter can hear it cause she always seems to start running when we walk by it. I thought it was a device to keep dogs away or something. It’s frickin’ annoying.

Like Jake above, I feel pretty creeped out by this move. A few punks are being asses, so all young people are shooed away? Talk about an aging population indeed!
http://Winner'sjustice Bran

From 11pm to 5am. Apart from the punks who else is likely to be hanging around a residential park at that hour?

Jeff

A much better question is, “Who cares if young people are hanging around a residential park at this hour?”

Another much better question is, “Why are young people presumed delinquent?”

Another much better question is, “Why is this stupid meme about the ‘mosquito tone that only young people can hear’ still propagating when it’s obvious that many older people can hear it, and even those people who do hear it tune it out within minutes due to the brain’s natural tendency to normalize persistent noise?”

All in all, this is just dumb.
http://victorymanual.com/ Alex

“…who else is likely to be hanging around a residential park at that hour?”

Insomniacs.
Richard

A drunk and naked Tsuyoshi Kusanagi?

The high-pitched noise would be useless on him, you have to play “Kono toki, kitto yume jya nai” backwards.

Jerry

Teens have taken advantage of this
theyve used the Mosquito as ringtones

ren

That is true, the kids are using it at my nephews school to text each other and the teachers don’t hear a thing.

RMilner

Earplugs.
Level3

How to counter this?
Just turn up your iPod and talk even louder!

Now if only they could make a sonic wepaon that keeps old people from driving.
elle

lol. giving them more expensive things to vandalise? smart.
http://witzl.blogspot.com/ MaryWitzl

I say just pipe in Muzak or Lawrence Welk. No one under 14 or over 40 will be adversely affected by this. It would have worked on me.
http://ics.comicgenesis.com wedgejaeger

In my experience, irritating noises just make me irritable. Which in turn makes me more likely to punch someone in the face. I’m waiting for this to backfire
Mayuna

We haved had these things for some years now here in Holland. I never heard it (as I don’t go to such places when it’s dark XD)but it seems to work.
http://www.zdwonline.de Haf

They’ve been using those devices for years in some parts of Europe.

I’Ve never encountererd on of those mosquito loudspeakers myself, but I’d be able to hear them as well and I’m 25 and certainly not a delinquent. But I like to walk around at night sometimes.

In my opinion, a much better solution for certain situations has been implemented a while ago by an English policeman. He installed a lamp that emits a light with a certain shade of red or rose, which makes skin look much worse than it actually is. It seemed to have worked on all those youngsters who are over-sensitive about their acne and skin problems. ^^

Mosquito noise maker will annoy young people

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