A Mosquito that scatters swarms of unruly teens

Iria · Nov 29, 2005, 03:25 PM

BARRY, Wales - Though he did not know it at the time, the idea came to Howard Stapleton when he was 12 and visiting a factory with his father, a manufacturing executive in London. Opening the door to a room where workers were using high-frequency welding equipment, he found he could not bear to go inside.

"The noise!" he complained.

"What noise?" the grownups asked.

Now 39, Stapleton has taken the lesson he learned that day - that children can hear sounds at higher frequencies than adults can - to fashion a novel device that he hopes will provide a solution to the eternal problem of obstreperous teenagers who hang around outside stores and cause trouble.

The device, called the Mosquito ("It's small and annoying," Stapleton said), emits a high-frequency pulsing sound that, he says, can be heard by most people younger than 20 and almost no one older than 30. The sound is designed to so irritate young people that after several minutes, they cannot stand it and go away.
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Read More / Source: International Herald Tribune

daedal · Nov 29, 2005, 04:19 PM

What possible use would this have?

LeanWolf · Nov 29, 2005, 04:36 PM

bwaha this sounds pretty cool!

edit: well for example where I live, which is hardly a violent area of the world, there's a gang of shithead teens who like to hang between the university and an adjacent student living area. They like to gang up and harass/ sometimes assault weaker looking students, particularly girls. This device could provide a simple solution.

IvanV · Nov 29, 2005, 05:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LeanWolf

bwaha this sounds pretty cool!

edit: well for example where I live, which is hardly a violent area of the world, there's a gang of shithead teens who like to hang between the university and an adjacent student living area. They like to gang up and harass/ sometimes assault weaker looking students, particularly girls. This device could provide a simple solution.

Sure, I bet it's 100% effective against teens (13-19 year olds) and has absolutely no effect on 20 something college people.

And it also works only against evil teens, but not others who are just passing by. If there is a group of people harassing others, then there are also people who are payed to take care of them. I don't think that that guy should be allowed to sell his devices. And if any girl from your college feels that she needs extra protection, I volunteer.

Sandok · Nov 29, 2005, 05:45 PM

Useless... Utterly useless.. Accept against my brother

Iria · Nov 29, 2005, 05:53 PM

Well, if you read the full article, you can see at the place they road-tested it, it worked very well. I can think of places that would love this device, for the reasons the shopowner outlined in the article.

niceguyrichy · Nov 29, 2005, 06:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Iria

Well, if you read the full article, you can see at the place they road-tested it, it worked very well. I can think of places that would love this device, for the reasons the shopowner outlined in the article.

indeed.

it sounds really simple and ingenious.

i hate having to fight my way through hoards of obnoxious and abusive teens to get into shops after schools have been let out.

the point seems to be the slight prolonged exposure needed for it to take effect, no.
no shopkeeper in his right mind is going to install a device that scares away custom randomly.

Tril · Nov 29, 2005, 10:47 PM

I think such a device may get people agressive. If you get annoyed too much you lose patience and you start being agressive.
I'm in my twenty and I can hear relatively high frequency noise. An opened tv with no signal is very annoying. It gives a high pitched noise. Adults think it is closed because the screen is black but I hear very clearly that it's open.

It's no wonder the kids scattered. Especially if the volume is very high.

I did the test with my brother when he was still under 5 or 6 years old. I played a 20 kHz sine wave on the computer. It was too high for me but he definitely heard it

.

Vikingod · Nov 29, 2005, 10:52 PM

A few tunes by Donovan or Captain and Tennille would probably have the same effect... especially you you start singing along in a dramatic voice... in the nude... covered in peanut butter.

LeanWolf · Nov 30, 2005, 12:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by IvanV

Sure, I bet it's 100% effective against teens (13-19 year olds) and has absolutely no effect on 20 something college people.

And it also works only against evil teens, but not others who are just passing by. If there is a group of people harassing others, then there are also people who are payed to take care of them. I don't think that that guy should be allowed to sell his devices. And if any girl from your college feels that she needs extra protection, I volunteer.

I'm guessing that something that instantly annoys everyone below 30 isn't what they're talking about. It requires some prolonged exposure and trust me nobody else just "hangs". If you're talking about the police it's actually not their job to babysit punks. And this is a big gang, they've attacked guys too, with baseball bats, but I'm sure you'd make all the difference.

Drakon · Nov 30, 2005, 12:56 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Vikingod

A few tunes by Donovan or Captain and Tennille would probably have the same effect... especially you you start singing along in a dramatic voice... in the nude... covered in peanut butter.

That is a lil too descriptive there, Vikingod

IvanV · Nov 30, 2005, 01:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LeanWolf

If you're talking about the police it's actually not their job to babysit punks. And this is a big gang, they've attacked guys too, with baseball bats, but I'm sure you'd make all the difference.

Well, if taking care of a big and violent gang isn't police business, then they really are being paid for eating doughnuts. And there are institutions for "babysitting" those punks. Also, I understand that those guys are a pest, but I don't like this kind of solving problems because in the end someone reaches for a shotgun. The guy is already thinking about making a louder version, probably thinking: "If I can't hear it, it doesn't matter if someone else's hearing gets damaged."

More on topic, the current device apparently only covers a small area, so they'd just have to move a few meters. But even if it covered a larger area it wouldn't be good, because then people it isn't aimed at are going to suffer (you can't tell me that noone else ever stops in that space).

SFOSOK · Nov 30, 2005, 01:58 AM

I think if you placed outside your business with a camera and a remote control it would be a great tool. As for security guards and policemen, they often cannot get there quick enough and are rather expensive to hire one to stand outside the door.

LeanWolf · Nov 30, 2005, 02:18 AM

yeah the police have been around, but they pretty much have to catch someone in the act before they can do anything. The area's pretty small so that wouldn't be a problem. As for the shotgun, this isn't the states

That was just a small example, I've heard that some towns in Britain have huge problems with gangs of hoodlums. It's sad that such things are needed these days, but it seems a clever solution.

SFOSOK · Nov 30, 2005, 08:51 AM

You don't have to kill em, just clip a toe off.

**dj_stick** · Nov 30, 2005, 10:37 AM

kid's these days are deaf enough with their music too loud, so it won't affect everyone

Nov 29, 2005, 03:25 PM	#1
Iria DriverHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: Apr 2004 Posts: 7,275 Rep Power: 87	A Mosquito that scatters swarms of unruly teens BARRY, Wales - Though he did not know it at the time, the idea came to Howard Stapleton when he was 12 and visiting a factory with his father, a manufacturing executive in London. Opening the door to a room where workers were using high-frequency welding equipment, he found he could not bear to go inside. "The noise!" he complained. "What noise?" the grownups asked. Now 39, Stapleton has taken the lesson he learned that day - that children can hear sounds at higher frequencies than adults can - to fashion a novel device that he hopes will provide a solution to the eternal problem of obstreperous teenagers who hang around outside stores and cause trouble. The device, called the Mosquito ("It's small and annoying," Stapleton said), emits a high-frequency pulsing sound that, he says, can be heard by most people younger than 20 and almost no one older than 30. The sound is designed to so irritate young people that after several minutes, they cannot stand it and go away. ____________ Read More / Source: International Herald Tribune

Nov 29, 2005, 04:19 PM	#2
daedal Uber Coffee Drinker Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Gatineau, Quebec Posts: 2,250 Rep Power: 0	What possible use would this have? __________________

Nov 29, 2005, 04:36 PM	#3
LeanWolf alpha male Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Skyrim Posts: 5,702 Rep Power: 80 System Specs	bwaha this sounds pretty cool! edit: well for example where I live, which is hardly a violent area of the world, there's a gang of shithead teens who like to hang between the university and an adjacent student living area. They like to gang up and harass/ sometimes assault weaker looking students, particularly girls. This device could provide a simple solution. __________________ Last edited by LeanWolf; Nov 29, 2005 at 04:47 PM.

Nov 29, 2005, 10:47 PM	#8
Tril S-3D enthusiast Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Canada Posts: 1,675 Rep Power: 62 System Specs	I think such a device may get people agressive. If you get annoyed too much you lose patience and you start being agressive. I'm in my twenty and I can hear relatively high frequency noise. An opened tv with no signal is very annoying. It gives a high pitched noise. Adults think it is closed because the screen is black but I hear very clearly that it's open. It's no wonder the kids scattered. Especially if the volume is very high. I did the test with my brother when he was still under 5 or 6 years old. I played a 20 kHz sine wave on the computer. It was too high for me but he definitely heard it.

Nov 29, 2005, 10:52 PM	#9
Vikingod Int'l Fish Liaison Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: By the light of lamp I sit and type... Posts: 16,187 Rep Power: 109 System Specs	A few tunes by Donovan or Captain and Tennille would probably have the same effect... especially you you start singing along in a dramatic voice... in the nude... covered in peanut butter. __________________ *How You Can Help DriverHeaven By Using Digg*

Nov 29, 2005, 05:45 PM	#5
Sandok DriverHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Posts: 9,472 Rep Power: 66	Useless... Utterly useless.. Accept against my brother

Nov 29, 2005, 05:53 PM	Thread Starter #6
Iria DriverHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: Apr 2004 Posts: 7,275 Rep Power: 87	Well, if you read the full article, you can see at the place they road-tested it, it worked very well. I can think of places that would love this device, for the reasons the shopowner outlined in the article.

Nov 30, 2005, 01:58 AM	#13
SFOSOK 939 Goin Strong Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Ontario Posts: 7,033 Rep Power: 89 System Specs	I think if you placed outside your business with a camera and a remote control it would be a great tool. As for security guards and policemen, they often cannot get there quick enough and are rather expensive to hire one to stand outside the door. __________________ Warning - Explicit Content Preceeding METAL!!

Nov 30, 2005, 02:18 AM	#14
LeanWolf alpha male Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Skyrim Posts: 5,702 Rep Power: 80 System Specs	yeah the police have been around, but they pretty much have to catch someone in the act before they can do anything. The area's pretty small so that wouldn't be a problem. As for the shotgun, this isn't the states That was just a small example, I've heard that some towns in Britain have huge problems with gangs of hoodlums. It's sad that such things are needed these days, but it seems a clever solution. __________________

Nov 30, 2005, 08:51 AM	#15
SFOSOK 939 Goin Strong Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Ontario Posts: 7,033 Rep Power: 89 System Specs	You don't have to kill em, just clip a toe off. __________________ Warning - Explicit Content Preceeding METAL!!