Can a single noise or sound drive you stark raving mad? What if you could hear a sound that most of the population cannot hear? Would you think you are losing your mind? I am referring to a mysterious sound that only around 4% of the population can hear and it is known as 'the hum'. All over the world, people have reported hearing a persistent low pitched frequency noise that is not audible to all people.


This global phenomenon has been said to have lasted as little as a few minutes, several months and even years for some sufferers. Most occurrences take place in urban areas leading people to believe that it is some form of noise pollution. The earliest reports of the phenomenon date back to the early 1970s in Bristol, England when about 800 people reported hearing a steady humming noise, it caused dizziness, nausea, nosebleeds and depression. The sound has become so troublesome for some members of society that it has led to life-threatening insomnia, depression and even suicide. Many victims have lost their jobs and careers due to the inability to focus or perform over the noise.


There is no medical explanation for hearing the noise, when victims are examined they have normal hearing and no source for the sound has ever been identified, nobody knows what causes it, though theories have ranged from military radiowaves to mass hysteria to government mind-controlling devices and of course aliens!