BUZZ OFF
by Maggie Van Ostrand
Just when you think you've got your kids under control with childproof caps and locks, controls that prohibit viewing sexy television channels without your knowledge, and secret digital cameras filming kids (parents' answer to the Patriot Act), an enterprising U.K. company, Compound Security Systems Ltd. (CSS), has come up with yet another outwit-your-parents gizmo: a cell phone whose ringtone can only be heard by those under 20 years of age.
Originally, it was an ultrasonic solution to kids who hang out in public places and spray graffiti, commit general acts of vandalism or just party. The Mosquito system emits an unpleasant high-pitched tone that can only be heard by people under 20. My mom was ahead of her time with a much less expensive teen repellent. It was called "the back of my hand."
Turns out that this "teen repellent" is great news for kids. Teen blogger Ellen wrote this:
"Mosquito is a teenager repellent - an ultrasonic device that emits a sound only audible to teenagers. It's targeted to business seeking a solution to anti social youths hanging in front of their stores fronts and driving their customers away.
"The box is installed in front of a store and emits an unbearable sound, only discernable to those under 20! driving them away.
"Apparently, the company has sold thousands of models in the UK, to the complete delight of it's inventor, Howard Stapleton.
"In their own words: 'It seems that there is a very real medical phenomenon known as presbycusis or age related hearing loss which, according to The Merck Manual of Diagnosis and Therapy, "begins after the age of 20 but is usually significant only in persons over 65". It first affects the highest frequencies (18 to 20 kHz) notably in those who have turned 20 years of age." It is possible to generate a high frequency sound that is audible only to teenagers.'
"Techno-savvy pupils have recorded the ultra-high sound - audible only to under-20s onto their cell phones, and are now receiving calls and text messages in class - without teachers having the faintest idea of what is going on. The kids call it Teen Buzz, and it's spreading it from phone to phone via text messages and Bluetooth."
Impressed when their website traffic spiked as 100,000 kids tried to download the sound, CSS is now aware of how smart teens can be, especially when in the throes of authority defiance. Software has been developed allowing kids to download a similar high-pitched sound to share via Bluetooth wireless connection. Kids can get the ring tone for $2.99 and "join the thousands of folks who can hear the ring tone that their parents can't!"
September will find the Mosquito ringtone available in the United States so parents, if your kids are willing to tolerate that horrible buzz just to put one over on you, better consider this your personal Red Alert.
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