# Please help me solve an acoustic mystery **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 13, 2009, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-solve-an-acoustic-mystery/513664 "2009-10-13T15:59:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 4\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![The\_Seventh\_Deadly\_Finn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/6bbea6/32.png) [@The\_Seventh\_Deadly\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Seventh_Deadly_Finn)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2009, 1:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-solve-an-acoustic-mystery/513664/61 "2009-10-17T01:15:43Z")
Damn! Some things man was never meant to know, I guess. If you find some little toy with a dead battery in 6 months, though, come back and tell us! ---
**Author:** ![ambushed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3bc359/32.png) [@ambushed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ambushed)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2009, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-solve-an-acoustic-mystery/513664/62 "2009-10-17T01:20:27Z")
> [@Rhythmdvl](#): > > In that case, I’d be wary of inviting any policemen in for a chat. You’ll likely wind up shouting at them to tear up the planks. Yes, yes yes! You’ve found me out! I admit it! “It grew louder – louder – louder! And still the men chatted pleasantly, and smiled. Was it possible they heard not? Almighty God! – no, no? They heard! – they suspected! – they KNEW! – they were making a mockery of my horror! – this I thought, and this I think. But anything was better than this agony! Anything was more tolerable than this derision! I could bear those hypocritical smiles no longer! I felt that I must scream or die! – and now – again – hark! louder! louder! louder! LOUDER!..” ---
**Author:** ![ambushed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3bc359/32.png) [@ambushed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ambushed)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2009, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-solve-an-acoustic-mystery/513664/63 "2009-10-17T01:22:47Z")
I see a great deal more helpful suggestions and ideas, and I thank you again for them all. But I have to get going to the hospital, so I have to stop now. I’ll come back when possible to reply to the rest of the comments… ---
**Author:** ![Zoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/a4c791/32.png) [@Zoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zoe)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2009, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-solve-an-acoustic-mystery/513664/64 "2009-10-17T22:50:30Z")
I hope your mom is okay, **ambushed**. You have in this thread the makings of a very good short story. Just write a different ending – perhaps one in which the house is completely dismantled and the sound continues. It was beginning to get on my nerves here in Nashville! When I was in my early teens I had to come home from school to an empty house in a fairly rural area. One day I heard what sounded like someone dropping bed springs on the ceiling in the attic. It frightened me. What or rather _who_ was in our attic? It happened again a few minutes later. I began to panic. The sound continued every few minutes. Finally I couldn’t stand being in the house with whatever was in our attic. So I went outside. But I could still hear that same sound outside too! That didn’t make sense. How could I hear something being dropped on our attic floor from outside. I remained outside for an hour or so – I don’t really remember how long – until my mother came home. I told her about the sound. She knew what it was. What I had thought was right above me head was actually about fifteen miles away. The arsenal there was testing explosives and/or weapons. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-solve-an-acoustic-mystery/513664.md?page=3)