If I had a spare $2 Million I’d build one of those fancy Lorentz Tesla Cannons and see which dystopian scifi tech wins. Gonna be loud af either way.
Image credit goes to LightningOnDemand
How it works is that a coil is charged with high enough voltage that it generates an electromagnetic field which keeps it from disintegrating until the voltage drops below the threshold such as coming into contact with an object. The required voltage depends on the max range and the gauge of wire which connects the rod and the quick discharge capacitor banks, but in the range of over a hundred thousand volts is expected. It’s basically a rechargeable short range EMP: it will literally melt electronics near the contact point even behind other objects. Electronics such as an expensive sonic weapon.
I suppose a much cheaper solution would be a jar of flammable liquid and a burning rag.
Why is there no sound recording?
I watched the original video when it dropped but couldn’t discern any sound from the weapon itself. Watch the clip here - the crowd reacts at the 0:07 mark without any discernible loud sound, although it was described by victims as “being like a train whistle” (i.e. excruciatingly loud and panic-inducing).
There is, you just can’t hear the weapon in the footage of the attack on the vigil.
In the same way that human ears can’t hear much of the noise happening around them, we wouldn’t be able to hear recordings of the weapon in use because it’s ultrasonic. Picture a literal dog whistle and our inability to hear it despite it fully capturing a canine’s attention, except as a restricted military-grade weapon for injuring and dispersing crowds.
The same reason you don’t hear ultrasound sensors of cars when backing up. Microphones can only capture a certain frequency range, but you can still hear/feel those waves when they hit you
If the human ear can hear it, the mic can pick it up. Unless it was just hearing pain?
Does anyone know if noise cancelling works against or diminishes this sound?
No, your airpods will not protect you from this. Not only will the sheer volume of sound overwhelm their tiny ANC speakers, but sonic weapons affect more than just the eardrum. They can affect your heart, lungs, and other organs.
I watched a video after this happened where a guy was testing defenses. He tried what he called electric headphones that I’m guessing are noise canceling, and they made it worse. Best defense was ear muffs and a riot shield.
Video: https://youtu.be/CXKTBQBugIA
No, the sound is transmitted through the body rather than just via the auditory system in such a way that simply plugging or covering your ears will provide no protection from the effect. As analogy, imagine the effect of a train whistle or jet engine on someone who’s within 1-25 ft., but 100% deaf. It wouldn’t need to be heard by their ears per se as it would be so powerful as to be transmitted into the target’s body, which would reacts accordingly to a 100+ decibel sound.
This sort of thing can’t be allowed to continue.
Could a potentially trained group of protesters resist this? Say, if leaflets were explaining the effects of this thing, could people bear it and march on?
