Alright readers, get ready to have your minds proverbially blown! Imagine you are shopping in a grocery store, strolling through the aisles, when all of a sudden the cereal begins talking to you. You step back, and look around. No one else seems to notice. You move forward again and hear the commercial persuading you to select and purchase Lucky Charms. Have you finally lost the last little hold you had on sanity? Or is it a hypersonic sound beam, intended for your ears only?

Chances are, in the near future, supermarket shelves will be lined with these sneaky sound systems, but they aren’t just for use in advertising. This ultra-cool technology remotely transfers sound waves in tightly focused “columns” of sound. Once directed to and landing on any surface, (ie. ceilings, floors, walls, paintings, sculptures, advertisements, or even people!) they instantly become a source of sound. The sound waves can then be processed and heard by only people in the direct path of the audio. Surprisingly, the sound seems to come from inside the head, as it acts like a speaker while transmitting the sounds to the brain.

Imagine the implications this could have for a trip to the zoo or museum! A person standing in front of an exhibit might be able to listen to an informative lecture on the subject without disturbing those around them. The need for headphones and bulky “audio guide” systems could be completely eliminated. Automobile manufacturers could use the technology for hands-free cell phone conversations which would reduce the possibility of accidents while driving.

So how does it all work? Well, I’m not an audio expert, but a little Googling revealed the science behind the innovation. Normal sound travels on small pressure waves in the air. Changing the sound wave changes the frequencies that “pop up” within the wave. If you add some high-frequency sounds into the mix (sounds human ears can’t detect,) they generate new low-frequency sounds that we can hear. With a product like this, you can step into the beam and hear the information, or step out and not be bothered by it. The genius that invented a working model for this concept, Woody Norris, received the Lemelson-MIT prize of $500,000 a few years back. The father of 11 has over 50 patents, including a personal helicopter! With 11 children, no wonder he felt it necessary to divert unwanted sounds… It would certainly make airplane rides more enjoyable if we could direct children’s screaming through Hypersonic Sound Beams!

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