Is there really a noise that makes you poop yourself?

The science behind the infamous ‘brown note’.

Published: October 5, 2021 at 10:00 am

The enduring legend of the ‘brown note’ – a sound frequency so low that its resonance through the human body causes spontaneous, uncontrollable pooping – is thankfully no more than a legend.The origin of this hilarious, if unsettling, myth appears to be a spoof article published in 1974, which described a giant horn that apparently gave the entire audience diarrhoea with a rendition of the national anthem at its unveiling in 1850.

However, scientists have tested the effects of different sound frequencies on the human body and found no evidence for the infamous brown note.

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Asked by: Nabil Bendrimia, London

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