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No. 42: Nov-Dec 1985

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Music In The Ear

For three weeks a 70-year-old woman had been complaining about hearing music when there was no music within normal earshot. Since the woman wore a hearing aid in each ear, it was first thought that she might be picking up local radio stations; but a check showed that none was playing the repertoire she reported. Mostly she heard songs from the 1930s and 1940s. Finally, it was discovered that she was taking 12 aspirins a day. When this dosage was halved, the music stopped. Doctors have known that too much aspirin can cause ringing in the ears, but this is the first time that specific songs were induced.

(Anonymous; "Stop the Music," Science News, 128:168, 1985.)

Reference. Actually, the human ear does generate some sound. See BHO9 in our catalog: Biological Anomalies: Humans II. For more information on this book, visit: here.

From Science Frontiers #42, NOV-DEC 1985. � 1985-2000 William R. Corliss