Back-up beepers: Obnoxious, but getting better - and spreading!

[@joshbbglover]

The amount of jokes in this video definitely goes against the spirit of No Effort November.

[@conqu2]

shhh. don't let him know!

[@matthemattics]

The Spirit of No Effort November would have entered the chat, but that would have gone against its principles.

[@platinummyrr]

Normally he must use effort to prevent the jokes from overwhelming the video .. in November, no effort is made to prevent this.

[@good_lucko]

ayeee-greed. came to say 'pretty good amount of effort-November' or similar haha

[@mynintendogamingfeed5208]

Nah; it goes _with_ the spirit of No Effort November!

[@AgentWaltonSimons]

Extra fun fact - here in the UK, you sometimes get reversing alarms that are literally a voice recording saying "Attention! This vehicle is reversing!" in a loop. Typically in a very RP accent, like some kind of butler announcing the reversing of a newfangled horseless carriage.

[@Debbiebabe69]

You often see them on forklifts in factories where the workforce is 90%+ Polish or Romanian and many speak little if any English, surpised they havnt turned more people into pancakes..........

[@Beregorn88]

If only we had a concise, simple and universally recognized sound to signal a vehicle is reversing... 🙄

[@jcardboard]

They've mostly been phased out of the white noise ones, but yeah they do sometimes still appear on really old equipment.

[@ahaveland]

Would be even funnier if a door opens and a robot jumps out waving a red flag!

[@geekehUK]

I love the polite ones that literally say, "please stand back..." oh and then there are, I think it's the Securicore armoured vans that make a sound that sounds like the beginning of The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly. I can't help but finish it every time.

[@GillyGuy]

Fun fact! I work in a concrete manufacturing plant in the middle of a town. Our movement beepers have been waking up the neighbors. So we are in the process of changing all of our old school, loud beepy beeper with newfangled, ambient sensing white noise sensors!

[@good_lucko]

excellent. transition for the best on both sides

[@andreasu.3546]

Where I live they're placing beepers (for the visually impaired) at railway level crossings with self-calibrating ones. They used to be a nightmare for neighbors but the new ones work really well, no longer super loud but they ramp enough to be heard over the train noises while the train passes.

[@salvadormuro7346]

@@andreasu.3546that’s neat

[@raafmaat]

wait, what is Ambient Sensing????

[@TheSanpletext]

@@raafmaat Yeah, that's just fancy name for db-meter that controls output volume.

[@GinnyMaive]

you can't trick us into thinking this is "no effort" simply by standing in front of a moderately disassembled pinball machine

[@gakulon]

Unrelated to the video, but I love your name and profile pic!

[@longiusaescius2537]

@GinnyMaive huh

[@TheAnantaSesa]

He had done a video on pinball machines near the end of October.

[@TorutheRedFox]

he put no effort into reassembling it, duh!

[@joaquinsanabria2734]

❤❤❤

[@CMDRSweeper]

The fact you talked with subtitles while the back up alarm was running REALLY helped to illustrate how loud it was. Excellent!

[@ErrorAsh]

It seemed like the subtitles were missing some word though, strange :p

[@neilw2O]

And I can lip read!

[@jsax01001010]

​​@@ErrorAshYeah, and that word just happened by chance to line up with one of the beeps from the alarm so you can't even make out what it is. So very strange.

[@wta1518]

And the subtitles were in the greatest font ever!

[@DaddyBeanDaddyBean]

​@@ErrorAshWell, getting ALL the words into the subtitles would require effort, so ...

[@Dennys787]

“Because unless you hang around construction sites, like some sort of practical engineer” that had me in hysterics

[@SockyNoob]

Same

[@shaider1982]

Same here.

[@TreesPlease42]

Practical Engineering is fantastic

[@Tux.Penguin]

@@TreesPlease42 Practical Engineering is so awesome, it’s one of the few channels I watch regularly … alongside Technology Connections of course!

[@JonathanScarlet]

Always a good time when good creators reference each other.

[@Denamic]

They were practically banned at the mine I worked at, because when every machine goes backwards like half the time, it just becomes a never-ending chorus of hearing damage.

[@petr-heinz]

So the reverse beepers become ambient noise? How are they 5 dB louder than themselves then?

[@TheNathanlockhart]

Same was true of the factory I worked at. The constant beeping of backing up forklifts and honking at interactions just became a totally ignored background cacophony.

[@dotonthehorizon9620]

How can something be "practically" banned?

[@Denamic]

@@dotonthehorizon9620 Regulations state that all machines use air vents to produce white noise, if they use any at all, but beepers aren’t technically banned. They’re still around, but they’re being phased out where possible.

[@mrkingsudo]

The way you changed the audio mix when you put on/take off the headphones was so damn smooth! You're as excellent of an editor as you are at informing us!

[@coreybabcock2023]

Definitely agree

[@smokeydapot]

Not to mention the subtitles didn’t match. My hearing wasn’t THAT protected lol

[@OfficialUSKRprogram]

As a trucker myself I've noticed all those technologies around me and found them fascinating, shunter trucks usually have the white noise devices, city trucks and forklifts usually have the variable-decibel alarm. I know nobody cares in general, but you did, and I thank you.

[@ninjaguysith]

When i was a medic, our ambulance had a very distinct white noise alert whenever we have a call. It was such a huge difference because i felt like it didn't elevate your heart rate compared to some other old school alerts, like at firehouse with an insanely loud bell or beep. The white noise always woke me up and i could hear it thru a lot of other ambient noises

[@jundaaaaaaaaaa]

U might be on to smt about alarms in general…

[@SuperLordHawHaw]

I find it can be hard to tell where regular sirens are coming from. At a 4 way intersection the vehicle has to be almost at the intersection to see where it is coming from.

[@scottplumer3668]

My clock radio turns on the alarm or radio gradually, rather than all of a sudden, so you aren't jolted awake. Though I have to admit having a heart attack is a great way to wake up.

[@PampersRockaer]

15:20 dB(A) is usually measured at 1 meter distance from the sound emitting device. The (A) also means it applies filtering related to human hearing capability across the frequency space, so it is a more accurate representation of the actual volume perceived.

[@mikel9567]

In the US it is measured at 4 feet from the object per OSHA regulations.

[@alexanderkupke920]

@@mikel9567 which is just about 22 cm more than a meter. But it is a good point nonetheless, as of course it may already change the measured value due to the different distance. I think the noise level decreases to the square of the distance. Or put in an hopefully easier to understand example. If you get annoyed by those reverse beepers standing 10 foot away, if you move another 10 foot away to a total distance of 20 foot, they are only a quarter as loud as before. So really for such measurements how they were taken is a piece of information as important as giving the unit of your measured value (and in case of Decibel also the chracteristics) as well. Here in Germany or across Europe usually if it is kind of a technical specification you will find that information (marketing material most likely omitts it). For some applications like exhaust noise on vehicles it can get as complicated as "measured at 1 m distance of the tipp of the exhaust, x amount above the street and sideways at an y degree angle". Sounds awfully complicated, is somewhat complicated, but if the police does the measurement because your manipulated or not street legal tuning exhaust pipe is to loud, the court will come back to those details. Or in any other situation where legal requirements have to be met. So if that information is missing, comparing a measurement from Europe to one taken according to OSHA regulations may give you a false result.

[@theantipope4354]

@@mikel9567 4 feet is pretty close to one metre. Specifically, 1.22m.

[@Meshamu]

@@Bobo-ox7fj Did the math for the joke, respect.

[@DanieleGiorgino]

Log scales are so confusing.

[@mellowmelly9258]

the idea of a guy seeing a vehicle backing up and just going "FFUUUUCK, FFUUUUCK, FFUUUCKK" is really funny to me

[@MattDracula]

the dramatic black and white shift when he says "but the beeps are coming from inside the car" about killed me with laughter. Love this channel so much and I appreciate the effort, or lack thereof this month, you put into these videos :)

[@Narinjas]

Can we agree that toyota hybrid sound is equivalent to the whales of the damned(hell)?

[@verysmallcats1374]

That black and white gag is incredible!

[@mordechai_rotwein]

@@Narinjas🐳?

[@Narinjas]

@@mordechai_rotwein Wail/Wails but not the place, idk why it went 🐋

[@Archgeek0]

@@NarinjasYeah that sound is...annoying. Confine yourself in a home garage with the car and couple that with a driver that wants to just _sit_ there in reverse fussing with something inconsequential in the cabin rather than get on with it and actually back out of the garage, it's downright unpleasant to be near.

[@dd4235]

On the vehicle motion alarm: I used to work in a warehouse with hundreds of autonomous robots that all had an alarm. To make it more pleasant, they played music whenever they moved (half Pachelbel’s Canon, half Beethoven’s Ninth). Definitely better than bleeps, but there was some speaker issue meaning they were all slightly out of tune with each other. Kinda nightmarish.

[@KostasHolopain]

As a musician, this gave me the chills! I'd quit the very next day!

[@plankera]

That sounds like a nightmare for someone with perfect pitch, aka me.

[@technomunk]

I wonder if it could be the Doppler effect messing up the pitches enough to make music uncanny

[@deus_ex_machina_]

​@@technomunkGood thinking, but at the speeds robo-movers crawl at, Doppler shifts are negligible. Response: @Vulpo Sure, but at that point you're talking about echo, not the Doppler effect.

[@vulpo]

@@deus_ex_machina_ But the size of the warehouse could mean that the sounds from robots at varying distances would be arriving at different times which might cause an eerie effect.

[@EATSLEEPDRIVE2002]

Love the shout out to practical engineering! Also yes, I don't know how many times I've seen someone step out of their GM car and told them "hey dude, I think you left your car in reverse"

[@RobertsonHH]

It's a neat system to enable you to see that all your bulbs are still working.

[@ZeroAlligator]

“A full half of all drivers out on the road are worse than the average driver, and that’s a fact.” I love this.

[@SomePotato]

It's also wrong. A full half are worse than the median driver.

[@vodiak]

@@SomePotato I'll double down on the pedantry 😀It (half are worse than average) is correct if driver skill follows a normal distribution. But median is correct.

[@ZeroAlligator]

And yet it was still a funny joke.

[@Havron]

​@@vodiakI'll triple down on the pedantry by pointing out that the median is, in fact, a type of average, and that Alec did not use the more specific word "mean".

[@warrenjones744]

Especially if you live in the greater Boston Massachusetts area 😧

[@patrickstephen8236]

Has me dying at the practical engineer joke 😂

[@jimbo3939]

Good I’m not the only one!

[@italiana626sc]

Same!

[@KennethBaker53]

Shout out to Grady!

[@jodosh]

That line made me more happy than it had any right to.

The practical construction miniseries was great.

[@KellyClowers]

Nice Practical Engineering shout out! Loved his experiment with the construction videos, hope he is able to more (his regular stuff is great too of course)

[@ryanj610]

I thought that was probably the reference!

[@halbronk7133]

I'm glad to learn that Hyundai implemented a combined sound of white noise and beeping. When I originally watched Tom Scott's video, I was concerned that the white noise alarm might not be recognizable as a backup alarm, but with the combination, you get the best of both worlds!

[@katrinabryce]

Now, 10 or so years later, I am very familiar with the idea that that is a reversing alarm. The first time I heard one, I wasn't sure what it meant, but I did know where it was coming from, and I did look there and saw a reversing truck.

[@himaro101]

So here in the UK, we're now basically primed to hear white noise as a backup alarm. We also now have voice overs to go along with them on many lorries and large vans. Hell, even on indicators (blinkers) as well in some cases. They'll normally say something close too "Warning, this vehicle is reversing" [insert white noise bleep] on repeat.

[@SeanBZA]

Japan also has chiming traffic light poles by pedestrian crossings, so the blind can easily find the pole, and also the push button, which allows them to cross safely. Chime all the time, which might be annoying to new residents before they become used to it, and a different one to indicate a green crossing signal.

[@astrecks]

My Nissan has a reversing alarm that sounds like what I can only describe as a Mexican church bell tolling as heard in a spaghetti western. Clang! Clang! Clang! (with a bit of white noise added).

[@smalltime0]

@@SeanBZA Australia has that too ( except it is a beep/metal clack), its called the PB/5

[@kjenk19]

I used to have a “GM” car (Holden Commodore) and I installed LED torch bulbs with built in lenses as my reverse lights. It was so useful! It made it obvious to everyone when I was reversing, I could see where I was going (no reverse camera) and when I unlock/lock the car they stayed illuminated for a minute and I could see where I was going. I 100% recommend installing bright reverse lights in your car.

[@COBARHORSE1]

Before there were backup beepers, they were back up bells usually found on dump trucks. It was some kind of a mechanical arrangement with the rear axle.

[@soupbowlbandit5831]

They bolt on to a wheel. And work by either a ball bearing that followed a track that was opened in reverse motion and allows the ball to hit the bell.

[@gfdgdfgdfgdfggfdgdfgdfgdfg9709]

Back in my day we tied bells to the tails of the dinosaurs we were riding at work

[@rctopfueler2841]

They had a chime that clacked evey 90 degreees

[@a_funyun]

Of course you've watched the practical engineering construction series, one of my favourites in recent memory. Cool video!

[@mrbuttons1243]

Nice subtle joke he threw in there.

[@fredthebulldog529]

Ha ok glad it wasn't just me that thought he might be talking about Grady

[@Krahazik]

Spotted that right of the bat. Nice callout.

[@Krahazik]

@@mrbuttons1243 I thought it was kind of obvious and not subtle at all.

[@NorroTaku]

me too

[@makeshift27015]

I always look forward to these surprisingly-high-effort no-effort-November videos. We get a whole bunch more technology connections in a slightly different style and that's a good month.

[@Null--]

The no effort version of Technology Connections is a lot more effort than many other KZbinrs do at their best.

[@andre.armenante]

here in LA we hear the new alarms every days we call it the "dying crow" as that's what it sounds like. love your content love your channel!

[@HicSvntDracones]

yep, same in San Francisco SSSHHHHHHHHH...SSSHHHHHHHHHH

[@HotTakeAndy]

Dying Amazon truck 😂

[@MintyVoid]

you've conditioned me to get excited whenever I realize a teardown is going to happen, I know it's coming- "And through the magic of buying two of these,". makes me smile every time lol

[@popenieafantome9527]

dammit Pavlov

[@vurpo7080]

On the topic of reverse lights, there is another useful purpose of them. If you see a car at night (especially if you're walking or cycling), it's very easy to recognize: red lights means a vehicle moving away from you, and white lights means a vehicle coming towards you.

[@stevenschiro1838]

Exactly. It's the same with reflectors.

[@frankyanish4833]

Same with trains.

[@philstuf]

So my beef is with GM (The manufacturer) when you arm the alarm on their newer vehicles, they tend to turn on the reverse lights for a while... That is especially misleading when driving through a parking lot... I mean, you JUST parked and now you're locking the doors. Why choose reverse lights??? Just pulse the parking lights a couple of times...

[@Vid_Master]

Thats smart!!

[@Australiaisupsidedown]

​@@philstuf gm has to stop that.

[@a.p.2356]

It is really odd to me that "electronic angelic shrieking" is the sound everyone seem to have decided EVs should make. Why not a Jetson's noise?

[@JohnTsiligiannis-pe9vx]

YES! I want that sound in modern EVs.

[@FlooferLand]

omg someone please mod that into an EV and @ me with a video link i need to hear this now xD

[@slickstretch6391]

It should be customizable. I want bubbles.

[@Truth_Demon]

@@slickstretch6391 Tesla did that for a bit, they got quite the talking to

[@emiliorescigno]

Tesla had fun and let you customize it, then NHTSA said fun isn't allowed.

[@itsamindgame9198]

Having handily prepped everyone that "back-up alarm" means "reverse" not "reserve" you then exclaim "I have a back-up alarm" and present the reserve. Well played, sir. Well played.

[@Zyghqwyv]

he should have said "i have a backup back up alarm"

[@Julleholle]

I love this "free-form" version of your videoes. You're witty, and letting yourself loose isnt a bad thing - I also hope that this makes the videoes less taxing (time and effort wise).

[@michealpersicko9531]

Keep in mind it is no effort november here and the regularly scheduled programming will continue in december.

[@philstuf]

Our entire fleet uses the, "white noise," reverse alert systems. Very noticeable. Also, Mythbusters did an episode on the pulsing tone vs. white noise alerts. Similar findings about locating, spatially.

[@jaklumen]

So did Tom Scott. A video, anyways

[@Descriptor413]

I kinda feel like, at least for now, the white noise should be backed by a single tone just to transition people better to the new noise, but it's not a big deal.

[@philstuf]

@@Descriptor413 That's actually a really good idea... Alternating tones, you think? That's brilliant. "Beep," "Scritch," repeated... That sounds like a great combination... Maybe a, "Beep/scritch," combo noise then a "scritch" then a "beep", and it repeats all 3...? You get that patent and don't forget me, lol...

[@philstuf]

@@Descriptor413 I will say, The white noise attempt/"Scritch" does get my attention a LOT more that the beeping since I work for a water utility and we are always expanding, so you can hear beeps at almost every plant we work at almost daily, and it becomes easy to ignore. But the combination of the 2 for aural location... That's good.

[@Descriptor413]

@@philstuf I just figured the beep and scritch would happen concurrently. The white noise would really just add depth to the sound.

[@TheElaborinth8993]

I find it hilarious that according to to what Alec is hinting at. That during No Effort November he is more snarky because he’s writing the scripts with no effort. So Alec’s editing process is all in attempt to edit out his snarkyness.

[@daverapp]

I firmly believe that if we were ever to be presented with his raw, unfiltered snark in its pure form, we would be obliterated instantly.

[@jacksons1010]

@@daverapp Indeed, a Snarknado if you will.

[@Oedwak]

"And get off your phone! For the love of god, you're operating a two-ton death machine! Act like the responsibility it is!" - As a motorcyclist, I strongly endorse this message.

[@SuperFlashDriver]

This is why I have my phone act like an MP3 player, so this way I can play music in them. And when not driving, I can do stuff on the phone while in park, or pulled over to the side of the road.

[@jewelleryaddict]

If I had a hammer, need I say more?

[@chaz720]

I live in the Los Angeles area where there is probably one of the higher concentrations of electric and hybrid vehicles in the country. All I will say is, if you get more than about three vehicles making that ethereal pedestrian noise in the same area, it results in an unsettling dystopian symphony of creepiness and you start expecting a jump scare.

[@TheGreatAtario]

What if you could pick your own sound? I think I'd pick a jet engine spooling up. (Not at actual jet engine volume of course)

[@xXbillymaysXx]

​@@TheGreatAtarioThat's half the fun!

[@OOZ662]

@@TheGreatAtario Unce unce unce unce ah ah unce unce

[@marafolse8347]

Yeah, the noise terrifies me

[@robertlogue3794]

I have not heard any electric vehicles yet butthe examples in this video were strange, eerie, and unsettling. I am totally blind. Needs more research. I would like the Jetsons flying car sound. Deedle deedle deedle with dopler effect😮

[@blackholeinacan]

Coming Next Week: No-Effort November continues, with Alec spending 35 minutes expounding on whether he has a problem being succinct

[@zyeborm]

Only 35? I was hoping he could do a deep dive into what succintness really is at its core and the history relating to it.

[@kristoffer3000]

@@zyeborm 7 part video series coming right up!

[@madmanswords12]

Love that the Aztec Pinball is just the table in this. Even with it not being the topic, it really gives me a sense of nostalgia for helping my dad refurbish an Aztec Pinball when I was a teenager.

[@Blake-jl8lh]

Moving the desk back and moving the pinball out of the way would be effort

[@firstletterofthealphabet7308]

@@Blake-jl8lhand as we all know…

[@randomsomeguy156]

@@firstletterofthealphabet7308 it's no nut November

[@peterlee5535]

​@@randomsomeguy156Not for me it's not! I think I've outgrown that celebration lol

[@alecwhatshisname5170]

His neighbors:where’s that truck?🗿

[@Lukas-dk34h]

Just wanted to say how much I appreciate your videos. In a way they are so calming, almost meditative yet so fascinating and informative. It makes me feel like I'm a kid again watching a science show on sunday morning

[@emilie4058]

For a period of several weeks, someone who parked outside (& under) my apartment window was driving a work truck with a backup beeper. I had very violent thoughts. They sucked at backing in to spots, too. Took them ridiculously long.

[@FaenumVena]

ive been stuck living next to it 8am to 5pm daily for 3 1/2 years (and counting) from a massive building site and ive had many many thoughts of violence, explosions and various other was to just make it stop! they reverse long distances too co their too lazy to turn around.

[@Anaerin]

In a related manner, Emergency vehicles in some countries have augmented their sirens, as the standard wail echoes a lot and makes it extremely difficult to locate them, so they've been changed to be a "Woo-woo-woo-SPLAT", with the splat being a burst of white noise for better locatability.

[@PTS1337]

I reckon the splat is manually activated by the driver (probably via the horn). At least from what I've witnessed, the siren goes regularly, and when a busy crossing is approached, the driver starts pumping the horn, making that alternate noise, and it is certainly easier to spot.

[@stamfordly6463]

It's surprising how long that took to be implemented though. I can remember seeing a piece on it on the original version of the BBC's "Tomorrow's World" programme. That went off air in 2000 yet my first recollection of hearing a "staticy" siren is about ten years ago.

[@jaredkennedy6576]

There was an ambulance in southern Idaho that had the standard high tone siren, plus one that was a few octaves lower. You could hear that thing for miles, the hospital was about 3/4 mile from my house, and that low tone would make the windows rattle.

[@bwofficial1776]

Interesting. In the US there's a system called the Rumbler or Howler (depending on the manufacturer). When activated, it adds a subwoofer to the siren that's supposed to be felt as well as heard. It's pretty effective when emergency vehicles are coming up on intersections.

[@Anaerin]

@@PTS1337That's a different thing - This is a modification to the siren that happens all the time the siren is active. woo-woo-woo-splat-pause-woo-woo-woo-splat and so on.

[@griffincash661]

100,000 people or more watched this video within 4 hours.... A video about backup beepers. You are amazing at what you do!

[@freeculture]

Video description: BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP Best ever.

[@USS_Sentinel]

I fucking HATE backup beepers.

[@Bradamsmx5]

Props for the shoutout to Practical Engineering. He, too, has an amazing channel chock full of great information. I especially enjoy his recent video series where he is hanging around construction sites.

[@ConorChewy]

As an acoustics consultant it's always nice to hear noise issues being talked about. Your failed attempt to figure out what the 97 dB was referring to is extremely reminiscent of my daily life trying to model and calculate these kinds of things. The manufacturers will rarely admit what any of their numbers mean. Chances are there's a theoretically standardised test method which specifies how the single number is arrived at, or whether it's a sound power level, but you'd have to be in the testing/design industry to know about that and there's often several layers of interpretation such that those numbers are meaningless outside of comparing two variant products from the same company. One thing that's worth looking into is the AVAS system implemented on London buses here in the UK as an audible warning system, which took a lot of nice acoustic design and thought to get right and I was peripherally involved in.

[@gregfaris6959]

As an acoustics consultant you should be aware that international standards specify noise measurements as (A) weighted from a distance of one meter, which makes the "97dB(A)" marking of the device perfectly acceptable and meaningful. This is codified in ISO 9614-3, and is not an obscure or arcane standard, though admittedly it does not guarantee that any specific manufacturer actually performed measurements is compliance with the standard or published the results thereof.

[@wobblysauce]

It is easier to pass if you blur the line and just make 100Db of noise instead

[@skataskatata9236]

Noise pollution galore. why not mandate to lower the volume 1 dB each passing year???????

[@robertszynal4745]

Wow! I looked up that London Bus AVAS sound and it was so interesting how it was decided upon! So much more thought was put into it than any of the usual systems.

[@QuovatisPS]

As a cyclist, I appreciate EVs that have some kind of sound, as they can sneak up on you without your awareness

[@quicksilver1203]

Same here. I am so used to listening to cars around the corner, that I almost exclusively rely on the sounds to gauge whether I should stop when I approach an intersection with obstructed view.

[@joshua43214]

Now if we can just mandate noisemakers for bikes things will be even better.

[@quicksilver1203]

@@joshua43214 That's why you have loud hubs 😁 I am only mildly annoyed with e-bikes whizzing past me and surprising me, with a side of a mini heart atack. Besides, there are bicycle bells. Other than announcing its presence to pedestrians, I can't think of any other reason for a bicycle to make any sounds. Wait, you are talking about bicycles, right? Not motorcycles?

[@seredachan]

@@joshua43214and then a bicycle will a need not a one 18650 but like a whole battery pack to keep the noise up for any extended time, unless.. which would be mad cool.. unless we hook up a crank siren to bicycle wheel axles, that would be so cool; also i just remembered, bicycles kinda already have that: the rattle gear or whatever it's called in english, the one which prevents pedals from spinning round when not accelerating, it makes a rattling noise, although it's not loud enough as to be an effective warning thing. as a cyclist, i find rearview mirrors and lights+indicators on my bicycle the biggest addition to mine and people around's safety. i think the automobilists' respect to you is based on how big they perceive you, so if you have good lighting that is comparable to motor vehicles' and makes you look like a motorcycle from afar, then you'll get much better treatment and be visible to peds as well. most cyclists i see have neither lights nor mirrors and certainly no indicators or bells/horns making them dangerous to others when maneuvering and plain invisible at night, and they do love ghostriding at night. although, cars pose a big problem that they blind me and cast shadows over potholes with their headlights unless i use my car-level brightness headlight which can only last for a couple hrs so i have to use it wisely whereas cars have virtually unlimited electricity since everything is hooked up to the big main battery, be car ICE or Elec. thank god governments don't move to ban flashing lights for bicycles (yet)

[@PinkAgaricus]

Yup, and the one inside the car for the proximity alarm so you don't "CRUUUUUNCH!" or "SCRAAAAPE!" the car while parking it. "Hey ma, that alarm is for the people outside of the car, not the driver." - me (telling mom this when she thinks she can hear the reverse beeps inside the car as the driver)

[@godminnette2]

We just had roadwork done on the street we live on for five months. Being woken up to the sound of these beepers whenever any of the machinery moved was great fun!

[@theelmonk]

Imagine what it's like for the drivers. I bet they don't hear it at all after a few weeks.

[@kingjames4886]

@@theelmonk they've done studies that have shown people who work around those alarms on a regular basis tend to kinda tune them out.

[@tyrannicpuppy]

This was a top notch video. Both the informative nature (I honestly had no idea that they were for illumination) and the jokes involved.

[@thesledgehammerblog]

Many years ago, my uncle and his wife started a prank war with my parents. My Dad, being a longtime mechanic, found a reverse light for their car with an integrated beeper, and sneakily installed it one day when they weren't around. Took them quite a while to figure that one out.

[@MonkeyJedi99]

On of the funniest car pranks I've seen was where someone zip-tied a cheap harmonica under someone's front bumper, just out of easy sight.

[@patcallahan1050]

Some kid was getting on my nerves at work. So Friday at 5, right before my week off, I put a car alarm speaker on the starter solenoid on his yard truck.

[@danl6634]

Quieter horn tied into the brake lights was frigging hilarious as a teen

[@MonkeyJedi99]

@@patcallahan1050 OMG that's EVIL! I love it.

[@iLikeTheUDK]

​@@MonkeyJedi99that sounds hilarious

[@BEM684]

I love seeing the KZbin thumbnails on your screen... Tom Scott, vlogbrothers, and Aging Wheels are all on my screen this week too! It's like we're members in the same cult of distraction!

[@SquishyZoran]

I love the term cult of distraction and I’m stealing that one. Thank you!

[@jd_the_cat]

I love Aging Wheels and Tom Scott.

[@alexatkin]

One of the most annoying things about learning to drive for me was how the instructor insisted to NOT use the turn signals, unless there was someone to advise I was about to turn. I just don't get the logic, as if you do something only some of the time you have to think about it, whereas if you do something all of the time then you will never forget to do it as it becomes part of your muscle memory. Secondly, if a pedestrian is out of your field of view you are potentially denying them warning that you're about to run them over. Its just safer overall to ALWAYS use the signals.

[@TheDanAge]

you had a terrible instructor... Mine taught me the opposite

[@raafmaat]

the instructor was wrong! you have to learn to do it at ALL times specifically because you cant at all times know exactly wich cars are noticing you, i even signal when there is NO car in a mile radius..... there MIGHT be some quick moped like right around some corner or whatever (sorry for the weird caps)

[@raafmaat]

for me the hardest part of learning to drive was learning the stick shift, i live in europe, and here stick shift is the default! it took me like 3 weeks before i finally got the hang of it! but once i got stick shift down, the rest was easy-peasy, passed the test like a week later :)

[@Ikouy]

I was pulled over at 3AM on an empty suburban main street for not using my turn signal. In some states it is the law.

[@1dareu2mov3]

I hope that instructor got fired.

[@KrazyKaiser]

2:46 excellent use of the interrobang in the captions, I applaud you.

[@wezpa]

I really appreciate the timing of your swearing being beeped out at 1:24. Well done! 😂🎉

[@itsthevoiceman]

Oh, that was definitely edited.

[@scott8919]

​@@itsthevoicemanin past blooper clips he's had in videos, he ends up just mouthing words without saying them.

[@stevenneiman1554]

Glorbus is doing a great job.

[@Quickened1]

It'll be nice to hear "digital angels" as you're being mowed down in reverse, sort of like getting a crash course on this side, before you reach the other! Sweet!

[@__dm__]

In Korea, a lot of trucks use a square-wave rendition of Fur Elise for backup noise generators on basically every truck. It was used for at least 20 years because I remember hearing this in my childhood. They have the same benefit as the white noise generator in that it is easy to locate, since there's plenty of different notes being played to locate with your ears. And in Japan, there's reverse alarms that say a cutesy "I'm backing up! Please be careful" voice line over and over again, which if you're cynical like me, might be used by terrible drivers to mask their terrible drivers lol.

[@J19_vlogger74]

Neet.

[@bwofficial1776]

Japanese ambulances have a system to automatically announce through the PA which way the ambulance is going and request that people give way. It's linked to the turn signals and warning lights. The driver of Japanese firetrucks will do it manually though the PA while all the other firefighters hang out of the windows and wave at everyone. Japan has its shit together.

[@Rich_123]

I like that idea. More royalty-free public domain tunes for reverse alarms, please!

[@gwe87]

I think the captions may not have been entirely authentic around the 01:32 mark...

[@ShadowRune]

This channel is a never-ending source of joy. Plus I get to amaze my co-workers with answers to questions they never thought to ask lol

[@dennislippert8875]

Thanks for the GM shout-out! It's always been instinctive to panic whenever a parked Buick suddenly decided to back out of a spot. But now (meaning: the last 15 or so years), I've gradually warmed up to the idea that it's usually a false alarm!

[@hotkeymuc]

Your scripting is SOOO good. 😂Thanks for cheering me up!

[@ErixTheRed]

If he's scripting, it's too much effort

[@d3str0i3r]

i kinda want an electric/hybrid that makes dialup noises during operation, have one sound that just signals the vehicle has power, a sound for turning right, a sound for turning left, a sound for going forward, a sound for reverse, and maybe even a sound for braking and a sound for hazard indication

[@brutonstreettailor4570]

The white noise generator was used in a novel way alongside cctv cameras where it was required to capture an individuals face, what happened was that the sounder emitted a brief squawk and the intended party to be photographed couldn’t help their reflexes but to look up towards the point of the sound source, thereby showing their face to the camera - ingenious !

[@wingedambition]

Whoa

[@catsrule8844]

I hate that!

[@GolfhausYT]

This is definitely a "using newfound powers for evil" thing.

[@philstuf]

That is just BRILLIANT! I never thought of that...

[@DageLV]

Depends where tho. if it was bank or marked id just toss it to regular noises and ignore it. Fk, last time i was in bank and fire alarms went off, we just finished cash withdrawal with the worker before leaving no rush XD

[@Krim_The_Crow]

As a Brit, when you played the static sound I immediately recognised it and thought "but I've heard that noise for ages now!" Then you said 10 years and that made sense. Good to know why that horrible noise is a thing 😅 I always felt like the sound system on all large vehicles was just busted and screaming a strangled statticy noise.

[@tomwood5896]

I don't think the static noise is mandatory here. Plenty of new vehicles just make an obnoxious beeping. The factory beepers on Peugeot Boxer/Citroën Relay/Fiat Ducato vans is particularly unpleasant.

[@marcusivo]

I've heard some drivers in Australia call it the 'dead duck sound'

[@PhilipWorthington]

​@@marcusivo I'm reasonably certain dead ducks do not make sounds. Dying ducks maybe, dead ones not so much.

[@trajonduclos7931]

Exactly.

[@trajonduclos7931]

Unfortunately, the European warbler is a huge and deadly miss. It sounds like a distant, busted machine, and DEFINITELY does not impart a sense of " hey, I'm backing up" or even "look out". Please, for safety sake keep the annoying beepers.

[@FandangoJon]

You timed this one perfectly! My gf and I came across one of those new fangled ones earlier this week and were laughing because it sounded like someone was angrily poking a crow. Good to know it wasn't animal abuse, it was just slightly different ear abuse than normal.

[@ynot6473]

LOL! i've always referred to them as "strangled magpie" alarms.

[@Ron-rs2zl]

You laughed, but did you see the vehicle that was backing up, or did you not know what was happening?

[@BlueHairChad]

This guy is hilarious. I’m glad I found this channel. These nerdy rabbit holes are are my favorite type of content but his sense of humor (and even the puns) make it awesome

[@luckycatdad8369]

The wordplay is absolutely top notch, your best video so far (from what I've watched). Thanks for pointing out the Tom Scott video, since I'm an avid watcher and somehow missed that one. FYI, I owned a 2014 Scion XB in Canada for a few years and it had a normal, full set of backup lights. So perhaps that 2011 model you referenced was a European design, or maybe they fixed it when they did a redesign before the 2014.

[@davidkahler9390]

Oh boy you must not have watched dishwashers!

[@j_II8]

New popcorn one is actually insane

[@BradR-]

Your Rock N Rollercoaster reference at 14:09 was not lost on me. Thanks for another great hilariously educational video.

[@tylerstank2714]

Fun story: I’m a UH-60 mechanic with the National Guard and the tug I occasionally drive is the only vehicle I’ve driven with a back-up buzzer. The tug has excellent rear visibility (there’s basically nothing behind the window, which is right behind your head), but the only thing you can see ahead of you is the helicopter. As a result (and because the tow linkage makes it a lot easier), we drive the tug in reverse more than forward when a helicopter is attached. The buzzer, of course, only sounds in reverse, so it is pretty much always on, and shuts off only when you stop or are moving the helicopter in the direction it’s much harder to see. Seems a little backwards, but it satisfies the OSHA requirement (and probably some Army regulation as well).

[@LatitudeSky]

The most bizarre thing about tugs is that it's a brand name Tug and the damn things are stupidly expensive for what is barely more than a garden tractor without a mower deck option. They also tend to last decades despite being left outside all the time. Nothing like a garden tractor at all.

[@zachbrenner9959]

AR 385-10 army safety program implements 47 CFR (OSHA regulations) for all non military specific workspaces/tasks

[@zachbrenner9959]

Also, greetings from the lazyonics shop

[@petevenuti7355]

Sounds like OSHA, got backwards backwards but it's ok.

[@KarmatheCorgi]

OSHA be trying their best LOL@@petevenuti7355

[@MrBrandosauce]

I love your channel so much. It is so interesting to learn how things work, and your jokes are some of my favorite things on the internet. The dead pan delivery is epic.

[@Fr33dan]

In one of Adam Savage's videos on Tested he was asked about the worst sound from Mythbusters. You would think it would be something gross from an experiment, but in fact it was these things because he would have to spend so much time in close proximity to them. He mentions that disabling these was common practice for them because they were so loud it would cause ear damage.

[@connorj2775]

Rented a boom lift to complete some exterior waterproofing. It beeps anytime anything moves. People inside the office said they had an important meeting and we need to cut the beeping or cut the work for 3 hours. I think “no biggie I’ll hit it with the ol rag and tape.” My ears rang just trying to find it and my watch picked up 120db. Even after covering it with a rag and duct tape it was loud. Unplug it and the whole machine shuts down. Absolutely ridiculous that I need safety equipment(earpro) to protect me from safety equipment.

[@SuperLordHawHaw]

I want to disable my microwave's "done" alarm. I don't care that you are done, I just don't want to hear it beep every 30 seconds while I'm still in the bathroom.

[@sinisterthoughts2896]

​@@SuperLordHawHaw truly.

[@ElNeroDiablo]

@@SuperLordHawHaw Verily. I'm often right next to the microwave ready to pull the door open at the 1-2 second mark so the damn thing doesn't wake the neighbours at like 4 in the morning when I'm having lunch because I'm working on New York Time when my local physical time is Canberra Time.

[@GrayBlood1331]

@@SuperLordHawHaw I had a microwave oven where you could turn the sound off. I wish all microwave ovens had this option!

[@fireaza]

I applaud the extra amount of silly gags and puns in this episode! More of it please!

[@BusterBeachside]

I love watching chaotic astonishing messes of videos that have trouble being succinct. That's why I love your channel.

[@itsamindgame9198]

The glance away for a beat after "forward thinking"! You are in top form in this video. Oh, and I just read the description! Brilliant!

[@nate_0723]

Wow, finally an explanation of the 'white noise' reverse alarms! I started hearing them in the US about 5-8 years ago (mainly on construction vehicles) . I always thought it was caused by a damaged beeper, but nope, I guess they are supposed to sound like that!

[@m.s.8112]

Exactly the same with me. 😅 Very interesting to know the truth about it, finally.

[@Patrick94GSR]

I first heard them in the past couple years on Amazon vans. Thought it sounded really weird.

[@m.s.8112]

@@Patrick94GSR In my opinion, it would be more convenient if those warners would put out "beep-noise-beep-noise-beep-noise" instead of "noise-silence-noise-silence-noise-silence".

[@DavidBeddard]

That's what I first thought when they started appearing in the UK a decade or so ago.

[@1RAH]

One of my favorite months if only for your videos. I just wish we had more months that rhymed with no so we could have more of these. I think most of us can agree we love your personality and humor which we get to see more of in this month. Keep up the great work I will keep watching whatever you make

[@aceninteynine]

The thing irritating me lately is that front turn signals are almost impossible to see! The lights have become too small and not easily visible. To the point that we've starting turning off the daytime running light when the turn signal is active to draw more attention to it

[@DeadNoob451]

I think that's also done because the daylight lights are just using LEDs now. Use multicolor ones and boom, the daylight light can become a mediocre blinker.

[@EllieODaire]

Fascinating, my DRLs *are* my front turn signals, they just change between white and amber as needed.

[@techgeeknzl]

​​@@DeadNoob451 That's the right idea, except that they _can't_ use multicolour LEDs because they will light up in the wrong colour when the individual coloured LEDs in each chip start failing. So, there are amber LEDs interspersed with white LEDs. Those two LEDs can still be on the same physical chip (so, technically, a multicolour LED); but, crucially, they do not produce white light by illuminating more than one primary.

[@bwofficial1776]

There's also the recent trend of putting the back turn signals down low in the bumper away from the main lights. Even worse is the Chevy Bolt/Mini Countryman having giant fake brake lights in the normal place where you expect them to be and the real lights low in the bumper with the reflectors.

[@TexasNightRider]

13:44 Same license plate on both vehicles...Nice. I really like how you take such a simple device as a backup alarm and create an entertaining and informative video. Way beyond my capabilities. Thank you.

[@dylankelly1715]

Your script writing has to be the most clever and genius out there. So many genuine laughs and facepalms on my end. I love it!!!

[@dspiffy]

Could not have possibly imagined 25 minutes of content based on back up beepers.

[@kylemiller231]

I replaced my reverse lights with LED bulbs specifically to see better as I live in a rural area. I can also confirm that the white noise reverse alarms are significantly better on construction sites often times we become accustomed to the beeping alarms and just tune them out.

[@stahlschorsch]

I did the same, even though LED replacement bulbs are illegal in my country. Meh. If I get pulled over, I have the original bulbs in the glove box to replace them, and I'll happily pay the fine. It's a small price to pay compared to the thousands of times I benefit from them when reversing at night. I get why it is illegal here to tinker with your car's lighting, though. It prevents people from using bulbs in their headlights that are too bright and dazzling, which is a good thing. Only selected, tested LED front bulbs are allowed and only in a selection of vehicles in which they have been tested. But the reversing lights are rarely used in road traffic and are not so bright and directed that they dazzle others.

[@FaenumVena]

i wish i could tune them out. 3 1/2 years and counting on livinb right next a massive building site and theyre driving me as mad today as they were then. i curse the company that put a patent on the white noise ones so the cost is prohibative. theyre certainly not manditory here, oh god do i wish they were.

[@jochenstacker7448]

I find that puzzling, beeping signifies something that I should pay attention to and, at least to my ears, is something easily located. White noise is just some background noise that might come from a broken radio, definitely file under ignore category. It seems like one of those a bit too clever ideas.

[@zacharysimon2952]

“Some kind of practical engineer,” what a great line! Love that channel, too.

[@adelesexton5975]

In the 80's I installed one on my van because I thought an audible warning while backing up was better than just a light warning. Not long after that I removed it because people would hear the beep, think I was a commercial van and the company I worked for had lots of money, and intentionally try to slip their vehicle behind mine so I would hit them.

[@Xeanthorn]

Thank you for your videos! They bring me joy! One note. "Patience with a Dremel," sounds dangerously close to effort!

[@gwaeron8630]

Yeah but if you are smart you let the tool do ALL the work :)

[@zgrb]

8:32 Since this pedantry may be appreciated: half of all drivers are worse than the MEDIAN driver, not the average. November is no excuse, Alex.

[@Leibniz-ct6dx]

Was searching for this comment^^

[@generateandfilter]

Glad someone commented wrt median, although it is possible that half are worse than average (mean) but it depends on the distribution of skill (e.g. normal distribution).

[@pengiswe]

Exactly my thought too :)

[@jongeddes09]

Speaking of reverse lights on lock/unlock of GM vehicles, it's actually a setting that can be adjusted in many of them. My Silverado allows you to cycle through certain settings via the gauge cluster screen and a set of buttons beside it. I have my truck's exit lighting set to 30 seconds (down from the factory two minute time). The idea behind it is spot on to what was said in the video. The intention is to illuminate the areas around the vehicle while getting in and out in low light locations.

[@Richard-dc5he]

My Citroën has little downlights in the wing mirrors that perfectly illuminate the ground by the doors so you don't trip. Works lovely. They're also adjustable for both time and brightness, which is a nice trick.

[@Enword_Jim]

The vast majority of these vehicle owners have no idea their car does it, let alone that they can change it. An obnoxious feature.

[@vwestlife]

On older cars you can install halogen bulbs to make your backup lights brighter, if you don't mind the risk of possibly melting the plastic lens if you leave them on too long. But now with integrated LEDs, you're stuck with whatever the automaker gave you, unless you want to do something drastic like install auxiliary lamp(s) underneath the rear bumper.

[@fractalsauce]

I work at Walmart and our home delivery van has this new fangled white noise beeper thing. It was backing up and a coworker asked me "Why does it sound like that?" And I thought to myself, I don't know but I much prefer it over those super loud high pitched ones. That all happened like 3 days ago and BAM! You made a video about it. Epic.

[@Hawk7886]

To be fair, white noise reverse alarms have been in use over 20 years, first appearing around 2001

[@ShaunPuzon]

Alec, your ability to turn what would be an uninteresting subject to most into a captivating and quite enthralling video piece is excellent! Your content is simply outstanding, and I thank you for your effort to bring us these fantastic videos!

[@airsicklowlander7756]

Technology connections is my favorite KZbin channel to watch while I’m driving my car.

[@dolbyvixen]

12:59 A lot of JDM and UK market cars do that. Usually it's symmetrical though, with the reverse light on the left, and the fog light on the right. Most manufacturers will just add a second reverse light for other markets where the fog light used to be, but Scion was especially weird here...

[@rattrap17]

Like some sort of Practical Engineer

[@anonnymousperson]

Thank you Glorbus for your constant work!

[@namewarvergeben]

I'm afraid Glorbus might be out of a job when his boss finds out about the TVGuardian from last year's No Effort November

[@JodianGaming]

I had to chuckle when you mentioned the beeper in the Prius. I work (as a mechanic) for Toyota and it's actually a pretty ingenious setup for that specific vehicle. The method in which you "shift" your transmission in a Prius is pretty unique. You move the lever to the selection (like drive, reverse, etc) and then the lever resets back to a neutral position. Thus you don't really have an indication at the gear shifter as to what gear you're in. You can see your selection on the dashboard, but that's the only place. The beeper, which is actually pretty quiet and non-invasive, reminds you that the vehicle is in reverse.

[@ewicky]

So could have been solved by just giving the Prius a normal gear shifter.

[@JodianGaming]

@ewicky ... But it doesn't, which is why there's a quiet beep.

[@ram89572]

Personally I hate that damn beep. As soon as I got my Prius V a few years ago I went and looked up how to turn that crap off. I'm smart enough to know when I've put my vehicle in reverse and I don't need the car to yell it at me constantly. I suppose having that in a vehicle can help with idiots out there who refuse to pay any attention to their vehicle, but I'm not one of them and I would definitely not appreciate vehicles being equipped with that without an option to just turn it off. And because vehicles now run so much crap through the sound system it likely wouldn't even be as simple as just finding the damn beeper and snipping the wires.

[@aspecreviews]

My 2002 Prius has a fairly traditional column shifter. I appreciate that it does not have a beeper for reverse.

[@lazraxe]

in Australia we run the "squawkers" we call them on nearly all our mine vehicle, they don't carry as far as to not disturb the wildlife, and I cant believe you talked so much about JDM beepers but didn't mention Japanese trucks that play music when reversing and audibly say "this vehicle is reversing" and as well as some trucks in japan have indicator alarms that have a voice saying in Japanese "this vehicle is turning" while going through busy suburbs

[@xp7575]

Fake news, stop lying, Japanese trucks don't say "this vehicle is reversing" when they back up, Japanese trucks say "車が後退している"

[@kagenekoUA]

⁠@@xp7575so, basically, "this vehicle is reversing" but in Japanese? :)

[@xp7575]

*tips fedora@@kagenekoUA

[@sinisterthoughts2896]

​@@xp7575a bit of a stretch for a small payoff with that punchline.

[@Curt_Sampson]

@@xp7575 Your news is fake, too. Japanese trucks would never be so impolite and instead say, "車が後退しています" (or, more often I think, "バックします、ご注意ください"). :-) Some also let you know when they're turning left, since the left side is where pedestrians are more likely to be (Japan drives on the left) and there are more blind spots on the left side. "左へ曲がります."

[@Stealth86651]

Also known as your mom alarm. Edit: What you said about glorbis and his neighbor actually happened to me once. We had trucks to load where I worked and the beeper stopped working, so the driver would just repeatedly should "I'M FU&*ING BACKING UP" over and over. We did a lot of dumb stuff like that.

[@blackamaterasuflame]

At 16:20 my heart rate jumped because I briefly thought someone was about to run me over while standing in my own house. Excellent demonstration.

[@Everfalling]

i had to pause the video to make sure i wasn't hearing a truck outside or something. that sound really is hard to pinpoint

[@BrianRoediger]

As usual, knocked it out of the park! I've always found your "No Effort" to be some of your best videos. Keep being AWESOME!

[@justicerainz]

Hey Alec, if you really want to de-pot something in the future, I recommend a hot air station that's used for soldering. I have one at work that does 200 to like 800F and it works great for that! I set mine to 275 or 350F depending on how fast I want the potting to change state. I usually then just scrape it away with a small flat-blade screwdriver or metal pick until it's just a circuit board

[@44R0Ndin]

Just pray you don't run into urethane-based potting compounds. Those are a "cure-type" not a "thermoplastic" type, so they don't melt, they burn.

[@Swingingbells]

Techno-archeology 🤔

[@scoutskylar]

I've worked in the parking lot of a grocery store bringing the carts back inside, and I must say I'm very grateful for the sound cue from electric vehicles when they're backing up, since I can easily stay clear of them.

[@jean-pierredeclemy7032]

What about when they are going forwards?

[@scoutskylar]

@@jean-pierredeclemy7032 When they're not in a parking spot I just assume they could move at any moment.

[@missamo80]

2:25 Grady feels personally attacked 😂😂😂

[@nate8088]

That really cracked me up.

[@SilverScarletSpider]

i like you chest freezer video a lot. videos like that which highlight little engineering efficiencies that save a lot on the electric bill. genuine consumer advice. sure it’s a bit more inconvenient but we are all on a budget

I think you channel is really unique in regards that you manage to make all videos interesting, regardless of the context. Even though I started watching you for your old AV technology related videos, I usually find all sorts of topic you bring up enjoyable. Your video style and humor is very recognizable now. This was great as well. Congrats, and I can't wait for the next one. It may sound like I'm being a fan girl here, but I really mean it. :)

[@TheMagmaKnigh]

I've heard those white noise reverse beepers, and I always assumed it was because the beepers were broken

[@veldtwalker]

I remember when I was a kid a family friend installed a ice cream truck bell in his minivan for backup beeper. Seeing all the kids perk up when he backed up in the store parking lot was hilarious.

[@GuttersMN]

As a kid I remember the mechanical version of these- a series of swinging hammers around a bell mounted on the axle. They were designed to be still and silent when moving forward, but would swing out and strike the bell when the vehicle was in reverse