Locating the source of a mysterious beep
150 comments
- Points244
- Comments124
#8Rank now –
#7Peak rank
1Days on list
168Score · 7d
Nov 10, 2026First seen
Rank · 7 days
On Hacker News
- Points
- 244
- Comments
- 124
- Submitted by
- bigwheels
- Posted
- Nov 10, 2026
- Site
- simonwillison.net
Story details from Hacker News ↗ · linked article on simonwillison.net.
Trending history
Locating the source of a mysterious beep was first seen on Hacker News · Front page on Nov 10, 2026. Since then it has appeared in 62 checks on 1 different day. Its best position was #7 of 30, reached on Nov 10, 14:39 UTC. It is #8 right now, holding steady at #8 over the last 6 checks.
Rank history
Position on Hacker News · Front page at every check (lower is better).
Last 14 days
Best rank per day (UTC).
7
Oct 28today
Metric history
points as reported by Hacker News.
From the discussion
A few top-level comments from Hacker News, shortened. Read the full thread on Hacker News.
Around '05 or so, the house we were staying in started beeping. Smoke alarm sounds, as usual. For almost a day we couldn't find the source. Contacted the owners -- they didn't know it either. They bought the house few years prior, so not much of a help. Standing in the hallways listening at different angles, as the…
I didn't mention this in the article, but this isn't the first time my family has been driven almost spare by a mysterious, hard-to-track beep. Our dog goes outside and hides in the lavender bush if a smoke alarm starts making a "I need a battery" noise. So I went into this project with the attitude that I would like…
You can also solve this in O(logn) using a physical binary search: 1) Move half the boxes to another room. 2) Listen for a beep and determine which room the beep comes from. 3) Take the boxes in that room and split them in half again. 4) Repeat until one box is left.
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Hacker News 1 day, best #7
Questions
Is Locating the source of a mysterious beep trending on Hacker News right now?
Yes. As of Nov 10, 17:24 UTC it is #8, holding steady at #8 over the last 6 checks.
What is the highest rank Locating the source of a mysterious beep reached?
#7 on Hacker News · Front page, on Nov 10, 14:39 UTC. Trendoday checks this list every 15 minutes.
How long has Locating the source of a mysterious beep been trending?
It was first seen on Nov 10, 2026 and has been on the list on 1 day (62 checks) since.
How much discussion did it get on Hacker News?
244 points and 124 comments; submitted by bigwheels on Nov 10, 2026.