1/f noise

1/f noise is a special kind of noise that is like a mix between loud and quiet sounds. It can happen in lots of different things, like air conditioners or power lines, or even on a computer. It's called 1/f because it comes in a particular type of pattern. Imagine a graph with sound levels one the y-axis and time on the x-axis. 1/f noise looks like a squiggly line – it goes up and down quite a lot, so it's quite a noisy pattern.