History Main / PsychicStatic

** {{Inverted|Trope}} when Utsuho, upon getting a GrandTheftMe from Yasora, [[FightingFromTheInside fights from the inside]] by distracting her possessor with terrible rapping, the Song That Never Ends, talking about her [[TastesLikeDiabetes love life]], and [[Webcomic/SweetBroAndHellaJeff a warning about stairs.]]

** Certain creatures have this as a natural ability. In the ''TabletopGame/{{Ravenloft}}'' setting, trying to read the mind of certain things (including such "mundane" things as pretty much any non-humanoid-type creature) will [[DrivenMadFromTheRevelation drive you insane]].
** TabletopGame/{{Eberron}} has the [[EldritchAbomination Daelkyr]], who will drive anyone who tries to read their mind stark, raving mad. Most of their creations, especially Mind Flayers, have a lesser variant.

** The X-Men villain [[Characters/XMenAcolytes Exodus]] has a unique variant of this: being UnskilledButStrong, he constantly generates wide-band telepathic 'interference' strong enough to hinder the likes of ComicBook/JeanGrey and ComicBook/EmmaFrost.

** The X-Men villain [[Characters/XMenAcolytes Exodus]] has a unique variant of this: being UnskilledButStrong, he generates constant wide-band Psychic Static wherever he goes.

* ''Series/TheSixthSense'' episode[[note]]later cut down and repackaged as an episode of ''Series/NightGallery''[[/note]] "Lady, Lady, Take My Life": The hero wards off the psychics' attempt to kill him by focusing on his memories, a struggle represented by multiple short flashbacks.

* In ''Fanfic/{{Eleutherophobia}} Back to the Future'', [[SparedByTheAdaptation Tom]] admits that he got his habit of swearing because it annoyed his first [[PuppeteerParasite Yeerk]]; his second Yeerk, meanwhile, violently despised Britney Spears songs. When his parents were Controllers, his mom mentally played Barry Mallinow on a loop, while his dad recited the Periodic Table.

* In the ''Literature/{{Animorphs}}'' fanfic ''[[Fanfic/{{Eleutherophobia}} Back to the Future]]'', [[SparedByTheAdaptation Tom]] admits that he got his habit of swearing from annoying his first [[PuppeteerParasite Yeerk]]; his second Yeerk was more annoyed by Britney Spears songs. When his parents were briefly Controllers, his mom mentally played Barry Mallinow on a loop, while his dad recited the Periodic Table.

* There's a variant in the short story "It's a Good Life" by Jerome Bixby (as well as the ''Series/TheTwilightZone'' episode based on it). They feature people constantly mumbling songs -- not in order to keep the omnipotent child from looking into their thoughts, but so they won't ''think'' of anything unbecoming.

* Creator/GrantMorrison introduced the villain Prometheus during his run on ''ComicBook/{{JLA}}''. Among his talents was the ability to introduce "neural chaff" into the minds of his opponents, making it difficult for them to concentrate. This didn't work on ComicBook/CaptainAmerica during a brief encounter in Book 4 of ComicBook/JLAAvengers. As Cap observed, "Try fighting [[UsefulNotes/NaziGermany the Wehrmacht]]. Teaches you focus."

* ''TabletopGame/VampireTheRequiem'': The Ordo Dracul have a technique that combines this with PsychicBlockDefense, training the vampire to maintain a second train of thought in a constant closed loop, which could be anything from "disturbingly elaborate [[{{Gorn}} dismemberment visualizations]]" to a mantra like "Fuck you, you can't read my mind". Anyone trying to read the user's mind gets shunted into this secondary consciousness.

* In the ''Literature/{{Animorphs}}'' fanfic ''[[https://archiveofourown.org/works/12187302/chapters/27668793 Back to the Future]]'', [[SparedByTheAdaptation Tom]] admits that he got his habit of swearing from annoying his first [[PuppeteerParasite Yeerk]]; his second Yeerk was more annoyed by Britney Spears songs. When his parents were briefly Controllers, his mom mentally played Barry Mallinow on a loop, while his dad recited the Periodic Table.

* In the ''Literature/{{Animorphs}}'' fanfic ''Back to the Future'', [[SparedByTheAdaptation Tom]] admits that he got his habit of swearing from annoying his first [[PuppeteerParasite Yeerk]]; his second Yeerk was more annoyed by Britney Spears songs. When his parents were briefly Controllers, his mom mentally played Barry Mallinow on a loop, while his dad recited the Periodic Table.

* At one point in the manga ''Manga/{{Ray}}'', the title character asks a telepath she's just saved to see if he can read her mentor's mind. He can't -- wherever he tries, the mentor switches his thoughts to a game of ''shiritori''.

** Inverted|Trope when Utsuho, upon getting a GrandTheftMe from Yasora, [[FightingFromTheInside fights from the inside]] by distracting her possessor with terrible rapping, the Song That Never Ends, talking about her [[TastesLikeDiabetes love life]], and [[Webcomic/SweetBroAndHellaJeff a warning about stairs.]]

** '80s X-Men recruit ComicBook/{{Rogue}} was originally stated to have automatic Psychic Static created by Carol Danvers' absorbed psyche, making her mind impossible for even Professor X to read. This apparently fell by the wayside even before Carol's psyche was removed from Rogue's mind.

** This could be why Bug-type moves are super effective against Psychic-types; their brains are too small (or possibly [[HiveMind too dispersed]]) to read.
** In a similar vein, this is one theory why [[DarkIsNotEvil Dark-types]] are flat-out immune to Psychic damage -- either their thoughts are just difficult to follow, or prolonged perusal is next to impossible without severe [[{{Squick}} t]][[MindScrew r]][[HeroicBSOD a]][[MindRape u]][[GoMadFromTheRevelation ma]].

** Milla Vodello has constructed a small, hidden room in her mind which contains a "cage" of energy; this contains and blocks out [[spoiler: the nightmare monsters resulting from the children in her care who died in a fire from before she became a Psychonaut]]. It could also be argued that her entire mental world--a fun, brightly-colored, loud dance party--is a form of this; a Memory Vault in her mind reveals that [[spoiler: she heard the dying children's screams as they went, and it's possible that they still haunt her to this day]], so she's trying to drown out the memory with music. With that said, she's still held up as an example of what a sane person's mind should be in the setting by the developers; she has that room, but her mind is still structured and functioning properly, and she's done the healthy thing of honoring the memory but not being consumed by the trauma.
** A "natural" form of Psychic Static emerges through the form of Mental Cobwebs--brightly-colored spiderwebs that automatically form over ignored/underused parts of a person's mind, and normally they only cover small, unimportant pieces. [[spoiler: Coach Oleander is able to exploit a cobweb to hide the truth about his nonexistent military career]]. A Cobweb Duster, which can clean the webs, is necessary when entering the minds of the mentally ill in a nearby abandoned asylum--their brains are so discordant that large and important portions of their minds have been covered up.

** Dr. Loboto has done something like this to his assistant Crispyn Whitehead--attempting to use a Psycho-Portal (which allows psychics to astrally project into people's minds) on him has a message from Loboto pop up saying that he's made it impossible to get in.
** Finally, [[spoiler: Ford Cruller]] lost their mind after a powerful psychic battle; their psyche was shattered into numerous personalities that surface based on where they are as a result (which is why [[spoiler: he can only be himself near the Psitanium Deposit underground--it allows him to keep his mind together]]), so it's impossible to get into it there or anywhere else.
* In ''VideoGame/AlienLegacy'', the only way to end the war with the Empiants peacefully is to develop the mind shield. The main reason the Empiants are attacking humans is because our thoughts hurt them (well, that and gas mining their homeworld).

** [[InvertedTrope inverted]] when Utsuho, upon getting a GrandTheftMe from Yasora, [[FightingFromTheInside fights from the inside]] by distracting her possessor with terrible rapping, the Song That Never Ends, talking about her [[TastesLikeDiabetes love life]], and [[Webcomic/SweetBroAndHellaJeff a warning about stairs.]]

** In a Whateley Universe fanfiction, Caroline White, a healer, suffers from this after the MCO produce a device (or, more likely, [[MadScience a devise]]) which generates massive amounts of artificial pain. It eventually sends [[GenderBender him]] into seizures.

* On ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeague'', Batman keeps John "Dr Destiny" Dee out of his head by humming "''Frère Jacques''" and drinking lots of coffee (to keep himself awake, since Destiny could more easily get into the mind of a sleeping person). Also of note is the fact that Batman was a ''complete jerk'' about this victory, repeatedly taunting Destiny about his inability to get in Batman's head after the rest of the League was incapacitated. This may have been the only time Batman actually taunted a villain (it was for good reason; he needed to [[IShallTauntYou rile up the bad guy]] to disrupt the psychic's ability to get in his mind). And doing this after [[{{Determinator}} having already been up 3 nights straight]].

* Mentok tries to read the mind of washed-up motorcycle daredevil Ernie Devlin in an Episode of ''WesternAnimation/HarveyBirdmanAttorneyAtLaw''. When he does, all he gets is a sound much like a garbled radio transmission. Mentok asks if its encryption; Devlin states that he had a metal plate implanted into his skull after one nasty accident.

* ''ComicBook/UltimateXMen'': When Rogue tries to use telepathy on ComicBook/{{Sabertooth}}, he inundates her with nightmarish memories of all the horrible things he's done.

* In an issue of ''ComicBook/TheAvengers'', Ultron was thwarted when he attempted to read a disguised Hank Pym's mind when The Wasp hypnotized him so that his subconscious would be filled with the phrase "thou shalt not kill." The concept was so foreign and confusing the the killer robot that it managed to stun him into a sort of VillainousBSOD.
* ''Franchise/{{Batman}}''
** The psychics who have [[BrownNote survived]] reading ComicBook/TheJoker's mind have reported various unsettling things, such as nonstop insane laughter, screaming, a labyrinth of funhouse mirrors, incredibly detailed descriptions of past murders, a vast battle between bat and clown faced demons, "a billion fiery locusts blotting out a dead black sun", and [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking Three Stooges reruns]].
** It was revealed after the "Tower of Babel" arc that Batman developed his counter-measures against the League, and J'onn in particular, by actually burying his memory and restoring it with a series of mnemonic triggers when he wanted to work on his plans, and instructed the computer to track J'onn and "activate the burial key" should the Martian come within 100 miles.
* ComicBook/{{Deadpool}}'s mind has been stated as being too chaotic to read. His rival/friend/[[HeterosexualLifePartners heterosexual life partner]] Cable once burned off overcharged psychic powers by going into Deadpool's mind, because the effort would wear him out.
* Grant Morrison introduced the villain Prometheus during his run on ''Franchise/JusticeLeagueOfAmerica''. Among his talents was the ability to introduce 'neural chaff' into the minds of his opponents, making it difficult for them to concentrate. This didn't work on Captain America during a brief encounter in Book 4 of ComicBook/JLAAvengers. As Cap observed, "Try fighting [[UsefulNotes/NaziGermany the Wehrmacht]]. Teaches you focus."
* When ComicBook/{{Nextwave}} faced off against the ridiculous-looking but intensely powerful Forbush Man, he lifted his pot-helmet and sent all of them on a mental journey into their worst nightmares. All of them, that is, except one, who was just too air-headed for the power to work on.

** The original Gamma hero The Hulk can do this too.

** This trope is ''inverted'' by ComicBook/JeanGrey in ''ComicBook/NewXMen'' #141, where she asks the Beast to think of "a pink door opening" in his mind in order for her to more easily access his medical knowledge.
** Earlier, in ''ComicBook/NewXMen'' #130, a soldier warns Xavier that all he'll see if he tries to read his mind is "re-runs of the adult channel." Xavier learns the hard way that he's ''not joking''. Apparently, learning to put up Psychic Static is part of that military's training.

** ComicBook/{{Wolverine}} too, due to the monkeying that Weapon X did (for precisely this reason) to his brain patterns, coupled (possibly) with the way in which his healing powers work to ameliorate his painful memories. Same goes for [[spoiler:his son {{ComicBook/Daken}},]] only in his case it's more lethal.
* ''ComicBook/UltimateXMen'': When Rogue tries to use telepathy on Sabertooth, he inundates her with nightmarish memories of all the horrible things he's done.

-->'''Peter:''' I come from Alabama with a banjo on my -AAAH!

* In ''Literature/AWrinkleInTime'', Meg tries to hold off IT's mind control by mentally reciting nursery rhymes and the periodic table. It works initially, but IT overwhelms such efforts later on and must ultimately be defeated by the PowerOfLove.

** ''Literature/NorbyFindsAVillain'': Norby warns Jeff to recite [[{{Literature/Jabberwocky}} nonsense poems]] to himself while the Master of Mars teaches him their language [[TouchTelephathy through telepathy]].

** One of the more visible instances was in ''Megamorphs 3,'' where the Yeerk Visser Four obtains TimeTravel. His first priority is sabotaging the Battle of Agincourt, so that ''[[Creator/WilliamShakespeare Henry V]]'' would never be written - his failed actor of a host had been reciting it endlessly to drive the Yeerk crazy. This is a higher priority to Visser Four than [[AlternateHistory killing George Washington]] and [[GodwinsLawOfTimeTravel ensuring a Nazi victory at D-Day.]]

* In the ''Literature/VorkosiganSaga'', a not-quite example comes when Miles is subjected to fast-penta, a drug that makes you tell the truth (analogous to having your mind read). Typically, he doesn't react normally to the drug, gets even more hyper than normal, and can't stop talking (that last one a normal fast-penta result). So he recites Shakespeare. For about four hours.

* In ''Donovan's Brain'' by Curt Siodmak (and the movies based on it), a character puts off the mental influence of the title BrainInAJar by repeating an inane rhyme in his head.

** In ''Litersture/DeadBeat'', Harry is under psychic assault by a necromancer named Corpestaker, who is trying to pry the location of a [[TomeOfEldritchLore book]] out of Harry's head. Our hero pictures a granite wall separating his mind from hers, which he infuses with his power like he was trained to do. This blocks Corpsetaker out... until she actually starts ''trying''. Then Harry's fighting a losing battle to keep his wall intact as the necromancer places it under an enormous, steady psychic pressure.

* In C.S. Friedman's ''TheWilding,'' the [[InformedAbility supposedly]] badass and dangerous female psychic is handily defeated by the AntiHero imagining himself raping her repeatedly.

* In Jack [=McDevitt=]'s ''Literature/AlexBenedict'' series, Alex is able to shield his mind from the telepathic Ashiyyur by obsessively focusing all this thoughts on the price of various antiques (he is a dealer in antiques, and very passionate about his work).

* In the ''Manga/SaintSeiya'' anime, Marin has been beaten badly by [[ThoseTwoBadGuys Moses and Asterion]] because Asterion in a psychic and can red her mind to predict her moves. After beating Moses, however, she manages to [[NoSell briefly leave her mind all blank]], which [[OhCrap completely confuses Asterion]]; before he recovers from the shock, she kills him.

* In ''VideoGame/SystemShock 2'', when you create your character, you choose the branch of military he enlists in, then the missions he took part in before the game starts. One of such missions for OSA (telepathic special forces) agent includes capturing an assassin who tries to hide her own intentions under "quite explicit daydreams."

* In ''VideoGame/StarControl 2'', it is revealed that the Dnyarri feel some measure of what the people they are controlling feel. This creates a disturbing but effective countermeasure to their mind control: constant, excruciating pain. No wonder the [[spoiler:Ur-Quan]] are so screwed up.

** [[EldritchAbomination Dr. Norrington]].

Alternatively, psychic static may simply be a result of someone trying to read someone's mind but can't because the find is foreign or alien at least in the way it works when compared to the mind reader. This is usually not intentional on the part of the person whose mind is being read, and their mind itself is not unreadable, merely incomprehensible to the mind reader. In these instances, the thoughts will be in forms that the reader cannot interpret, such as a man who can only speak English reading the mind of someone who only speaks French.