Asher Bean
Sound and Society
10/4/15
Professor Brennan
The Technology of Listening
The ear is a technology used by the brain to hear and process sounds. The podcast “The Technology of the Listening” reflects this idea through the sounds of recorded in my everyday life. The first sounds, “Roses” by Outkast, is not only my alarm in the morning but also an mp3. An mp3 is a form of sound that is compressed and emptied, creating a smaller file size. Jonathan Sterne states, “An mp3 takes an existing CD-quality digital audio file and removes as much data content as possible, relying on listeners’ bodies and brains to make up the difference” (Sterne 832). This implies the ear notices the emptiness within the mp3 and signals the brain to produce the missing sounds or the ear amplifies the surrounding noises making it possible to miss these certain sounds.
The following sounds heard in the podcast, “Roses” , the shower, the zipper, the water fountain, the falling of the weights, the second shower, the clicking of keys, FIFA, and even the light switch all are sounds produced by technology. However, this only demonstrates nine sounds, indicating that one sound is missing; talking while eating at restaurant. Although this is not produced by modern technology, it is perceived differently based on the technology that is ears, and produced by the technology that is our voices. In the article, The Energetic Ear by A.J. Hudspeth, Hudspeth talks about the physiological way our ear is able to listen. The ear is composed of multiple different elements. The most important part of the ear to signal translation is the small hair-like structures located inside of the ear, known as the cilia. When a sound wave enters the ear, the cilia stand up in specific quantities based on the amplitude of the noise. In more simple terms, the more cilia stand up, the louder the initial sound is. When the cilia stand up they open pathways for electrical signals to enter allowing the brain to process the waves providing us with hearing (Hudspeth). The ear is composed of several intricate parts working together to accomplish a specific function, in this case hearing. This concept can also be applied to the production of the voice. Ultimately, Hudspeth’s view of the ear from a physiological perspective supports the idea that the final sound of the voices in a restaurant was actually produced by technology, just as the other sounds were.
The sounds produced in the “The Technology of the Listening” also contribute to Hudspeth’s idea of listening being an active process. Hudspeth states, “As discussed above the active process is an example of positive feedback. Moreover, like many manmade feedback systems, the active process exhibits gain control: it can be turned up or down as circumstances dictate,” (Hudspeth 50). Hudspeth claims that the ear is able to amplify certain sounds and decrease others depending on the situation. This is exemplified in all of the sounds listened to but is most evident during the sound clip of me at the restaurant. In a normal situation when talking to someone at a restaurant, the conversation one is involved in is amplified while the surrounding conversations and noises are decreased. Through recording, the process in which these sounds are amplified or decreased is changed. Since the microphone can’t necessarily filter the same ways an ear can, the sounds at the restaurant are heard differently due to the lack of filtering.
The “The Technology of the Listening” follows the themes of technology and how the ear itself is technology all while taking the listener through the sounds of an average day for me. By looking at the ear as a form of technology it can provide humans a new way to view the world and the sound within it.
Bibliography:
- Hudspeth, A.J. “The Energetic Ear.” Daedalus, The Journal of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences(2015), 42–52.
- Sterne, Jonathan. “The mp3 as Cultural Artifact .” New Media And Society(2006), 824–42.
- Big Boi. Andre 3000. Roses. Outkast. © 2004 by Sony Music Entertainment. mp3.
You described the restaurant setting very well. As I listened, I heard all the sounds of the restaurant mixed with your dialogue, which, as you said, is a perfect example of microphones’ and recording devices’ inability to filter sound the way the ear does. I agree with your thoughts regarding the ear as a means of technology. You did a very good job tying Hudspeth’s ideas in with your podcast, particularly when explaining the restaurant clip.
Asher, your take on the Sterne quote in your first paragraph intrigued me. In terms of the MP3, I had only considered the idea that the brain enhances the quality by perceiving a greater level of detail than actually exists in the track. Your idea that this enhancement could also be a result of the ear amplifying background noises in order to notice the lacking quality of the track less provided a new fascinating perspective for me.
Cheers.
Asher,
I find your theme of sounds produced by technology very interesting and intriguing. What I find most interesting was your choice to choose a sound that was not created by technology but still fell under the same category. Your explanation of how our voices were a form of technology really stood out to me and truly made me rethink the power that our voices carry. I also found it interesting when you went onto explain your experience at the restaurant, explaining from Hudspeth’s statement how our ears are able to amplify certain sounds and decrease others depending on the situation. It made me think about how our voices and ears are both forms of technology working together like a machine. Only this “machine” is made up of the cilia in the inner ear and the sound waves provided by an individual. Its interesting to think how most sounds produced in our daily audio field are produce from technology, but you brought it to the readers attention that our voices could be heard as a form of audio produced from technology.
Even though I did read Hudspeth, I don’t think I have really considered the technology of sounds, as well as the technology of the ear. The fact that you made this your whole topic of your podcast really got me excited. I think the technology of sound is very important, and in a world we often are so consumed by technological devices, our ear becomes trained to ignore these “unnatural” sounds. I loved your song choice for your alarm. Also, as you listed your sounds, I was pretty fascinated that every single one had to do with a technology. I was kind of surprised by this as well. The fact that you left your tenth sound as the technology of the ear was very clever, and relevant to the Hudspeth reading. I loved this podcast a lot, and thought it was very creative.