2013.02.17 13:00 - The sound of silence

    Version as of 23:42, 22 Dec 2024

    to this version.

    Return to Version archive.

    View current version

    2013.02.17 13:00 - The sound of silence

    The Guardian for this meeting was Aphrodite Macbain. The comments are by Aphrodite Macbain.

    Santoshima Resident: 's current display-name is "San".
    druth Vlodovic: hey guys
    Aphrodite Macbain: Hello!
    Santoshima Resident: hello :)
    Aphrodite Macbain: Happy Sunday!
    druth Vlodovic: happy Sunday :)
    Aphrodite Macbain: I've been listening to a podcast on silence
    druth Vlodovic: oh?
    Aphrodite Macbain: by a "sound ecologist"
    Aphrodite Macbain: He says there are 5 protected silent areas in the US.
    Aphrodite Macbain: that silence is an "endangered species"
    Aphrodite Macbain: the best silence is in Hawaii, and no sound can be found inside the volcano!
    Aphrodite Macbain: funny that I have just been given a book on silence
    druth Vlodovic: when I go visit family in Bancroft one thing that strikes me is the silence

    Aphrodite Macbain: because you can't hear the Queensway?
    Aphrodite Macbain: everybody is so silent!
    druth Vlodovic: where I live you can always hear traffic
    druth Vlodovic: there are roads everywhere
    Aphrodite Macbain: I mainly hear traffic and get so used to it that I stop hearing it. I suppose there is also a difference between sound and noise
    druth Vlodovic: they say the electric cars are quiet, it might be better for us in several ways if we adopted them :)
    Aphrodite Macbain: yes- electric cars are silent and pollution free
    druth Vlodovic: even sounds you are unaware of become obvious when they are absent
    Aphrodite Macbain: or when there is an absence of certain sounds - like traffic, you hear other sounds, like birds
    --BELL--
    Aphrodite Macbain: Walking through Stanley Park is amazing - suddenly I hear all these bird calls
    Wol Euler: evening all
    Aphrodite Macbain: Hiya Wol
    Santoshima Resident: evening Wol
    Aphrodite Macbain: welcome
    druth Vlodovic: hi wol

    Aphrodite Macbain: we were just talking about sound, silence and noise
    Wol Euler nods.
    druth Vlodovic: funny how silence is so prized where people go to think
    Aphrodite Macbain: and how silence is becoming a rare commodity in our world
    druth Vlodovic: monasteries, libraries
    Aphrodite Macbain: peace
    Aphrodite Macbain: where do you go for quiet?wol? san? druth?
    Wol Euler: home :)
    Aphrodite Macbain: Is it quiet there? No traffic noise?
    Wol Euler: well, quiet is always a relative term
    Wol Euler: when I think of quiet, I think mostly that nobody is talking at me, in which I include radio, tv, etc
    druth Vlodovic: I don't have quiet places, but at home I never play music for background, so I preserve what quiet there is
    druth Vlodovic: things that demand your attention
    Wol Euler nods.
    druth Vlodovic: as opposed to "white noise"
    Aphrodite Macbain: filler - one drowns out the other
    druth Vlodovic: what is it like in the mountains Aph?
    Aphrodite Macbain: ah- so quiet except for the sound of the wind
    Aphrodite Macbain: grey jays
    Aphrodite Macbain: blue jays
    Aphrodite Macbain: chickadees
    Aphrodite Macbain: and the occasional scream of an elk
    Aphrodite Macbain: and, depending on the wind direction, the sound of the traffic from the TransCanada highway or a plane on its way to Vancouver!
    Aphrodite Macbain: sigh
    druth Vlodovic: lol
    Wol Euler: hello korel
    druth Vlodovic: visiting my uncle in Toronto I used to imagine that the traffic was the sound of a distant waterfall
    Aphrodite Macbain: smiles, I’ve done that!

    Aphrodite Macbain: Hello Korel
    druth Vlodovic: hi Korel :)
    Santoshima Resident: hi Korel
    Korel Laloix: heya

    Aphrodite Macbain: The suggested theme for this week is "others"
    Aphrodite Macbain: There are so many directions we can take that.
    druth Vlodovic: "silence" is good too
    Aphrodite Macbain: sure
    Aphrodite Macbain: Korel - wb
    druth Vlodovic: an interesting experience, actually, sharing silence with others
    Aphrodite Macbain: as in a silent retreat?
    Korel Laloix: Heya...
    druth Vlodovic: never been to a retreat
    Santoshima Resident: avi was stuck ... was preoccupied
    druth Vlodovic: it is a rare moment of trust to share silence
    Aphrodite Macbain: what occasions have you been in a place where you are in silence with others?
    Santoshima Resident: with others
    Aphrodite Macbain: in a silent retreat?
    Santoshima Resident: sure, but whenever ~ just need to listen carefully for any silence
    Santoshima Resident: that's when real conversation takes place
    Aphrodite Macbain: how so?
    druth Vlodovic: "communing"
    Aphrodite Macbain: conversation with yourself?
    Aphrodite Macbain: I am a bit anxious about sitting and eating in silence with others.
    Santoshima Resident: why?
    Santoshima Resident: what is the worry?
    Aphrodite Macbain: I fear I might make too much noise
    Santoshima Resident: oh
    Santoshima Resident: what will happen if you are too noisy?
    Aphrodite Macbain: Don’t know….I have this need to fill the silence with chatter
    --BELL--
    Santoshima Resident: i'm not sure that's possible
    Santoshima Resident: silence is silence
    Santoshima Resident: chatter is chatter
    Aphrodite Macbain: I wonder whether the silence allows you to hear your internal chatter better.
    Aphrodite Macbain: recognize it.
    Aphrodite Macbain: Hi Zon - welcome. We're talking about silence
    Zon Kwan: shhh then
    Aphrodite Macbain: :-)
    Korel Laloix: I have had some powerful experiences in silence, but also in very open communication.. so I think they both have their uses.
    druth Vlodovic: funny, while "commune" is a word, "mune" isn't really; try automuning, being in companionable silence with yourself :)
    druth Vlodovic: hi zon
    Aphrodite Macbain: …just the sound of typing was heard in the land…
    Wol Euler: hello zon
    Santoshima Resident: hello zon
    Zon Kwan: hey all

    Korel Laloix: But we use silence so infrequently, that maybe it can be more useful.
    Aphrodite Macbain: how Korel?
    Korel Laloix: In this day of constant stimulus... maybe trying out silence as something different could have its advantages.
    Aphrodite Macbain: allow us to be calmer?
    Korel Laloix: Or focus on non verbals.
    Korel Laloix: Or let us communicate with ourselves more.
    druth Vlodovic: it takes a kind of courage to be silent
    Aphrodite Macbain: nods
    Korel Laloix: But the use of silence I think can be cultural.
    Aphrodite Macbain: yes- silence isn't emptiness necessarily
    Aphrodite Macbain: It is an absence of unwanted noise
    Korel Laloix: And so much can be said with a touch, vs a word.
    Santoshima Resident: http://matadornetwork.com/bnt/22-yea...rs-of-silence/
    druth Vlodovic: or wanted noise :)

    Aphrodite Macbain: :-)
    Aphrodite Macbain: Thanks San - looks interesting. I'll save it for later
    druth Vlodovic: what have you found in silence Korel?
    Korel Laloix: I have had some very vivid, I guess you could say, cultural experiences.
    Aphrodite Macbain: as a result of silence?
    Zon Kwan: waves silently
    Korel Laloix: When you are in very new experiences, and you can't us words to express your thoughts, you find ways.
    druth Vlodovic: have fun zon
    Aphrodite Macbain: Bye Zon:-)

    Korel Laloix: And in those moments of silence you find parts of yourself to chat with that you did not know existed.
    Aphrodite Macbain: yes- gestures, movement, touch as you say
    Korel Laloix: Lets you reflect in ways that are not normally accessible.
    Aphrodite Macbain: the language of the eyes
    Santoshima Resident: painting (again), bye ~
    Wol Euler: bye
    Aphrodite Macbain: waves to San
    Wol Euler: take care
    Aphrodite Macbain: paint quietly
    Aphrodite Macbain: I was thinking of the relationship between silence and the topic of the week, “others”. How noise seems to come from "others" and how sounds come from "us"
    druth Vlodovic: "If you were happy, son, you wouldn't have to say it" (from san's link :)
    Korel Laloix: We do make a lot of our own distractions.
    Aphrodite Macbain: Wol- have you had to deal with sound, silence, sound proofing etc in designing buildings?
    Qt Core: hi all
    Aphrodite Macbain: Germany seems to be ahead in a lot of these issues- environmental pollution extends to sound pollution
    Wol Euler: that is taken into consideration, yes, but we have never gone beyond the amount of sound control that the local planning laws enforce- so not really
    Aphrodite Macbain: Hi Qt
    Wol Euler: hello qt
    --BELL--
    druth Vlodovic: hi qt

    Aphrodite Macbain: Do you think more should be done? Is it expensive to build a quiet building?
    druth Vlodovic: It would be interesting to make the buildings in a city sound-absorbing- make everything quiet
    Aphrodite Macbain: mmm
    Aphrodite Macbain: an inside out building
    druth Vlodovic: I'm not sure that all noise comes from outside though
    Wol Euler: "quiet" is always a relative term :)
    druth Vlodovic: for me the most deafening noise comes from my own head
    Wol Euler: yes it costs more to make any building more *anything* than the standard
    Aphrodite Macbain: Maybe you could insulate with felt and create absorbent surfaces on inside and outside.
    Korel Laloix: Let’s blame architects... smiles
    Aphrodite Macbain: no, let's blame our priorities
    Qt Core: and then too much quiet seems to be not really nice: http://www.smartplanet.com/blog/thin...inations/11153
    Korel Laloix smiles
    Korel Laloix: OK.
    Aphrodite Macbain: sensory deprivation
    Korel Laloix: I like to have music playing when I study.
    Korel Laloix: Or someone else in the room.
    Aphrodite Macbain: Do you listen to it?
    Aphrodite Macbain: or does it become a handy piece of furniture?
    druth Vlodovic: it would make for an interesting city Qt, lots of places for birds to nest
    Korel Laloix: Not really.
    Qt Core: when i had to study i needed my radio on, so the source of noise was known and i didn't get distracted by "mysterious" street sounds
    Korel Laloix: Just drowns out things that might really distract.. or maybe gives me the sense of company.
    Aphrodite Macbain: yes- that's white noise, background noise. What would happen if we had complete silence? Nothing except the sound of breathing and the turning of pages or keys typing?
    druth Vlodovic: does anyone meditate in silence, or do you use music and such?:

    Aphrodite Macbain: I don’t mind if there's background noise. But a sudden loud noise or a strange noise would distract
    Korel Laloix: My meditation is while running... which is not that safe really... but it works for me.
    druth Vlodovic: http://www.smartplanet.com/blog/thin...iterally/10536
    druth Vlodovic: I want one :)
    Aphrodite Macbain: J   -  Bertram's meditation is in 6 minutes btw
    Wol Euler: ty

    Qt Core: the first years i chatted in English i needed silence, especially no songs with lyrics (especially not in Italian) as it messed up my languages
    Qt Core: and now i got used to char and even just read in silence
    Aphrodite Macbain: interesting Qt
    Qt Core: only company... pc fans
    Wol Euler smiles.
    Korel Laloix: Oh I agree.. I can't listen to First American music and study... English is OK though if low.
    Aphrodite Macbain: wonder what that's about. Perhaps how the brain is structured
    Qt Core: i should try dialectal songs and Italian books, just out of curiosity
    Aphrodite Macbain: yes- you can do an experiment.
    Aphrodite Macbain: let us know what happens!
    druth Vlodovic slipping off
    Aphrodite Macbain: bye meditators
    --BELL--
    Korel Laloix: Off to Lent service.. ciao all.
    Aphrodite Macbain: bye
    Qt Core: bye
    Wol Euler: bye, or see you at berti's
    Aphrodite Macbain: take care.
    Aphrodite Macbain: see you later Qt-hope all is well with you
    Qt Core: :) bye Aph

    Powered by MindTouch Core