Study finds out that silence Might be a sound in its own right


What we call the “sound of silence” is present in philosophy, in pop culture, and on the Internet. However, is the perception of silence the same as that of noise? 


A similar perception

A deserted street in the middle of the night, a gap in a conversation, or even the moment after the end of music... there is no shortage of situations of silence in everyday life. Sometimes silence is golden and some people ask for it, as evidenced by the marketing of Muzo in 2016, a device promising a “bubble of silence” to its user. In other words, the device blocks surrounding sounds.


What if the absence of speech, noise, or other things was not just the result of an absence of waves? The "sound of silence" is a philosophical question that gave rise to the famous song The Sound of Silence by the folk-rock duo Simon & Garfunkel in 1964. Today, on the Internet, this song inspires content creators, mainly to illustrate a situation of incomprehension or loneliness. Furthermore, this sound also represents an interesting subject in psychology. Researchers from Johns Hopkins University (United States) published a study in PNAS on July 10, 2023. The objective? Show that people perceive silences in the same way as sounds.


Silence, a “real experience”

As part of this work, the researchers used a series of sound illusions. Two samples were offered to volunteers. The first was a long sound and the second contained two shorter sounds placed end to end. In both cases, the duration was similar, but the volunteers felt like the single sound was longer. The operation was then repeated with sounds of everyday life, in particular the atmosphere of restaurants, markets, or even transport. During each test, participants thought the single sounds were longer than two shorter sounds placed one after the other. According to scientists, this means that silence is perceived as a sound in its own right.


Researchers have not yet studied how the brain responds to silence. However, a hypothesis has been formulated. It suggests that certain neurons and neuronal processes play a role in its perception. In the meantime, scientists believe this research is enough to say that silence is a “real experience.”


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Only one letter does not appear in the periodic table of elements: do you know which one?

Image
A single letter does not appear in the famous periodic table of elements. Do you know what letter it is? The periodic table of elements is an essential resource for the scientific body, allowing us to understand and predict the properties and behaviors of the elements and their compounds. Each chemical symbol in this table consists of one or two letters of the alphabet . However, only one letter is missing: do you know which one? The periodic table of elements, an essential resource for scientists The periodic table of elements is a systematic arrangement of all chemical elements , classified according to their electronic structure and properties. This table is organized into horizontal rows called periods, and vertical columns called groups. Chemical elements are numbered according to their atomic number, corresponding to the number of protons present in their nucleus. Each element is represented by a chemical symbol consisting of one or two letters . Between groups and periods Period...
Read more

The birth of the concept of brain-computer interface

Image
Freepik / creativeart Brain-computer interface, or BCI, is a term that has been widely popularized in recent years. You might remember the first time you heard about this futuristic technology and you might be wondering how it could change our lives. This section will tell you how the concept of brain-computer interface was developed and where we are today. The idea of ​​an interface between the brain and the computer is not new. Indeed, research on brain-machine communication dates back several decades. However, it is only recently that this technology has started to make its way into the mainstream. It is thanks in particular to companies like NeuraLink, founded by Elon Musk, that this technology has become a common topic of discussion. In parallel: How to choose the best Pokémon binder for your collection? Elon Musk has highlighted the possibility of a direct interface between our brain and a computer system, allowing our thoughts to directly control machines. The potential of this ...
Read more

Will the computer of the future be made without silicon?

Image
Silicon is a key element in the manufacture of computers. Used for decades as the basis of electronic chips, researchers have now found an alternative to this element in optical fiber. A cable that would have the ability to overcome most of the limitations of traditional computing. A new milestone may well have been reached in the world of computing. Do you know the silicon, this essential element in the electronics industry? Amineralknown for giving its name to the famous Silicon Valley ( silicon meaning silicon in English) and one of the most abundant elements on the planet. Amaterial solids, having properties of semiconductors, have become essential in the development of the majority of modern electronic devices. If this mineral is at the origin of the second generation of transistors developed in the 1950s, the key component of the electronic chips in our computer equipment, today, an international team of researchers would have succeeded in developing an operational computer witho...
Read more