

This Is Your Brain on Silence - pmcpinto
http://nautil.us/issue/16/nothingness/this-is-your-brain-on-silence

======
BoppreH
Great article, but I think I'm missing something. Several times through it I
thought: "ok, but what about _obvious explanation_?".

Examples:

    
    
      People who live in consistently loud environments often 
      experience chronically elevated levels of stress hormones.
    

But did they prove _correlation_ or _causation_? To me most things that make
noise also cause stress. Construction work makes lots of noise and changes
your routine. A failing piece of hardware brings me technical headaches along
with the noise. The article implies it's the noise itself that caused that.

    
    
      “In the absence of sound, the brain often tends to 
      produce internal representations of sound.”
    

When I think of a song, I can _hear_ it in a very similar way to actual songs.
Isn't this fairly well known? Same thing with the abrupt silence increasing
attention. That seems... obvious?

    
    
      There seemed to be a type of background brain activity 
      that was most visible, paradoxically, when the test 
      subject was in a quiet room, doing absolutely nothing.
    

First thing I would do is attribute this to the internal monologue, but I see
no mention of that. When I'm by myself I'm definitely thinking harder than
when listening to music. It's hard to actually do nothing, as people who
meditate can tell you. Yet it's talked like it's entirely subconscious
activity.

I enjoyed reading this piece, and did learn a few things, but it frustrates me
to no end when they gloss over stuff like this. Maybe they are not as obvious
as I thought, or I missed something that clearly proves them wrong, but my
feeling is that the article ignores common sense in a few spots.

~~~
nyrulez
Correlation vs causation has sort of become a cultural trapdoor to all new
claims. In reality, it is very hard to find the actual cause of many things we
take for granted. Its often that the first event that sets off the chain of
events is mentioned as the cause itself. Sometimes even if one doesn't know
the mechanism, as long as you can reliably reproduce or predict the same, its
seen as good enough for practical purposes, if not for textbook teaching.

For example, not drinking water for a day tends to make me thirsty. Thats a
correlation. Is it the cause? Not really. It just sets off a chain of events,
which triggers dehydration, and eventually neuro chemical triggers of thirst
somewhere in my brain centre.Even that centre is probably not well understood.
But we still say "not drinking water causes thirst". it may be possible to
mess with that circuitry to avoid these feelings. In fact a lot of
neurological drugs prey on this fact.

Causality is a very philosopical subject. But I would argue that for most
practical purposes, reproducibility and predictability are often good enough
to be useful, even if mechanism is currently unknown.

See manipulation theories in causality (along with some intro on causality
calculus) if you really want to dig deep into the beast known as causality.

------
geekam
You are fortunate if you have a quiet room or dark room at work. Even more if
you have an office which reduces noise.

Two of my biggest points when I try to find a job -

* As small a commute as possible and hopefully public transportation availability (have achieved this time and again)

* Place where I get an office, quiet room. (Have never achieved this)

~~~
mbrock
Yeah. Or work remotely from places that respect the sublime power of silence,
like certain public libraries, especially academic libraries.

I think my love of silence is a big part of the whole foundation for my
political and spiritual leanings. I loathe capitalism because it's noisy in
all kinds of ways. And zazen, that speaks for itself.

I know many Zen practitioners from Finland. They're all so lovely; I lack
words. The whole aesthetic of Zen: lightning on a black sky; the moonshine
reflecting in the lake; the far-off bird cry... It's all Finland.

Compare all this to the typical open office. Why do we accept such painful
environments? How can some people be so comfortable in full-time office jobs?
It chafes on me like a hairshirt.

~~~
eurleif
>I loathe capitalism because it's noisy in all kinds of ways.

If communism is less noisy, it's because the state has forcibly silenced
people. You can't hear them because they have a gun to their head. Don't
forget that.

~~~
crpatino
Capitalism and Communism are not the only possible forms of human
organization. As a matter of fact, it can be argued that Capitalism and
Socialism (the only kind of Communism for which there are historical records,
AFAIK) are two competing and closely related patterns that happened to be
dominant in the world during the second half of the 20th century.

As a result, I have a hard time believing Communist cities were significantly
less noisy. And while the gun to the head probably happened more than a few
times, it's probably not relevant to this discussion.

~~~
eurleif
>Capitalism and Communism are not the only possible forms of human
organization.

What alternatives do you have in mind? Everything listed at
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economic_systems#Types](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economic_systems#Types)
looks like either a form of capitalism, of communism/socialism, or a mix of
the two. (There are one or two that might be considered distinct, but they
look like they are only applicable at a very small scale, and even then they
ultimately look pretty similar to capitalism or communism.)

I assume you're not just trying to draw a distinction between communism and
socialism, since you're calling socialism a form of communism. You have
another comment claiming it's the other way around, but regardless, the point
is that they're very closely related.

>And while the gun to the head probably happened more than a few times

The gun to the head is a necessary component of any communist/socialist
system.

>it's probably not relevant to this discussion

The original comment I replied to connected a dislike of capitalism with Zen
Buddhism. Buddhists are supposed to care about peace in the world, not just
silence for themselves. Communism is anything but peaceful. So it seems very
relevant to me.

~~~
crpatino
I think[1] it is a bit disingenuous to claim that every economic system is
either capitalism, communism/socialism, or a mix of the two. This is not what
I saw at all in the wiki page. Of course all systems have things in common,
they belong to the same category after all, but each has its own unique
characteristics.

By example, the Guilds system in Renacentist Europe. Is it capitalism or
socialism? Each master had control of his own means of production, and hired
both journeymen and apprentices to provide labor, but on the other hand, each
master had to answer to the guild at large, and more directly to his peers in
the same city. They had pretty strict controls over who could do business
where, without intervention of the State, so in our eyes may look like a mix
of capitalist oligopoly with socialism...

Except this analysis misses the point that the Guilds system was not about the
control of the means of production, but about the control of knowledge and
social status. Of course you can say that knowledge and social status _are_
means of production, but that would be true only in a very abstract sense.

Regarding the "gun to the head", I insist it is not a defining characteristic
of socialism/communism. Capitalism, and feudalism, and traditional economies,
etc, all have their own ways to impose the will of high status individuals
over the rest of the people, and more often than not this involves the threat
of physical violence. That's why I don't think it is relevant.

[1] Disclaimer, my knowledge of economic systems is limited to 101 classes but
still.

------
Dru89
In our office, we have "Quiet Rooms." Many people go there to grab a fifteen
to twenty minute nap, but I find myself going there when the noise just gets
to be too much.

I've found that many problems, even software problems, can be solved in a
completely dark, quiet room. At the very least, it helps reduce stress levels
and allows you to try to tackle the problem again when you get back with a
fresh mind.

~~~
epaladin
I've found the dark/quiet room to be useful for brainstorming in general. I've
only actively utilized that tactic a couple of times though, I should try it
more often. On those occasions I found that coming up with decent ideas seemed
to be easier, just by sitting at a table with the lights off. Perhaps this
allows the brain to let go of the world in front of you a little bit and lets
the creative side take the foreground.

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qzxvwt
Who honestly couldn't foresee that sensory deprivation would be a luxury. We
already have to pay to remove advertising from our lives.

~~~
findjashua
Could you elaborate on paying to remove advertising? I don't think I've paid
anything other than $5 donation to AdBlock.

~~~
qzxvwt
Generally, on and off the web, media can be free as long as you're willing to
let your experience be mediated by advertising to a degree.

Your own private experiences can be devoid of ads, but private possessions
usually cost money.

For example in NYC, if you're taking the subway or bus, your visual landscape
is bombarded with ads. If you pay for a cab you have less. If you buy your own
car you aren't necessarily subjected to that beyond the billboards and signage
you'd find on public roads. If you can afford to live in the Hamptons and take
a helicopter to and from Manhattan, you have that much more control over your
environment.

But like you said, even Adblock isn't really free.

~~~
findjashua
Well, on the web, I'm looking at content, and the ads are just distracting and
annoying. On the bus/subway, I don't find the ads that annoying.

As for AdBlock, they don't actually charge you - you can get the extension for
free. The donation is purely voluntary.

------
brightsize
On several occasions I've been on solo backcountry hikes, stopped to rest, and
realized that I could hear absolutely nothing. No wind. Not even bug-noise.
Zero. It is truly sublime, transcendent, something entirely outside of
ordinary human experience. Just typing this, laptop keys clicking, fan
whirring, electrical timer creaking, crows squawking, the uncouth hollering of
neighbors outside, cars rumbling in the distance, I am longing to experience
such silence again.

~~~
macNchz
I swear by getting out into the wilderness as a means of disconnecting and
finding a sort of deep, long-lasting relaxation. My trips aren't extreme, but
we hike long enough to be worn out at the end of the day, and deep enough into
the forest to escape the sounds of civilization, and the reaches of cell
service.

I've always loved backpacking, but the more connected I've become, the more
important these trips have become to maintaining a sense of well being.

------
rch
Having spent a bit of time in an anechoic chamber, I can say that true silence
can be a powerful experience. There's a physical sensation of pressure being
lifted, and intense feeling of focus (at least for me). I'd go well out of my
way to hop in one again.

~~~
Shinkei
I think it's worth mentioning that extreme absence of sound is not a condition
that humans can tolerate.

[http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2124581/The-w...](http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2124581/The-
worlds-quietest-place-chamber-Orfield-Laboratories.html)

~~~
rch
Here's a video response^ by a guy who wanted to test this assertion. He spent
about an hour in one at BYU, and seemed comfortable enough throughout.
Interesting points: at around the 16 minute mark, he verbally estimates his
time at 8 minutes; after the 45 min is up he asks for the lights to be turned
on, and gets no response from the people outside the chamber. He calmly finds
the door by using his cell phone as a light.

^
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mXVGIb3bzHI](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mXVGIb3bzHI)

~~~
Shinkei
I am glad you sent me this video, but again the important part is that the
test conditions are not the same as the original article. As much is mentioned
in the video notes and comments... I do agree though that my source article is
not exactly scientific, and it may be some kind of bias being introduced by
the test participants.

~~~
nubsrevenge
that article is wrong wrong wrong. I hate that article. I've seen it many
times, it just sounds like some dumb reporter got into an anechoic chamber and
thought it was crazy so he says you will start hallucinating and nobody can
stand it for more than 45 minutes. that is plain wrong. I've been in an
anechoic chamber to setup equipment to be sound tested, it's a very weird
sensation to have the pressure of sound lifted off of you, and to hear your
insides working, but everything about that article I loathe.

edit: oh what the hell, I never saw the certificate picture of the world
record before, and that chamber is only -9.4dBA when there are plenty now past
-12dBA (though I don't know the rating of the chamber I was in)

------
Eiriksmal
> The cochlea converts physical vibrations into electrical signals that the
> brain receives. > The body reacts immediately and powerfully to these
> signals, even in the middle of deep sleep. ... > The activation prompts an
> immediate release of stress hormones like cortisol. > People who live in
> consistently loud environments often experience chronically elevated levels
> of stress hormones.

This article got me thinking... what if I'm waking up feeling tired not
because my mattress is aging and terrible, but because I moved from a quiet
house to one that's 500 feet away from some train tracks? Even with a line of
trees and other houses between the tracks and my bedroom, you can still hear
the trains go thundering by, regardless of the time of day.

~~~
plainOldText
Have you tried to sleep with earplugs on? Do you still wke up tired then?
Also, I think the environment can have a much deeper impact on our health than
most doctors like to admit. You could also wake up feeling tired as a result
of changes in air quality (chemicals, mold, spores, wall paint, even furniture
materials apparently).

Here's an interesting collection of reads:

[http://readpiles.com/pile/Environmental-
Illnesses,-Chemical-...](http://readpiles.com/pile/Environmental-
Illnesses,-Chemical-
Sensitivity,-Allergies/94bac754-fe6c-4309-a0ca-e4e9a45b9acb)

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neoterics
Are there any studies that show the advantages of open space offices? I loathe
them so much, constant distractions with people on the phone, clickyty clacks
of tens of keyboards, people laughing & talking loudly etc. etc.

How do people think that this open environment can be conducive to
productivity? It just blows my mind. We see such studies all the time about
silence, yet most companies (especially in the Bay Area) are moving towards
the open space layout. Are they just incapable of rationally thinking about
this and doing it just because it's the new and cool thing in town and others
are doing it?

I always end up being the most productive during holiday season (I wish our
company gave us the option to work from home).

~~~
devindotcom
Some people work better in those circumstances, believe it or not. I
personally don't, but others do - they thrive on being in the midst of
activity, are stimulated by it. Both types should be accommodated, I'd say,
but it's hard to justify giving someone an office just because they prefer to
be alone. Luckily working from home is an option, though, as you point out,
not for everyone just yet.

Strangely enough, I actually read very well when at a crowded bar. The
background music and conversation, even if it's loud, sort of makes my brain
focus on the book at hand, and I'm able to concentrate on it as well or better
than I might have in a library reading room. Plus, you know, beer.

~~~
neoterics
Right, but even if the percentage of such a person is 50%, then you are only
catering to half the crowd.

I realize giving an office to everyone is not the best (or the most realistic)
solution, but I think a compromise can be found, some parts of our office have
these large cubes where 2 to 4 people can sit, this keeps you together with
your team and makes for easy interaction/collaboration, but at the same time
the high walls surrounding you keep the background auditory and visual
distractions to a minimum, this way there is something for both the groups of
people.

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gregpilling
I find that I need some quiet time everyday or I get irritable. An office with
a solid door and insulated walls is at work, and I have a quiet room at home.

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noir_lord
Silicon earplugs are sanity savers, I don't sleep without them as I have sleep
problems.

I also use them sometimes when I need to concentrate.

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Throwaway1224
I lived in Finland for six years. I speak the language fluently.

:crickets:

