Quietly making noise

Posted at 6:01 PM on April 14, 2008 by Bob Collins (3 Comments)

The value of noise is in the ear of the beholder.

The New York Times today, profiled the perils of Cairo, where the average decibel level is 85. "It is literally like living day in and day out with a lawn mower running next to your head, according to scientists with the National Research Center," the article said.

Bad stuff, but at least it doesn't kill you like "quiet" can.

The electric car, It turns out, is so quiet it can kill you.

From the University of California Riverside:

Preliminary results of the on-going research project show that hybrid cars operating at very slow speeds must be 40 percent closer to pedestrians than combustion-engine vehicles before their location can be audibly detected, said Lawrence Rosenblum, professor of psychology. Those findings have implications for pedestrians who are blind, runners, cyclists, small children, and others, he said.

H/T: Wired

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Comments (3)

Aren't we taught at an early age....like 3? to STOP- LOOK and LISTEN?
Sorry but that is a moronic observation-in my opinion.
For YEARS I ran/biked with music plugged into my ears. I use my eyes. Who runs in the street? I haven't seen any blind bikers in awhile either.
What is the point of that blog? That people are so stupid they would bike/run into traffic? It would take someone with some really skewed wiring to think that a quiet car is deadly.

Posted by c | April 15, 2008 8:12 AM

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I believe the slogan my motorcycle friends have is, "Loud pipes save lives". I do not ride so I might have it wrong, but ....

Posted by Brian Hanf | April 15, 2008 9:17 AM

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"Loud pipes save lives".

perhaps that would hold true if you are deaf and blind.
When I see that bumper sticker, "Loud pipes save lives", it is usually on a truck and accompanied by an NRA sticker. To me it all boils down to some redneck philosophy which, I repeat, comes from people with some really skewed wiring.

Posted by c | April 15, 2008 10:57 AM

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