Buzz
What does the sound of absolute silence feel like? This intriguing question was recently raised by Kyle Hill, the YouTuber behind the Because Science page, where he delves into scientific insights on various pop culture phenomena.
One of his latest videos was influenced by the 2018 film A Quiet Place, starring John Krasinski (known for his role as Jim on The Office) alongside his wife Emily Blunt. In the film, monstrous creatures with acute hearing begin to hunt humans at the slightest noise. “How silent would you need to be to remain undetected?” Hill posed.
To explore this thought experiment, Hill examined real-life examples of some of the quietest spots in the U.S., including the Microsoft Audio Lab in Redmond, Washington, a facility used for testing microphones and other equipment. This anechoic chamber, crowned as the quietest place on Earth in 2015, is so still that you might even hear the blood flowing through your veins.
It surpassed the previous record-holder, Orfield Labs in Minneapolis, Minnesota, which was 'engineered specifically to absorb sound,' according to Hill. The room's angled geometric panels are designed to trap sound waves and eliminate nearly all echoes.
As Hill points out, while it may be possible to hide from monstrous, supernaturally sensitive creatures by building ultra-quiet environments, most of us would first need to master some advanced engineering techniques.
