Discussion Questions #5

Time and progress do not standstill. As progress grows, the perception of time also changes. According to Damon Krukowski’s podcast “Ways of Hearing,” the author notes that the digital era has replaced the analog one, changing our perception of the world. Krukowski argues that analog experience exists in real-time since it is not possible to scroll back or delete and try again. In other words, analog time is the time of real feelings without a filter. The digital experience differs significantly from analog in that digital time can be controlled, corrected or embellished. Digital time is like a mechanical existence with a specific time code. Krukowski notes the differences between analog and digital time, citing the fact that analog time is faster than digital. For example, in 2009, the announcer of Red Sox, Joe Castiglione led a live broadcast of a baseball game. Castiglione’s speech was ahead of the image on the TV. This was explained by the fact that on that day, analogue television switched to digital. The video image was delayed because it took a little longer to convert the digital video.

When we walk along the bustling streets of a metropolis, different sounds attack us from all sides; sound signals of rescue services, performances of street musicians, or enthusiastic cries of passers-by. We hear the breath of the streets; we hear the heartbeat of the city. For New Yorkers, such sound waves are comparable to the usual noise of rain in inclement weather. However, it is worth putting on the headphones and switching to the phone screen, we cease to exist and participate in this world of sounds.

According to Jeremiah Moss on the streets of New York, people are increasingly losing historical public places that served completely different purposes. Moss says that these places were stealth took away from people, explaining that certain various rules and prohibitions were established in these places. Being once public spaces where people could trade, meet, communicate or just speak, a variety of prohibitions and rules turned these places into private spaces.

The streets of big cities have always been bustling, and sometimes it was even difficult to hear their thoughts. According to the statements of Emily Thomson, people had a desire to control the internal space, and this led to the emergence of Concert halls with noise-insulating walls helping to block the external noise vibrations of the streets. Due to the architectural solution, the audience could fully enjoy the sounds of various performances. With the advancement of technology, this privilege has become portable. Headphones and then earbuds helped people isolate themselves from the noisy world and enjoy the various sounds in a controlled space with these devices.

Hearing helps us to navigate in space, hear sounds and understand the world around us. However, sometimes residents of big cities overwhelmed of the daily vibrations of the metropolis and find various internal spaces. These spaces can hide in concert halls with noise-insulating walls or when putting on headphones we stop hearing sounds outside our space. These features allow us to disconnect from the flow of real-time, transferring us to a completely different world filled with calm, thoughts and sounds of the inner space.

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