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 October 15,
2005
Boilermaker's Ear
When I began reporting on the world of audio, back in the 1970s, it was common to warn about the dangers of very loud music to the health of one’s hearing. At the time, the concern was that attending concerts amplified to high volume levels could damage one’s ears over time. Many musicians already had hearing problems from being exposed to extremely high audio levels night after night; the fear was that their listeners would develop the same problems, even if it took somewhat longer. Hearing loss caused by unusually noisy work environments had already been known for some time. It was often called "boilermaker’s ear" because the constant hammering inside metal boilers regularly caused deafness in that industry. Although there was never any real doubt about the problem, it’s now clear that we were on the right track. According to some statistics recently quoted in the Chicago Tribune, "Noise-induced hearing loss is escalating in the United States -- and not just among senior citizens." Something called the Better Hearing Institute reports that 18 percent of baby boomers have hearing loss, as do 7.4 percent of Generation Xers. Overall, some 65 percent of those whose hearing difficulties cause problems are under retirement age. Are these effects caused by too many loud concerts? Unlikely. My suspicion is that the problem began its sharp rise with the arrival of the Walkman in 1979, and has continued with the incredible popularity of the Apple iPod and other portable music players. It hardly matters that the phones or earbuds used with these devices actually move very little air; they are coupled directly to our ear canals and can easily create sounds subjectively as loud as a live performance through massive speakers. It is that subjective loudness that causes the problem. Next time you can hear music clearly from the headphones of that kid on the other side of the bus, you can be sure that for him, the music is deafening. Literally. ...Ian G. Masters
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