The Quest for Absolute Silence
Have our noise-soaked lives driven us mad? And is absolute silence an impossible goal—or the one thing that can save us? Zero Decibels is a lively, personal tale of one man’s quest to find the grail of total quiet.
Drawing on history, science, journalistic reportage, philosophy, religion, and personal memory as well as conversations with experts in various fields whom he meets in his odyssey, Foy seeks to answer questions such as: How does one define silence? Did human beings ever experience silence in their early history? What is the relationship between noise and space? What are the implications of silence and our need for it―physically, mentally, emotionally, politically? Does absolute silence actually exist? If so, do we really want to hear it? And if we do hear it, what does it mean to us?
According to the Environmental Protection Agency, 30 million Americans suffer from environment-related deafness in today’s digital age of pervasive sound and sensory overload. Roughly the same number suffer from tinnitus, a condition, also environmentally related, that makes silence impossible in even the quietest places. In this respect, Foy’s quest for silence represents more than a simple psychological inquiry; both his queries and his findings help to answer the question “How can we live saner, healthier lives today?”
In the process, he finds new ways of living better within his own life, and with his own family.
Innovative, perceptive, and delightfully written, Zero Decibels will surely change how we perceive and appreciate the soundscape of our lives.
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PUBLISHED BY SCRIBNER/SIMON & SCHUSTER
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Zero Decibels
