Post by: Adam Dempsey on January 24, 2007, 06:14:45 PM
Ian Sample, London
January 25, 2007
A QUEST to identify the worst sound in the world has ended with top honours going to a Saturday night urban standard: a person vomiting.
The sound, re-created for acoustics experts by an actor with a bucket of diluted baked beans, won out over fingers being dragged down a blackboard, a dentist's drill and wailing babies in an online study that attracted 1.1 million votes from around the world.
Microphone feedback, crying babies and the scrapes and squeaks of a train on a track ranked second and joint third, with a cat howling and mobile phone ringtones coming joint 12th and snoring an unexpectedly low 26th.
The study, set up by Trevor Cox, a professor of acoustic engineering at Britain's Salford University, sought opinions on 34 sounds in the hope of learning what makes certain noises so objectionable.
"From a scientific perspective, we really don't understand why some sounds are so horrible, but our reactions are part of what makes us human," he said. "If, as engineers, we can learn what offends people, then in some cases we may be able to engineer them out of existence or at least reduce their impact."
The researchers expected sounds that evoke disgust to be near the top of the list, such as vomiting, coughing and spitting, eating an apple with the mouth open and a lengthy blast from a whoopee cushion. Revulsion to such sounds is partly governed by culture and partly an evolutionary legacy that helps us avoid picking up diseases.
In general, horrible sounds became worse as people aged, but for some sounds the picture was more complex. The sound of eating an apple revolted people less as they aged. The sound of a dentist's drill ranked worst among the under-10s and those in their 40s to 50s. "These are the ages when you are most likely to experience the dentist's drill, so these people could well be more sensitive," Professor Cox said.
Some scientists have tried to explain widespread shudders at nails being dragged down a blackboard as a historical reflex to the similar-sounding screech made when monkeys alert others to impending danger. But the sound ranked 16th, between sniffing and polystyrene being scrunched, suggesting the noise has less effect than expected.
The most annoying noises
1. Vomiting
2. Microphone feedback
3. Many crying babies
4. Train scraping on tracks
5. Seesaw squeaking
6. Someone playing a violin badly
7. Whoopee cushion
8. One baby crying
9. Soap opera argument
10. Mains humming
11. Tasmanian Devil
Guardian/AAP
http://www.sound101.org
Post by: Adam Dempsey on January 24, 2007, 06:18:47 PM
Post by: Mark Wilder on January 24, 2007, 07:03:13 PM
While we're on the list thing, worst band names. This is a different list than I've seen floating around.
http://www.avclub.com/content/node/48956
Post by: TotalSonic on January 24, 2007, 07:07:12 PM
Best regards,
Steve Berson
Post by: bblackwood on January 24, 2007, 07:21:02 PM
| Mark Wilder wrote on Wed, 24 January 2007 18:03 |
That's odd, I didn't see many of my records on the list... |
I had seven of the 'top 10' on that list...
Post by: Mark Wilder on January 24, 2007, 07:38:41 PM
http://www.southbeach-usa.com/features/features1/band_names/ worst_names_1.htm
Sorry, I didn't mean to hijack the thread, but this stuff just cracks me up. I had to share.
Post by: TotalSonic on January 24, 2007, 08:01:14 PM
| Mark Wilder wrote on Thu, 25 January 2007 00:38 |
Here's the other list. http://www.southbeach-usa.com/features/features1/band_names/ worst_names_1.htm Sorry, I didn't mean to hijack the thread, but this stuff just cracks me up. I had to share. |
Sorry also - but not as funny by a mile to this unbelievable collection of the Worst Band Promo Photos you'll ever see!!
http://www.rockandrollconfidential.com/hall/
Best regards,
Steve Berson
Post by: punisher on January 24, 2007, 08:01:36 PM
Post by: Adam Dempsey on January 24, 2007, 08:10:51 PM
| TotalSonic wrote on Thu, 25 January 2007 11:07 |
I'm stunned that bagpipes didn't make it into the top 10 Best regards, Steve Berson |
Good point. And ever heard a recording of one backwards? Sounds almost the same! Try it.
I'd add harpsichord to the list. One of the first records I worked on was solo harpsichord - think I got my life time's quota in that long day.
Post by: Gold on January 24, 2007, 10:09:32 PM
Post by: Tomás Mulcahy on January 25, 2007, 08:58:59 AM
| Adam Dempsey wrote on Thu, 25 January 2007 01:10 |
I'd add harpsichord to the list. One of the first records I worked on was solo harpsichord - think I got my life time's quota in that long day. |
That's funny, another plucked sting instrument that I hate is the banjo. maybe it's not the sound, but the fact that I had to sit through 28 bad takes of a banjo and acordion tune (horrible combination) that ended up not being used on the album.
Post by: punisher on January 25, 2007, 09:43:00 AM
| bblackwood wrote on Wed, 24 January 2007 19:21 | ||
I had seven of the 'top 10' on that list... |
The other 3 were mine. The CIA are using it as their new form of "persuasion".
And they were the revised ones!! The originals were beyond vomit!
Post by: Mark Wilder on January 25, 2007, 09:55:02 AM
| punisher wrote on Thu, 25 January 2007 09:43 |
The other 3 were mine. The CIA are using it as their new form of "persuasion". And they were the revised ones!! The originals were beyond vomit! |
That's funny! I just read about it here:
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/us/AP-Ray-Gun.html?_r=1& oref=slogin
Post by: AndreasN on January 25, 2007, 12:56:55 PM
Wav files:
1. Vomiting
2. Microphone feedback
3. Many crying babies
4. Train scraping on tracks
Post by: Alécio Costa - Brazil on January 25, 2007, 05:32:49 PM
I don't think folks would like to see that again
LOL
Post by: masterhse on January 27, 2007, 12:20:13 PM
Post by: present on January 27, 2007, 02:32:27 PM
| masterhse wrote on Sat, 27 January 2007 18:20 |
Any votes for clarinet, especially when doing high glissandos? |
I saw a saxophone quartet yesterday. They were so loud it actually made me angry