Rotundus.com

• Studying how plants communicate to their neighbors
• Trying to bring sustainable fusion power generation to reality
• Suggesting that snail power might allow faster data transfer than DSL, cable, or carrier pigeon
• Finding a correlation between vinyl flooring in the home and autism
• Arguing that non-smoking may have higher social costs than smoking

I wonder who'll claim that infant baptism puts you on a slippery slope leading towards this sort of thing?

Securing work in a tight economy means more job seekers might find themselves applying for positions below their qualifications. Many unemployed professionals are willing to take paycuts for the promise of a paycheck. But to get a foot in the door, candidates are gearing down their résumés by hiding advanced degrees, changing too-lofty titles, shortening work experience descriptions, and removing awards and accolades.

Excerpted from the Wall Street Journal

While a lot of people are keen to blame the arrival of the walkman and then the iPod as the reason for hearing loss problems, I tend to think of this as more of a symptom than the primary problem. Primarily I'd lay the blame on transportation noise - try listening to an iPod inside versus when walking along a road somewhere. Compare the volume levels at which the sound comes through clearly.

One of the most lamentable aspects of modern life is the disappearance of silence. Throughout most of human history, silence has been a part of life. Many individuals lived a significant portion of their lives in silence, working in solitude and untroubled by the intrusion of constant noise.

Historians often point to the Industrial Revolution as a great turning point in the human experience of environmental sound and constant noise. The arrival of the factory and the concentration of human populations in cities brought a transformation that was accompanied by increased noise and the displaced silence. Today, the problem of noise pollution is a matter of concern to many of us, who find our lives frequently interrupted by unwanted sounds and constant noise.

... All this takes a toll upon the soul. Psychologists argue that the development of individual identity requires extended periods of solitude, reflection, and silence. The Christian tradition has honored silence as a matter of spiritual discipline and an intentional effort to flee the noise of everyday life in order to hear what noise cannot supply.

Source: Albert Mohler, commenting on an article entitled Silence, Please

The World Health Organization has a list of some of the effects of noise pollution:

• pain and hearing fatigue;
• hearing impairment including tinnitus;
• annoyance;
• interferences with social behaviour (aggressiveness, protest and helplessness);
• interference with speech communication;
• sleep disturbance and all its consequences on a long and short term basis;
• cardiovascular effects;
• hormonal responses (stress hormones) and their possible consequences on human metabolism (nutrition) and immune system;
• performance at work and school.

In spite of the consequences, lawmakers seem to be part of the problem, mandating noise pollution on hybrid cars and failing to deal with idiots... or should I call them motorcycle owners.

(According to that article Canada has no set limit on motorcycle noise levels - and the US has an official cap of about 85 dB - with apparently about half hitting 100 dB in practice)