Via Joanne Casey's I Have Seen The Whole Of The Internet.
A tip of my blogging hat to reader Dan Noland, for his observation that this young woman is attending a dB drag racing event:
dB drag racing is a competition rewarding the person who can produce the loudest sound inside a vehicle. The "dB" means decibels of sound pressure level (SPL). In these competitions, SPL of 155 dB can be reached, and it is not unheard of to hear more than 160 dB as well.This would be a good time to quote Miranda:
Competitive vehicles can range from a small vehicle with a single amplifier and subwoofer up to a large van with dozens of amplifiers and subwoofers powered by dozens of car batteries and with upgraded electrical wiring and alternator...
During a competition, the vehicle must be driven 20 feet. Nobody is allowed to sit in the vehicle during trials because injury would be certain. The vehicles are sealed tight to maximize containment of the sound energy for the decibel level meter. The competitor stands away from the vehicle with an on/off switch control while a computer voice announces the stages for the "races"...
O wonder!
How many goodly creatures are there here!
How beauteous mankind is! O brave new world
That has such people in't!
You don't even need the sound in this kind of video: http://i.imgur.com/STrwc7y.webm
ReplyDeleteAt around the 0:25 mark you can see quite clearly that she is wearing foam ear plugs (thank goodness).
ReplyDeleteremind me not to buy that 'shaken to sh!t' used car.
ReplyDeleteI-)
Why???
ReplyDeleteWell the immediate cause is most likely that she is attending a DB Drag Racing event.
DeleteAs to the more general cause of why humans compete to make the loudest car or the fastest car or to move a ball down a field marked with lines or to climb mountains or run extreme distances or to move pieces around on a checkered board... well I cannot help there other than to say de gustibus non est disputandum.
Earplugs can lessen the pressure by perhaps 30 dB, they do worse for bass. I'd recommend earplugs combined with Peltor Earmuffs.
ReplyDeleteAs a reference: above 85 dB hearing protection is mandatory in the workplace.