You're probably used to all the sounds but when you stop for a moment and just take it in…

你可能已經習慣了所有的聲音，但當你停下腳步，只是把它看在眼裡......

It's pretty noisy, isn't it?

這很吵，不是嗎？

What is all that noise doing to us? And could it be impacting our health in some negative way?

所有這些噪音對我們有什麼影響？它是否會以某種負面方式影響我們的健康？

The most obvious way that noise can be harmful is when it causes damage to our hearing.

噪聲最明顯的危害方式是對我們的聽力造成損害。

Experts generally agree that humans can be exposed to noise levels at or below 70 decibels for any duration of time

專家們普遍認為，人類可以在任何時間內暴露在70分貝或低於70分貝的噪音水準下

without risk of hearing damage, which is around the higher end of normal conversation volumes.

而沒有聽力損傷的風險，這大約是正常對話音量的高端。

However, when we're exposed to 85 decibels or more for over 8 hours,

然而，當我們暴露在85分貝或更高的噪音中超過8小時。

that's when we start risking hearing damage.

這時我們就開始有聽力受損的風險。

85 decibels is about the noise level of a busy road with lots of trucks going by.

85分貝大約是一條有許多卡車經過的繁忙道路的噪音水準。

At 150 decibels, or about the volume of a jet on takeoff from 25 meters away,

在150分貝，或大約25米外的飛機起飛時的音量。

your eardrums can rupture.

你的耳膜會破裂。

But can noisy environments harm more than just your ears?

但是嘈雜的環境對你的傷害不僅僅是你的耳朵嗎？

As it turns out, they can.

事實證明，他們可以。

For one thing, they can make it hard to get a good night's sleep.

首先，它們會使人難以獲得良好的睡眠。

Just because you're unconscious doesn't mean your ears stop working.

你失去意識並不意味著你的耳朵停止工作。

Otherwise, alarm clocks would be useless today and our predators would have a free late-night snack

否則，今天的鬧鐘將毫無用處，我們的捕食者將獲得免費的深夜零食。

back in the days before the door was invented.

早在門被髮明之前的日子裡。

Because this channel is always open, loud noises can interfere with sleep patterns

因為這個通道始終是開放的，巨大的噪音會干擾睡眠模式。

by decreasing the amount of time people spend in the slow-wave and REM stages

通過減少人們在慢波和快速眼動階段花費的時間

and increasing the amount of time people spend in stage 1 or awake.

並增加人們在第1階段或清醒狀態下的時間。

Lack of sleep brings on a whole host of problems like impaired memory, creativity, and judgment.

睡眠不足會帶來一大堆問題，如記憶力、創造力和判斷力受損。

Whether asleep or awake, noise can also trigger our fight-or-flight response,

無論是睡著還是醒著，噪音也能觸發我們的戰鬥或逃跑反應。

leading to an increase in heart rate, blood pressure, and levels of stress hormones like epinephrine and cortisol.

導致心率、血壓以及腎上腺素和皮質醇等壓力荷爾蒙水準的增加。

Even if you're used to sleeping through bumps in the night, your body can still have these responses while you're unconscious.

即使你習慣於在夜間通過顛簸入睡，你的身體仍然可以在你無意識的情況下有這些反應。

All this means noise could be a risk factor for cardiovascular disease.

所有這些都意味著噪音可能是心血管疾病的一個風險因素。

Living somewhere noisy can have tangible impacts on the quality and duration of our lives.

生活在嘈雜的地方會對我們的生活品質和時間產生切實的影響。

In 2011 the World Health Organization released a report that concluded that every year

2011年，世界衛生組織發佈了一份報告，結論是：每年

the population of Europe has a combined one million years of healthy life shaved off their lifespans just due to noise.

歐洲人口總共有一百萬年的健康壽命，只是由於噪音而被削減。

The authors ranked noise from road traffic as the second biggest threat to public health after air pollution.

作者將道路交通的噪音列為僅次於空氣汙染的對公眾健康的第二大威脅。

In 2020 the European Environment Agency linked noise to 12,000 premature deaths annually.

2020年，歐洲環境署將噪聲與每年12,000例過早死亡聯繫起來。

Add in the fact that noise can also affect how animals hunt, navigate, and find mates,

再加上噪音也會影響動物的狩獵、導航和尋找配偶的方式。

and the term “noise pollution” seems pretty apt.

和 "噪音汙染 "一詞似乎相當貼切。

Noise is also getting harder and harder to escape.

噪音也越來越難以逃脫。

One nonprofit, Noise Pollution Clearinghouse, created a map of places in the United States that are naturally quiet

一個非營利組織 "噪音汙染資訊交流中心 "創建了一張美國自然安靜的地方的地圖。

based on their distance from road, rail, and flyover traffic.

基於他們與公路、鐵路和天橋交通的距離。

Only tiny pockets of the country meet their standard.

全國只有一小部分地區符合他們的標準。

Recently, some local and national governments have taken the initiative of creating quiet places

最近，一些地方和國家政府已經採取了創建安靜場所的舉措

for the benefit of their residents, like Yangmingshan National Park in Taiwan,

為了居民的利益，如臺灣的陽明山國家公園。

which the nonprofit Quiet Parks International has certified as the world's first Urban Quiet Park.

非營利組織 "國際安靜公園 "將其認證為世界上第一個城市安靜公園。

Quiet Parks International is aiming to certify about 50 such parks in the near future,

國際安靜公園組織的目標是在不久的將來對大約50個這樣的公園進行認證。

possibly ones close to bustling cities like New York, Miami, and Stockholm.

可能是靠近紐約、邁阿密和斯德哥爾摩等繁華城市的地方。

Speaking of Nordic countries, if you're looking for some peace and quiet now you could head to Finland,

說到北歐國家，如果你現在想尋找一些和平和安靜，你可以去芬蘭。

which actually ran a tourism campaign in 2011 highlighting how quiet the country is.

它實際上在2011年開展了一個旅遊活動，強調這個國家是多麼的安靜。

Even its residents are famously laconic.

即使是它的居民也是出了名的沉默寡言。

But if you can't get away, can't wait for a park, and can't get a good night's sleep,

但是，如果你不能離開，不能等待一個公園，不能得到一個好的睡眠。

then earplugs are cheaper than a plane ticket and readily available.

那麼耳塞就比飛機票便宜，而且隨時可以買到。

If you want to splurge a bit more, you might be in the market for noise-canceling headphones.

如果你想多花一點錢，你可能會在市場上購買降噪耳機。

Amanda explains how this incredible technology works here.

阿曼達在這裡解釋了這項令人難以置信的技術是如何工作的。

Are you worried about how noisy your neighborhood is or do you sleep like a baby every night?

你是擔心你的鄰居有多吵，還是每天晚上睡得像個嬰兒？

Let us know in the comments, be sure to subscribe, and I'll see you next time on Seeker.

請在評論中告訴我們，一定要訂閱，我們下次在Seeker上見。