Picture this: Before heading into work Friday, I DVR'd the opening match of the World Cup, South Africa vs. Mexico, to enjoy at leisure after I got home. Curled up in my favorite comfy chair at the end of a long day, hit the play button on the program, and before long it sounded like an annoying swarm of bees was in the living room. Aw, that's just for the opening with presidents Jacob Zuma and Felipe Calderon, I thought. Nope. Aw, maybe they're just trying to build momentum for the first South Africa goal. Nope. Bzzzz. Hummmm. The loud horn section continued to the point where at times it was hard to hear the announcers in the broadcast booth. And hence, we all learned the word vuvuzela.
But if it's loud at home -- even perpetually audible during matches such as USA vs. England -- imagine what it's like for people in the stands. And imagine those going on for an entire month as the teams get whittled down to the deciding match. FIFA had approved the horns for the World Cup-goers after testing to make sure the din wouldn't drown out emergency announcements. But the concerns don't stop there, as Reuters reports:
"The Hear the World Foundation -- an initiative formed by Swiss hearing products group Phonak to raise awareness about hearing loss -- said tests showed it produced a dangerously loud sound, far out-blasting a chainsaw.
The tests, conducted late last month in a sound-proof studio, found the vuvuzela emitted 127 decibels, more than the air horn -- 123.5 decibels -- and the Brazil's samba drums.
A referee's whistle was fourth while the cowbell, a favourite in Switzerland and Austria, trailed at 114.9 decibels.
'To put it in perspective, when a sound is increased by ten decibels our ears perceive it as being twice as loud, so we would consider the vuvuzela to be more than double the volume of the cowbell,' audiologist Robert Beiny said in a statement.
Hear the World said extended exposure to 85 decibels risked permanent hearing loss and urged fans to use protection, such as ear plugs and ear muffs."
Nice advice considering stores have run out of earplugs. So, more cowbell! Less vuvuzela! France, which has blamed its 1-1 draw with Uruguay on the incessant noise, would agree. Ronaldo hates them, too. And the World Cup organizing committee may agree, as AFP reports they haven't ruled out banning the horns at this stage.
(Photo by Joern Pollex/Getty Images)
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