Introduction
Tinnitus & Hearing Stress Indication Test(THSIT) is an audiovisual experience on the topic of urban lifestyle-induced overstimulation of the ears. Through curated exposure to urban noise and quietness, THSIT aims to help its audience self-diagnose signs of tinnitus and psychophysical rejections to noisy environments, as well as criticize the noise-filled space created by rapid and widespread urbanization.
 
Idea
Around 14% of people in the world suffer from tinnitus (Jarach et al., 2022). As two in the estimated 740 million, we think the artificial noise of vehicles, machinery and various manmade noise-creating entities are to blame. Heavy-duty vehicles like semi trucks, buses and ships, as well as construction-use machinery, are capable of emitting disturbing and even deafening levels of noise in operation. Construction workers are advised to wear protective gear to shelter them from hearing damage, but the general public, who can also hear operating machinery in construction sites but in less intensity, is affected as well and has to find ways to protect their ears. Beyond extreme cases like vehicles and machinery, other noisy environments like crowded areas and media played at high volume can also be factors of tinnitus.
 
Even when tinnitus is not explicitly investigated, hearing stress is also a concern to the health of the ears and the person as a whole. Prolonged exposure to loud noises not only can cause hearing damage, but also mental unease.
 
The status quo of rapid urbanization means the average citizen is powerless to change how much noise there will be in the world. We think the side effect of having millions of people suffer from hearing damage whilst living in an urban environment is to be criticized.
 
Implementation
We recorded 360 video and ambiX format audio in 13 places, 7 are noisy and 6 are quiet. Our material are edited into a video with:
– Introduction
– 3 cycles of 40 seconds noisy, 20 seconds quiet
– 3 cycles of 10 seconds noisy, 5 seconds quiet
– Outro
 
Along with narration recorded by Ching.
We deemed the inclusion of 360 video necessary as the switches of various environments cannot be easily distinguished, hence requires visual triggers for nostalgia.
 
Reference

1. Jarach, C. M., Lugo, A., Scala, M., van den Brandt, P. A., Cederroth, C. R., Odone, A., Garavello, W., Schlee, W., Langguth, B., & Gallus, S. (2022, September 1). Global Prevalence and Incidence of Tinnitus. JAMA Neurology. https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamaneurology/fullarticle/2795168