Hunter Cowles                                                                                              183 Words

hc17@geneseo.edu

105-19 INTD: Science Writing

In Kim Tingley’s article, “Whisper of Wild”, she discusses how the acoustic integrity of nature has been destroyed by human inventions  such as roads, planes, and railroads. The astonishing aspect of this article that one can even hear the noise of transportation over the sound of runoff from the snow from icecaps and mountains.  In Leornardo Dicaprio’s National Geographic documentary “Before the Flood”, the impact of emissions from vehicles has a significant impact on our planets climate change. While he was filming his blockbuster movie, The Revenant, the film crew had to relocate all the way across the planet because their original set (which was located in northern Canada) all the ice melted. In the coming years, the sounds of our cars will be drained out by the roaring currents of the run-off.  We all need to be be increasingly more conscientious of our human footprint and start investing in alternative forms of energy. The noises we hear in nature will be a relatively trivial issue if there is no nature to return to in the beginning.

Aubrie Cross

INTD: Science Writing

About 150 words

In “Whisper of the Wind” by Kim Tingley, she begins to describe her trip to the ridge above Hines Creek. She mentions that the purpose of their trip was to capture the acoustic data of raw nature. However, this was going to be a difficult task because of the disruptive noises coming from themselves. Tingley then states that this aroma of “natural sound” is all disrupted due to the civilization of humans. We have planted ourselves across the world and have been focused on living through jobs and school that we forget to take a minute to stop and listen to the pure sounds of nature. Tingley says “…scientists have so little information about what landscapes should sound like without human interference…” after this she goes to explain that in order to really understand the pure sound of nature we have to separate our sounds from natures.

Emma Cooke                                                                 Approximately 150 words

erc8@geneseo.edu

INTD 105 Science Writing

“Whisper of the Wild”

Kim Tingley discusses the research of Davyd Betchkal, a sound catcher focused in Denali National Park and Preserve in Alaska. Betchkal is studying natural soundscapes of areas like Denali, and how human sound pollution is effecting the species within the park and the soundscape itself. Tingley focuses on the adverse effects of plane, cars and other human noise on the inhabitants of these habitats. For example, “the droning of the freeway traffic and the 24/7 rumbling of natural-gas-pipeline compressors directly harm the ability of birds nesting nearby to reproduce” (Tingley, 9).

I connect Tingley’s experience in Denali to my own experiences in the Adirondack National Park. When you’re standing on top of a mountain or canoeing out in the middle of a lake, you don’t hear the sound of cars and there aren’t many people. It is peaceful and that is one of the reasons why it is so beautiful. However, moments later you might hear the roar of a plane over head or of a boat on the water and it breaks the silence. Noises that effect humans and their perception of the land must certainly have an even greater effect on the species that live there, which forces us to wonder why we don’t do more to protect natural soundscapes.

Paul Weissfellner

Prof. Fenn

INTD 105-19: Science Writing

October 31, 2016

Whisper of the Wild Response

In her article “Whisper of the Wild,” Kim Tingley describes an expedition in Denali national park that she took part in to record the soundscapes of nature with no human intervention, and the scientific background for such an experiment. She recounts some of the findings from the newly christened field of “soundscape ecology”: that the noise that is constantly emitted by humans and human activities can change the course of natural selection and reduce reproductive fitness, in some cases. Regardless of where one is, sound follows; even in rooms specifically designed to be silent, you would be able to hear blood moving inside your body.

As a musician, this emphasis on the ubiquity of sound resonates with me. When setting up my recording equipment for the first time, I noticed that, even when the room is silent, there is sound being picked up by the microphone. Originally this annoyed me; I wanted each take to be as clean as possible. However, as I recorded in more places, I realized that each location had it’s own unique background sound, the presence of which was a kind of intangible watermark, framing the music I make in the context in which I made it.

Matt Klein                                                            approximately 200 words

mgk6@geneseo.edu

INTD 105-19: Science Writing

“Whisper of the Wild” Response

By Matt Klein

            In “Whisper of the Wild,” Kim Tingley describes her personal experiences in Denali National Park and Preserve. She had journeyed there with Davyd Betchkal, the park’s physical-science technician. Betchkal’s goal was to set up equipment that would record the natural sounds—the “soundscape”—of the park. This was part of his work in soundscape ecology, a relatively new field of science that works to record and study the acoustics of ecosystems to determine their health. Since human noise is increasing in wild areas, soundscape ecologists such as Betchkal hope to use their findings to preserve the natural acoustics of these ecosystems, thereby protecting the sound-reliant species that live there.

Just as Betchkal is searching for natural soundscapes free of human noise pollution, I have always wanted to see the night sky free of light pollution. Since I have always lived by large towns and shopping malls, I have only ever been able to see a fraction of the stars. Someday, I would like to go some remote area and see the beauty of the night sky in its entirety.

Logan Steffens                                                                                                150 words

Lts6@geneseo.edu

INTD: 105

In “Whisper of the wild” written by Kim Tingley she talks about her experience in Denali National Park in Alaska. Throughout her journey with the physical-science technician of Denali National Park, Davyd Betchkal, she wrote about the influences that man made sound had on the animals of that area. While some species are able to adapt to these changes in their habitat other animals have had a much harder time and are either endangered because of it or completely extinct.

I can relate this to the time my family and I went to Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming. While we were there we felt as if we were as far away from people that we could possibly be but still at times we were able to hear and see planes flying over our heads. I can see how these loud noises could affect the animals of an ecosystem.

Racheal Devine                                                 about 150 words

INTD: Science Writing

rmd20@geneseo.edu

Whisper of the Wild

In “Whisper of the Wild” by Kim Tingley he describes his trip to do research about acoustic data, the natural sound in Denali. He tells how human have changed the sounds of the world because of all of the noise we make from machines and such. These block out the noise of the raindrops and creatures which if we could cancel out the sounds of human nad take data we could be able to tell a healthy ecosystem from an unhealthy. He also tells how more recently natural sound is being seen as something we should be protecting. The sounds of humans can have a big impact on ecosystems, he uses examples such as whales fleeing sonar. This makes me wonder what other things this effects in this way, what other animals flee because if the sounds of planes or helicopters and does it change how they act and does it have an effect on their surroundings as well.

Daniel Biskup                                                                       Approx. 190 words

INTD 105

Djb29@geneseo.edu

10/31/16

Tingley’s piece focuses on the efforts of Davyd Betchkal to preserve the natural soundscape of wilderness in a world of increasing noise pollution from human beings. Betchkal has created areas to record natural sound in Denali National Park, to keep records of soundscapes that in the coming future may be lost forever as noise pollution increases.

Past research has shown that sound has an important role in the interactions between species in natural landscapes, such as mating and warning calls, or sounds created by natural events that signal the surrounding animal life.

Having lived near New York City for most of my life, this piece reminds me of all the noise pollution in my area. At night in my home town, I usually hear airplanes, trains, and cars from the lines and highways that run through my town. After coming to Geneseo one of the first differences I noticed was how much easier it was to hear crickets both at night and during the day. This one noise helps me to understand the spectrum of natural sound that Betchkal is trying to preserve.

Juniper Tremper
Scientific Writing 105-19
Geneseo, NY
~170 words

Humans are the Noisiest Animals
Juniper Tremper

In the article “Whisper of the Wild,” the concept of soundscape ecology is presented: that is, the idea that be comparing recordings of the total sounds from one location to recordings from another can determine which locations experience a healthy ecosystem. However, the author describes the experience of a group of “sound catchers” doing soundscape ecology research gathering in Denali, and their shock at how much of the data featured the sounds of engines or manmade productions in what should have been an entirely natural and undeveloped region.

This realization of the extent of our infiltration of nature is horrifying. In permeating the earth with sounds of human development, we are creating noise pollution that effectively silence mating calls of animals. Even for us to observe a human-silent location, we need engines to arrive. We need to rethink our use of technology in undeveloped areas- perhaps restrict use of the airspace above Denali, for starters- or at the very least, work on reducing the volume of engines we use.

Simon Lee                                                                     Approximately  110 Words

Shl5@geneseo.edu

Scientific Writing 105-19

Whisper of the Wild

In her essay “Whisper of the Wild”, Kim Tingley walks through the extreme weather and terrain of Denali National Park in order to find a spot where only natural sounds can be  heard. She mentions how natural sound is a natural resource that is diminishing ,just like timber and oil, because of human interactions. This was one of the few spots on earth where no human sounds can be heard for even a couple of minutes. This article made me wonder if there are any other unique natural resources such as natural sounds.