Green Day�s �Boulevard of Broken Dreams� booms out of car stereos so loudly, it can be heard halfway around the boulevard. The Dolby sound preview in theaters is enough to make ears ring. The snare played by Drum Corps can be heard all the way from the cafeteria at Toll. Worst, and most insidious of all, with the advent of iPods and other mp3 listening devices, Simple Plan�s �Welcome to My Life� blares noisily enough from headphones that other students in the halls can hear.

While listening to deafening music with headphones may not seem dangerous, especially to teenagers, �loudness over time� of at least �three hours a day� will lead to damage for which there is presently no medical cure, said Music Department Head Craig Kupka.
�Once you�ve got it, it�s permanent,� said Kupka.
According to new studies by Robert Novak, director of clinic education in audiology at Purdue University in Indiana, consistent headphone use at extreme volumes has contributed not only to the significant loss of hearing of present generation youth, but also to tinnitus, a noise-induced hearing loss in which ringing in the ears is experienced. This signals the inability to hear higher frequencies.
Although many experience temporary, internal ringing after raucous concerts or from deafening background noises, tinnitus is a permanent condition arising from regular experiences with excessive volume levels, according to the article �Headphone Use May Worsen Hearing Loss� from The Sentinel Online.
As a student of rock �n� roll, classical, and jazz, Kupka himself has tinnitus.
Given that ambient noises increase for the civilized world as generations pass, �headphones are especially dangerous because music is played directly into the ear, [bypassing] the ear�s natural propensity to protect itself,� said Kupka.
Besides earphones, movie theaters and car stereos are also major contributors to hearing loss for youth.
Most of the time, the sound level in the music department will not significantly contribute to hearing loss. The only areas of serious concern are the snare, since its higher frequencies cause more damage, and the rock �n� roll class, with a noise level approaching 110 decibels. This is frighteningly close to 120 decibels, the threshold of pain.
Teenagers of the iPod generation are in the most danger of hearing loss because of their increased use of portable music. The National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey estimates that about 5.2 million children between ages six to 19 have noise-induced hearing loss.
Yet most of today�s youth, like Benjamin Cantre (�07), justify consistent headphone use and other excessive volume experiences claiming that �it�s a lifestyle.�
Another reason for teenagers� unwillingness to lower volumes could be due to Loud Music Dependency Disorder (LMDD), a condition Northeastern University audiologist Mary Florentine suspects many teenagers have.
Unlike some European countries that have passed laws limiting iPod volume levels at 100 decibels, there is no rule on campus prohibiting the use of headphones or regulating sound levels.
Furthermore, the problem of regulating sound level is complicated because there is no set decibel number that automatically damages hearing, said Kupka. Taken as a whole, headphones are not bad and music is meant to be played loudly. It just has to be listened to at judicious levels.
Drum Corp Captain Brian Miranda (�06) said if hearing loss does happen, advances in medicine will provide the cure. Another student, Genevieve Mathet (�06), cites the members of the drum line group Blue Devils who have not suffered hearing loss, and does not believe that she will suffer hearing loss.
The overall attitude is most succinctly summed up by Isaac Franco (�08). �It�s not like I�m going to lose [my hearing] next year.�

By Staff Writer, Vanessa Villavicencio