The Sound of Silence

In response to the question: “Will you marry me?” Silence in English would be interpreted as uncertainty, in Japanese it would be interpreted as acceptance, in Igbo (Southeastern Nigeria) it would be considered as a denial if the woman was to continue to stand there and acceptance if she ran away.”

"Children should be seen and not heard" In the original form of this proverb it was specifically young women who were expected to keep quiet. This opinion is recorded in the 15th century collections of homilies (a commentary that follows a reading of scripture) written by an Augustinian clergyman called [John] Mirk's Festial, circa 1450:

Hyt ys old Englysch sawe: A mayde schuld be seen, but not herd.

With power comes silence, at least according to a French scientist who has analysed politicians' speech patterns. The more powerful the politician, the more slowly they speak and the more pauses they make.

The Mel Brooks film "Silent Movie" has the least dialogue of any "talkie". It has one word "non" and the only audible line in the movie is spoken by Marcel Marceau, a noted mime.

An unsilenced gunshot is around 140 to 160 decibels--that's in the range where hearing it once can permanently damage your ears. A silencer can get that all the way down to 120 or 130 decibels. This can be reduced even more if the bullet you are using is slowed down to below subsonic speeds.

The Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance, or Trappist monks, will generally only speak when necessary, and idle talk is strongly discouraged. However, contrary to popular belief, they do not take a vow of silence. This enables the monks to spend more time in prayer, especially contemplative prayer, without outside distraction.

silenced gunshot is around 140 to 160 decibels--that's in the range where hearing it once can permanently damage your ears. If you've never had a gun go off next to you, trust us when we say it's loud enough that your whole body will flinch at the sound of it. A silencer can get that all the way down to 120 or 130 decibles, aka the sound of a jackhammer.

Read more: http://www.cracked.com/article_18576_5-ridiculous-gun-myths-everyone-believes-thanks-to-movies.html#ixzz2D2XM2WX7

An unsilenced gunshot is around 140 to 160 decibels--that's in the range where hearing it once can permanently damage your ears. If you've never had a gun go off next to you, trust us when we say it's loud enough that your whole body will flinch at the sound of it. A silencer can get that all the way down to 120 or 130 decibles, aka the sound of a jackhammer.

Read more: http://www.cracked.com/article_18576_5-ridiculous-gun-myths-everyone-believes-thanks-to-movies.html#ixzz2D2XM2WX7