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[Noise of a busy city street]
Woman: So today is International Noise Awareness Day,
and we're trying to spread the word
about noise-induced hearing loss.
So it turns out that 1 in 5 adolescents
are already showing signs signs of losing their hearing
from listening to music too loudly, too often.
Dad: Ok.
[Upbeat music]
Jim Diorio: I'm Jim, I'm with Manifest,
and this started when I was talking to my teenage daughter,
about earphones and music and stuff like that,
and I was trying to - I noticed that her and her friends
were always listening to their iPods, and that kind of thing.
And I asked her, 'How do you think you could tell a teenager,
like a young person, how do you get them to pay attention
to this idea that they might lose their hearing?'
Because teenagers really don't think about
things that have long term or long range consequences.
And she mentioned, 'You know what,
if you told them, if you showed them all the things they'd miss,
like hearing their friends laugh, and parties,
and that kind of stuff, that might be a way in.
So, that got us thinking at Manifest,
and we - and that's one of the ways that this idea came out,
the idea that if we were able to not tell teenagers -
if you could figure out a way to tell teenagers something
and it works, you're a genius -
but it's sometimes it's better if you could show them.
So, that's where the idea of actually showing teenagers,
showing young people and people in general,
what it's going to sound like,
what hearing loss might sound like,
that's where that came from.
So we came up with the idea of
replacing something that they live with, day and night,
which is their headphones,
with what we're calling 'earfoams,'
which are earplugs on a on a wire,
that allow you a fun way, and a quick way,
to experience hearing loss, or, more importantly,
noise-induced hearing loss.
So, with the idea at hand,
we approached The Canadian Hearing Society,
and they were very excited about working with us.
Woman: Has anyone ever warned you about this before? Dad: No.
Woman: That you could damage your hearing? No you haven't?
You've never heard of this before?
Woman: Your mother? Guy: Yeah, just my Mom.
Man: I had no idea! Jim Diorio: Yeah, it is! Yeah!
Woman: So, do you think you're at risk of damaging your hearing?
Girl & Boy: Yeah, pretty much yeah.
Woman: You think you are?
Red-haired woman: Sometimes, I listen to it way too loud, yes, absolutely.
Guy: Sometimes, but...
Guy 2: Pretty much all the time. Guy: Honestly?
Dad: I don't know, I like my music.
Woman: You like your music?
Daughter: I like it loud, but I think I'll listen to it a little quieter now.
Woman: That's good! That's good to hear.
I just have one more question.
If, for whatever reason you did lose your hearing,
aside from music, what noises and sounds
would you miss most hearing and listening to?
Boy: I don't know, birds, they're pretty.
Guy 2: People's voices, talking.
Guy: No, I -
Daughter: Being able to hear my friends, and music, and stuff.
Dude: Like I want to hear my grandkids when I'm old.
Girl on Bus: Probably the sound of the ocean,
and my friends' voices. [Laughs]
Woman: Love that! Thank you!
Girl on Bus: Thank you!
[Upbeat music]