mi·cro·phone (noun): An instrument for converting sound waves into electrical energy variations, which may then be amplified, transmitted, or recorded. (1)
Taylor Swift uses it to express her extreme disregard to the men in her life, FDR used it to address the country in his fireside chats, and protesters use it to voice their concern. The microphone was first used as an amplification device for the human voice but with the sophisticated technology that now exists, the microphone can be used to transmit a person's voice across the ocean to be heard the same second the words were spoken. It is no longer used to just amplify a person's voice in front of a crowd, but it can record the voice to then play in the home.
The microphone is a very important tool and changed communication practices drastically as it came into existence, as evidenced by the history section of this website. Since its invention, the microphone has had many different effects, including in cultural, societal, and political arenas. The section on "effects" goes into more detail on this subject. There has also been developments of the microphone itself as more variations and styles were produced; this website studies 6 of them as well as their individual impacts in bigger societal changes within the variations and models section. The microphone has also had massive impacts on many other aspects of humanity, as focused on in the "impacts" section. This section dives into a multitude of impacts, from the technology it has inspired, to the future of the device (and some of the other devices its impacted), to even its impact on rap culture. If you think about it, how many great inventions or aspects of our everyday life wouldn't be there or would be different without the microphone? For example, music wouldn't nearly be as mainstream, or even devices such as hearing aids and phones may be incredibly different or not invented, nor would movies with sound. A lot of ideas and social movements might not have occurred either. This website invites you to explore the world of microphones.
|
Microphones can do a lot of good in the world by connecting people to one another, spreading ideas, and allowing voices to be heard from a distance and/or broadly but that does not mean everyone should use them, in fact, some people (like Sarah Palin) should avoid them.
|
"Sarah Mania! Sarah Palin's Greatest Hits". Accessed on April 2, 2015. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NrzXLYA_e6E
|
1. "Microphone," Oxford Dictionary, accessed March 30, 2015, http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/us/definition/american_english/microphone