ASMR: Strange YouTube Trend or Useful Content?

Abby Pollock

ASMR: Strange YouTube Trend or Useful Content?

     Currently, a trending type of YouTube content is the “ASMR” video. ASMR stands for Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response, and is a response many people's brains have to certain relaxing triggers. People report a pleasant “tingling” sensation in the scalp when they watch these videos, which is often used to relax and fall asleep. Some common audio triggers are close up whispering, crinkling, tapping, brushing, and the sound of hands rubbing together. Common visual triggers are slow hand movements, doing crafts, and calm repetitive motions. Another notable trigger is the “personal attention” trigger where the person in the video addresses the viewer directly, often through a role-play scenario. The term ASMR was coined only in 2010, and little research has been done on the biological benefits of experiencing ASMR, yet countless YouTube videos have been created and millions of views have resulted.

     Many people see these videos as weird and strange, and for good reason. Some videos make certain people uncomfortable, especially if they are negatively sensitive to one of the triggers highlighted in the video. For instance, some videos are 30 minutes of a person eating his dinner on camera, with close-up eating sounds. Chewing and swallowing sounds give some people tingles, but make other people's skin crawl in disgust. Another less-accepted type of video is a type of role-play where the YouTuber acts rude and sassy to the viewer, putting down their confidence by insulting them. Another controversial type of ASMR trigger is the “girlfriend/boyfriend” role-play. In these videos, the YouTuber gives the viewer personal attention, caresses the camera, and kisses near the microphone. Such videos are ostensibly designed to help the viewer relax, more suggestive videos blur the lines between ASMR and inappropriate content. Many of these videos are being flagged and taken down from the public eye.

     On the other hand, ASMR videos can be used in a much more socially accepted way. Many people who watch these videos don't actually experience the sensation of ASMR, but watch for the relaxation and “white noise” they create to help fall asleep. Some ASMR videos incorporate guided meditations, which were popular long before these videos appeared. Other videos are make-up tutorials, where people are also learning skills and ideas, but also relaxing while watching the gentle soft brush-strokes on the person's face. The videos are commonly used to help with insomnia, anxiety, depression because of their generally positive and gentle nature. ASMR videos can be used as a virtual companion for people who are lonely, or who feel like everyone is against them. Many videos are full of positive affirmations that people can use to boost confidence or change their outlook on their current situations.

     It is still debated whether ASMR is a real phenomenon. Steven Novella, director of General Neurology at the Yale School of Medicine, addressing the realness of ASMR, said, "in this case, I don't think there is a definitive answer, but I am inclined to believe that it is. There are a number of people who seem to have independently experienced and described" it with "fairly specific details.” He goes on to theorize that ASMR may be a tiny, pleasurable seizure or another way to activate the "pleasure response." The lack of scientific research is disappointing because ASMR content seems to have a very positive effect on viewers, and if it were proven to be beneficial, maybe some more people with mental health problems like depression or anxiety could benefit from watching. In my opinion, people should be able to post whatever they want to post on YouTube. This is part of a free speech right we have. But we must also educate our young to be responsible and watch videos that are appropriate. We can also place minimum age restrictions on some videos, and select what we want our children to see. Generally, it is up to responsible viewers to pick what they want to watch, and to respectfully ignore videos they don't understand.

The Musical Importance of Yoga

Abby Pollock

The Musical Importance of Yoga

Every Tuesday morning, I wake up especially early and walk to Hartt for my saxophone technique class. This class is not required by the university or by my music education major, but I am required by my saxophone professor to take many extra classes like this to better my musical abilities. In technique class, everyone who plays in the classical saxophone studio meets in a small auditorium with morning sunlight peering in from the back window, and we lay on the floor. From there, we proceed to do some guided meditation and yoga for a half-hour to an hour, among other activities, and then we leave and go on to our normal classes. I used to think the concept of doing yoga every week to help me play an instrument was rather strange and unnecessary, but I now see that it has so many benefits across many of my studies, both musical and non-musical.

In technique class, we do yoga with the major focus being on our breath. We learned about the three parts of a breath: abdominal, intercostal, and clavicular, and how humans were built to use all three steps, but have learned to neglect the abdominal breath. When they are stressed, many untrained people will take a deep breath, inflating the top of their chest, to release the tension we hold there. However, our lungs are bigger at the bottom of the ribs, and we forget to start here to fill our lungs completely. We know we are breathing when the your abdomen grows and sticks out. This happens when the lungs are so full that they push the surrounding organs down into the abdomen, and we can see it expand to take in all of the displaced organs. By being in an undisturbed state of mind while doing yoga stretches, we can take time to focus on our breath and ensure that we are breathing most effectively, hopefully re-training our bodies to breathe in the way we were intended to.

In addition to breathing, we also benefit from stretching and warming up our bodies to play our instruments. We stretch our spines and necks, which are tasked with supporting a heavy metal instrument for hours at a time. We also stretch out our arms and fingers to prevent them from holding too much tension when we play, which could cause injuries like carpal tunnel syndrome. Another thing we work on is strengthening the muscles around our mouths and in our throats that create our “embouchures,” which is how we get a sound out of the instrument.

Also, I am currently in a voice class to help me learn to teach choirs in the future. We always start with yoga stretches similar to those from saxophone technique class. We work on the three-part breath, we stretch out our backs and work on posture. We also do stretches and warm-ups that work on elevating the soft palette in the mouth and throat, which is part of the same technique we use as instrumentalists. My voice teacher will often critique us by reminding us to be “one with our bodies” because we aren't focusing on our breath, posture, or soft palette. To fix this, she makes us do yoga in front of the class.

There are many purposes of doing yoga, and one of the most obvious is for stress-relief. We are often told to close our eyes and take deep breaths before a performance, or to do some slow stretches and poses to center our minds. I have also found it to be extremely helpful in some of my non-musical classes. We can stretch or do the famous “superman pose” where we stand with our arms on our hips and chest inflated and exposed, for a few minutes and this makes people feel more in control of themselves and their surroundings, and thus more confident in what they are supposed to do next. I have done this before class presentations and this always helps me feel better about having to face my fear of public speaking.

 I recommend that everyone incorporate yoga into their daily routine. Yoga helps correct bad habits, prepares the body for strenuous tasks, and relieves stress.  

In Response to: “Valentine's Day: Important or Overrated?”

In Response to: “Valentine's Day: Important or Overrated?”

When I read Alyssa's post, “Valentine's Day: Important or Overrated?” I couldn't help but laugh to myself as I realized all the parallels with my own experiences with Valentine's Day.

Like Alyssa, this year was also my first year having a true valentine that I cared about. In the past, I have always despised the holiday because it reminded me that I was single, while many of my friends had their own boyfriends to keep them company. Even my celebration was like Alyssa's: my girlfriend and I went out to dinner and gave each other cute cards and little presents.

I agree that Valentine's Day has become an overly materialistic holiday, when everyone tries to show off how successful their relationships are on social media by posting pictures of the expensive jewelry and giant teddy bear their significant other bought them. However, it could be argued that every major holiday also suffers from this phenomenon. For example, Christmas is also now, in many cases, more about giving the perfect presents to loved ones than it is a religious holiday, as intended. It is perfectly acceptable to get your partner a small thoughtful gift rather than an expensive gift. In a study done at Stanford University, it was proven that the price of a gift matters much less than the quality and thoughtfulness of the gift. When gift-receivers were asked about expensive versus sentimental presents, they almost always chose the sentimental gift. However, when people were asked the same question as a gift-giver, they felt pressured to get a more expensive present. It is interesting that people don't trust their own opinions on the matter and instead are persuaded by the media and other social pressures to spend more money.

Still, I think Valentine's Day is important and should stay a tradition. The holiday does not have to be centered around lusty love and present-based courtship, but instead can be for everyone in your life that you love. Ever since I was a child, my parents would always get me and my sister a card and chocolates and even if we didn't have a significant other, there was always Mom and Dad. I also remember staying up late the day before Valentine's day putting together Valentines for each of my classmates, a requirement for our school parties. It is an adorable holiday that can also serve as a reminder to take time and appreciate everyone in your life that brings you joy and makes you feel loved. However, Valentine's Day seems to be losing some of this innocence and ubiquity in schools. Students aren't allowed to bring in treats because of health codes, and some schools have banned the celebrations altogether to avoid bullying. Valentine's Day should stay in schools to teach social skills, especially at a younger level.

Another argument against the holiday is that if a couple is happy, then they shouldn't need a specific holiday to dedicate to one another. Every day should be like Valentine's Day, full of love and appreciation for one another. However, even as a believer in true love, I know this is not realistic for any couple. Every couple will have days where the partners don't see quite eye to eye and have a disagreement or misunderstanding. There are long, stressful days when the couple does nothing for each other, and just goes to sleep without exchanging a word. In a study shown on yougov.com, when couples age, they forget to say I love you as often as new relationships. There is a dramatic reduction in how often couples say it after about 10 years of being together. If nothing more, Valentine's day is a much needed reminder to tell your loved one that you still love them.

Valentine's Day may be overly idealized and unnecessarily materialistic, but it is still sweet that as a culture, we have decided to devote a day to appreciating those who we love.   

In Response to: “What We Can Learn From Acting”

In Response to: “What We Can Learn From Acting”

As a future music educator, I will likely take part in many Fine and Applied Arts department meetings in public schools. Although there is no doubt that I will be a strong supporter of all art forms, Kelsey's blog post “What We Can Learn From Acting”  enlightened me as to why I should definitely support theater programs in schools.

Acting is not an art that I am well versed in, but after reading the blog post, I realized there are plenty of parallels between drama and musical performance. Kelsey writes, “What separates a great actor from a mediocre one, is the ability to find the true core of a character instead of 'cheating' by using overplayed stereotypes.” A great actor must draw from his personal experiences to convey the most convincing emotion in his stories and reach the audience more effectively. Apparently, a large part of acting is putting yourself into your character, and creating your own back story for your character so you can understand their motives. I imagine sometimes the back story is already given or explained in the play, but sometimes it is up to artistic interpretation to decide on certain traits and motives for your character.

Great musicians must do the same. Our script is our sheet music, and we too have to convey a story to our audience to reach them in the most effective way. Some mediocre musicians would play a piece exactly as written, using accurate notes, rhythms, and written expressions but never fully creating a musical story to tell. Since composers don’t usually specify the story they are attempting to tell, it is up to the musician to interpret the song and relate it to his or her own past experiences, using the emotion the experience gave them in their playing. In my saxophone studio, my professor always has us write out a story that goes with our sheet music, and this improves the quality of the expression used in the performance. Sometimes when we listen to one another perform, we are required to write the story that we think the performer is trying to convey. When we discuss what we wrote, the feedback is always extremely helpful to the performer, and we know the performance was effective when many people interpret the piece in a similar way.

Reading this post also got me thinking about what a shame it is that there is often such a disconnect between actors and musicians. I recently have been in the pit orchestra for a musical called “Curtains,” an experience that I have found to be rather eye-opening. For me, this is really the only way I get to collaborate with other majors at the Hartt school, like musical theatre majors. I spent long nights rehearsing, something that is not always required from me as a musician. There is such an art to acting that I have come to appreciate much more as I watch my own peers develop the performance to make it extremely successful. This particular show is about a series of murders at a theatre, a rather grim topic that these actors were able to convey in a light hearted comical way. It was incredible to me hearing the laughs from the audience as they watched something as horrific as a stage hand being hanged in the play. A friend of mine came up to me and mentioned that she thought all the actors fit perfectly with the characters they played. This makes sense because Kelsey mentioned that a good actor uses part of his own life in the creation of his character. It is no surprise that the actors blended with their characters so seamlessly.

Acting, dance, visual art, and music are all ways to connect with ourselves by exploring our emotions and past experiences. They also make us more compassionate and understanding of others by exploring their stories and “walking a mile in their shoes” through different media. Through educational exploration of the arts, children are able to become wiser and more empathetic adults.

Cat With a Blog: Why are Cats so Cute?

         

Cat With a Blog: Why are Cats so Cute?

Abby Pollock

      As a college freshman living in an on-campus dorm where no pets are allowed, I don't find myself missing too much about home -- except my cats. I grew up with at least five cats in my house at all times, so I was never without entertainment as a child. My sister and I loved watching the strangely cute behaviors of our pets, wondering why they did what they did. Our cats would try to fit into small boxes, climb on top of tall bookshelves, play with tiny toys and have the cutest purrs. These behaviors seem to be quite common in cats everywhere, as evidenced by the endless supply of funny cat video compilations on YouTube. My cats were all adopted as kittens, never having cats from another family, so these behaviors must have been innate.

          In the Ted Talk, "Why do Cats Act so Weird?," Cat Mastery author Dr. Tony Buffington explains how wild cats' natural instincts translate into lovable behaviors when they are domesticated. For instance, cats instinctively try to fit into small spaces because their ancestors would have to hide from predators in these spaces. This explains why cats fall asleep in tiny boxes that look rather uncomfortable. Also, their own prey would also be found in small spaces, so they would always try to get into as small of a space as possible. This explains why cats have a tendency to stick their paws into containers out of curiosity. Cats were conditioned to eat small meals consistently throughout the day, so they would often target small prey because it was easier to catch many small animals then a few larger animals. This is why they enjoy playing with small cat toys. Another cute thing that cats do is climb to a high spot in the house and sit for extended periods of time. This used to be helpful when they were wild, up in a high tree, surveying the area for small prey. Cat purring is a very lovable behavior that humans often interpret as a sign of love and comfort from their cat. However, animal behavior specialists suggest that this is actually a behavior that cats use to get humans to do things for them. For instance, when a cat comes near a human and purrs, the human will usually pet or cuddle with the cat. Sometimes, cats will purr when they're hungry to get food from their owners in the kitchen. Another likely theory about purring is that the frequency of the purr, which is between 25-150 Hz, is ideal to stimulate tissue regeneration. This was probably used by wild cats at the end of the day when they were about to go to sleep, to heal themselves from the long day of hunting and fighting. 

          We find their behaviors so irresistibly cute, and even this reaction is a product of evolution. People are wired to think babies are cute, and to have the urge to protect and love our young. Cats are capable of imitating these behaviors and qualities characteristic of babies which is why we think they are so cute. With their small bodies and big eyes, they resemble features of a young child, and we coo at everything they do. When cats meow, humans tend to react more positively to those meows pitched at the same frequency as a baby's cry, because we want to nurture the sound of a crying baby. This is positive reinforcement to the cat's baby-pitched meowing, and they will tend to act more like a baby to get more reward from humans. We even talk to our pets in high pitched voices, just as we would to a human baby. This is also proof that humans see their cats just like normal family members, that we want to nurture and even teach to be like us. All in all, the adorable behaviors of cats are as instinctive to them as our own reactions to their cuteness.