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The “432 Hz vs. 440 Hz” conspiracy theory

jakubmarian.com

91–100 of 332 posts

Re: The “432 Hz vs. 440 Hz” conspiracy theory

#91
post #46

Decided to try searching this and found this lovely site: > A=432 Hz, known as Verdi’s ‘A’ is an alternative tuning that is mathematically consistent with the universe. Music based on 432Hz transmits beneficial healing energy, because it is a pure tone of math fundamental to nature https://attunedvibrations.com/432hz/ Oh new age pseudo science. My mom loves this stuff and I never fully understood why. My sister gets…

Eh-- pick your battles. If family members get a positive placebo effect from listening to "5 Hours High Quality BEST 432hz Meditation Healing Chakra" on YouTube...Who cares?

It's fine. But I'm not going to pretend it's not BS when they try to talk to me about it. Now my mom no longer talks to me about homeopathy.

Re: The “432 Hz vs. 440 Hz” conspiracy theory

#92

    An equilateral triangle whose area and perimeter are
    equal has the area of exactly the square root of 432.
Let's say we have an equilateral triangle with a perimeter of 3x units. Then each side is x units, and the area is sqrt(3) * x^2 / 4 square units. So we set:

            3x = sqrt(3) * x^2 / 4
             3 = sqrt(3) * x / 4
   3*4/sqrt(3) = x
    12/sqrt(3) = x
Then the area is:

    sqrt(3) * (12/sqrt(3))^2 / 4
    sqrt(3) * 144 / 12
    sqrt(3) * 12
    sqrt(3) * sqrt(144)
    sqrt(432)
Fun!

Re: The “432 Hz vs. 440 Hz” conspiracy theory

#93
post #57

As a Frenchman, I chuckled at "In Britain, however, the French standard was interpreted in an erroneous way, due to which British orchestras commonly tuned to A = 439 Hz." NOTE: I hope the word chuckle isn't interpreted as condescending, I only meant that this story is almost a perfect parable for our relationship with Great Britain throughout history, one of mutual defiance and refusal to acknowledge the other party…

> our relationship with Great Britain throughout history I've been watching some episodes of "Yes Minister", a British comedy show from about 30 years ago, and it's weird how much is still relevant. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=37iHSwA1SwE&t=027s

"Yes Minister" is up there with Shakespeare and Milton as one of the classics of British literature.

Re: The “432 Hz vs. 440 Hz” conspiracy theory

#94

I have been following this for years, being both a sound engineer and a bit of a hippie who knows a lot of other hippies. The basic issue is that 432 is a numerologically interesting number compared to 440. So if it's more interesting it should be better for artistic purposes, goes the argument. However this falls flat as soon as you consider that the 432 is only interesting relative to the completely arbirtrary dura…

Analogy: it would be difficult to explain that being born Capricorn might give you specific properties, knowing that the definitions of the constellations are completely arbitrary.

Re: The “432 Hz vs. 440 Hz” conspiracy theory

#95

I have been following this for years, being both a sound engineer and a bit of a hippie who knows a lot of other hippies. The basic issue is that 432 is a numerologically interesting number compared to 440. So if it's more interesting it should be better for artistic purposes, goes the argument. However this falls flat as soon as you consider that the 432 is only interesting relative to the completely arbirtrary dura…

I wouldn't be so sure there is nothing special about the duration of a second. It comes from dividing a day into two sets of 12, then those 12 into five sets of 12 (12x5=60), then those 60s into 60 each.

We know our bodies do follow circadian rhythms, so you have the initial link to length of day. Then everything else is split into sets of 12, a number with exceptional properties that natural selection may optimize towards:

"The number twelve, a superior highly composite number, is the smallest number with four non-trivial factors (2, 3, 4, 6), and the smallest to include as factors all four numbers (1 to 4) within the subitizing range. As a result of this increased factorability of the radix and its divisibility by a wide range of the most elemental numbers (whereas ten has only two non-trivial factors: 2 and 5, and not 3, 4, or 6), duodecimal representations fit more easily than decimal ones into many common patterns, as evidenced by the higher regularity observable in the duodecimal multiplication table. As a result, duodecimal has been described as the optimal number system.[4]"

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duodecimal http://dozenal.org/

Edit:

Another thing is that our current system of setting the duration of a second as a constant may be non-optimal for some purposes. Other systems let the length of time units vary with the seasons. It is interesting to think that under these systems, by maintaining the same base frequency, the tone of the note would change over the course of the year and with latitude. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_timekeeping

Re: The “432 Hz vs. 440 Hz” conspiracy theory

#96
post #58

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As a Brit, my reaction to a Frenchman is one of disgust as I reach for my insults. Yet there are few countries I would turn to so quickly in the search for a sane and good friend. Perhaps it is easiest to say: Where the USA has Russia, we have France. Where the USA has Canada, we have France.

Does it work the other way? I'm Canadian and a huge part of our culture is defined by the ways we are unlike Americans. Can't imagine Anglo-French culture works quite like that.

And as an American, I don't know anyone who doesn't like Canada or Canadians, while simultaneously not understanding what makes it different other than basically superficial stuff (i.e. french language, metric, being polite, etc.)

So I don't think we have that England/France relationship at all either. It seems pretty special on the world stage.

From anyone familiar with it, is New Zealand and Australia's relationship at all similar to either Canada and USA or England and France?

Re: The “432 Hz vs. 440 Hz” conspiracy theory

#97
post #75
post #46

Decided to try searching this and found this lovely site: > A=432 Hz, known as Verdi’s ‘A’ is an alternative tuning that is mathematically consistent with the universe. Music based on 432Hz transmits beneficial healing energy, because it is a pure tone of math fundamental to nature https://attunedvibrations.com/432hz/ Oh new age pseudo science. My mom loves this stuff and I never fully understood why. My sister gets…

Star Wars is nonsense too but it makes people happy. Nonsense spreads not just because of apathy.

Star Wars isn't interpreted as a cure though, which is where new age stuff can be borderline dangerous sometimes.

Re: The “432 Hz vs. 440 Hz” conspiracy theory

#98
An amusing aside: As I understand it, a lot of rock bands use "drop" tuning, in which the guitars and electric bass are tuned down by a semitone or more. Explanations on web forums vary, but tend to revolve around the range of the typical male singer, as well as a preference for a more "heavy" sound.

Re: The “432 Hz vs. 440 Hz” conspiracy theory

#99
[Posted on my blog](http://www.krisconstable.com/432-hz-vs-440-hz-conspiracy-the...)

While I appreciate Jakub’s breakdown for the reader to get to explaining why the 432 number itself is effectively fabricated for convenience, he eventually states: “_The 432 Hz tuning, the divine tuning of nature itself, is ultimately defined as one vibration per 21279240.2083 periods of radiation of an uncommon chemical element_” however he’s missing the critical argument.

What is missing from the argument is the irrelevance of the number. For example, if 432 Hz resonates with I don’t know, the neocortex, there is no relevance what the number is or that we’ve associated with what we humans currently call a time second — that’s just a standard way of identifying the number.

What needs to be done is validation or invalidation of this frequency in terms of “healing and soothing properties.” It’s also important to not do so defensively, otherwise you’re arguing against organized religion or Santa Claus or Unicorns — it’s a useless effort to argue against something that has no scientific evidence. If someone is making a claim without evidence in the first place, you’re arguing irrationally already and you’ve already lost. Reason requires logic.

“Here is my repeatable scientific evidence why I feel the world is flat” is different than “I have a feeling the reason the sky is blue is from unicorn tears — prove to me it’s not”.

It is my suggestion that if someone feels that 432 Hz has healing and soothing properties, they take this hypothesis and run it through the scientific method. It will be these published results that can be responded to, directly. A quick search on plosone doesn’t show that there’s any documented research in this area currently, a new opportunity for those interested.

Re: The “432 Hz vs. 440 Hz” conspiracy theory

#100
post #19

> the BBC required their orchestras to tune to 440 Hz instead of 439 Hz because 439 is a prime number, and the corresponding frequency is hard to generate electronically. I followed, until this. Earlier he debunks the significance of 432 per second (including that it's a sum of four consecutive primes), because a second is an arbitrary length of time. But now he says that 439 per second is difficult to generate elect…

Maybe if your "electronics" are vacuum tubes and relays. In the digital domain it's not an issue at all.

Electronic =/= digital.

It is electronic gating to bring down a 1khz signal. Division and multiplication to a prime number is pretty hard...

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