On this week's Earth Beat, we prick up our ears and listen to the sounds of the city. From Mumbai, to Mosquitos and Muzak, we investigate some surprising effects this noise has on our behaviour and health. Is silence golden?

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The silent life
Sara Maitland lives on her own and chooses a life filled with silence. She says it gives her more time, sharpens her other senses and focuses her mind. We ask her if she’s missing out on a social life.
Listen to an extended interview with Sara here.

In pursuit of silence
Author George Prochnik, who seeks silence in the noisiest of places, reacts to Sara Maitland’s interview.

Mumbai: a silent zone?
Earth Beat correspondent Chhavi Sachdev weighs in on noise in one of India’s largest cities.

The problem with noise
George Prochnik reacts to Chhavi’s piece, and discusses the difficulty of defining noise, the health problems it creates, and the implications for our children, as well as society.

Fighting noise with noise
There’s an innovative way of cancelling noise called the Electronically Controlled Acoustic Shadow System. Earth Beat producer Marijke Peters sums it up in a 60-second Envirominute.

You will think it’s quieter
Marnie visits a green space in the centre of Rotterdam to see how visual tricks can alter your sense of hearing.

The tale of Muzak
A brief history of piped music, and its manipulative qualities.

Finding silent space
George Prochnik describes the rise of Muzak, and discusses some efforts that have been made to secure silent spaces in New York City: pocket parks.