Unlike sight, hearing cannot be voluntarily shut off.

Evidence

The perception of the everyday world is an exceedingly complicated phenomenon, and especially the perception of sound, which is an omnipresent source of information and a signal per se, cannot be voluntarily excluded by our sensorial input process. In fact, sounds are perceived when our mind is immersed in other fields of cognition; in other words, we cannot switch off the sound sensations. — Almo Farina, Soundscape Ecology, 1438

Categorization

• XREF: The un-shutoff-able nature of sound echoes earlier chapters on why noise so thoroughly pervades cognition and why silence-seeking proves so urgent. — connects to: Hearing is ubiquitous and emotion-rich where vision is sectorial and information-rich — Almo Farina, Soundscape Ecology: Principles,…, 2082; The act of hearing itself makes total sensory silence unattainable — George Michelsen Foy, Zero Decibels: The Quest for Absolute…, 526; The act of hearing itself may make true absolute silence unattainable — George Michelsen Foy, Zero Decibels: The Quest for Absolute…, 526 (+7 more)
• CANDY: Elevator fact: you can close your eyes but never your ears — sound forces its way into cognition continuously.

Broader Connections

• The act of hearing itself may make true absolute silence unattainable #expands (0.95) — George Michelsen Foy, Zero Decibels, 526
• The brain amplifies internal noise so total silence cannot be perceived #corroborates (0.85) — George Michelsen Foy, Zero Decibels, 609
• Absolute silence cannot exist because the body always produces sound #corroborates (0.85) — George Michelsen Foy, Zero Decibels, 234
• The act of hearing itself makes total sensory silence unattainable #corroborates (0.80) — George Michelsen Foy, Zero Decibels, 526
• A perfect unchanging sound would be perceived as silence. #complicates (0.80) — Schafer, Murray R, The Soundscape- Our Sonic Environment…, 881
• Hearing gathers all sound but listening is selective and rarely conscious #qualifies (0.80) — Pauline Oliveros, Deep Listening, 61
• Hearing is unique among senses in being partially restorable by a device #complicates (0.78) — Eric J. Heller, Why You Hear What You Hear- An…, 1964
• Noise abatement is futile because sound cannot be prohibited outright #corroborates (0.75)
• Silence takes its meaning from surrounding sound #qualifies (0.75) — Schafer, Murray R, The Soundscape- Our Sonic Environment…, 864