This week I came across an article that indicates that I can eliminate startup music altogether (I have yet to formally test it). The article is https://www.wikihow.com/Link-to-a-Certain-Time-in-a-YouTube-Video and it indicates that I can start a video at a specific point in time. Theoretically those videos with intrusive music at commencement I can therefore simply start just after that intrusive music, such that the entire playlist will hang together in a much more consistent (not to mention) quiet fashion. I cannot wait to try it. I hope that it is as easy as the article makes out.
I have been editing the main Procrastination Pen playlist of late and most of those edits have been connected with removing excessively loud material. It is a shame after such a long period of reviewing videos that I am now finding some of them just do not stand the test of time (the Procrastination Pen archive list continues to grow). The only upside is that the pace of reviews cannot slow, if it did so then the playlist would very swiftly empty.
For a while now I have been looking for material outside of YouTube. It was a rash promise that I made on this blog some time back, and was predominantly connected with gaining access to material that did not require the prospective snoozer to accept loud and intrusive adverts as a fact of life. I have actually found the process filled with inconsistencies and disappointments. To be honest, in many cases, I feel it is probably better to buy a subscription from a reliable service. However, the hunt goes on.
One of the heroes of all quiet voice fans has to be Thich Nhat Hanh who is, sadly, no longer with us. I can well remember listening on YouTube to one of the Plum Village videos and loving what I heard.
I have found that I am not alone in my starry-eyed fandom in this respect indeed now a whole archive of talks exists: https://tnhaudio.org/. There is so much material here that I will not provide you with a more in-depth review but leave you to select those you like.
I am also continuing to listen to material on Calm reasonably regularly. However, I may need a few lifetimes to become a consistent meditator. My mind is more like a roller-coaster of distracting thoughts. The material in the Calm dailies I find quite restful and not uncommonly instructive as well. However, you will need to buy a subscription if you want to listen to it.
Today’s Calm recommendation comes from Jeff Warren, who whilst not my favourite voice on Calm, is the person I most consistently feel a lot in common with, in that he relates experiences that I also feel.
https://www.calm.com/app/player/f8udqt_eR8
Daily Trip
Oh, That’s What’s Happening!
NARRATOR
Jeff Warren
AUTHOR
Jeff Warren
Those who read this blog a lot will realise that once I have done with a Calm recommendation, I need to find one, on YouTube, from a professional ASMR artist. This week another one that is flagged as “unintentional”, so is a bit of a cheat. Although the channel may be professionally curating the videos (and no doubt adjusting them to present them in the best light) it does not feature a professional ASMR artist as such.
Unintentional ASMR. Medical Assessments Part 35
This is from Warm Heart ASMR, a channel with 14.3K subscribers, one hundred and thirty videos, and just two playlists, one of which looks as if it might be on theme for this blog (at least of late): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SBj8XBG9cyM&list=PLi4mE_stpCRA1dZU2wS-8rA1WIDbWIoNW&pp=0gcJCbQEOCosWNin
Today’s video has notes which are thankfully brief:
“126,358 views 30 Jul 2021
Relax and enjoy unintentional ASMR. 3 medical assessments for you. New uploads every Friday. Thanks for watching! Please subscribe! Peace to all
Original links –
Assessment 1: • Toy ANeuroExam
Assessment 2: • Streifert_T:NeuroExam
Assessment 3: • Splinting EMT 21-58 “
The original links given there are:
and
and
I think I will find a moment in the future to review each of those videos and hear for myself.
So, the clue is that these have been glued together into one video, this is not a favourite for me. Most often videos wedged together like this perform less well than each of the videos would have done separately, but I have started so I’ll finish.
The assembled video is a little less than thirty-three minutes long. It starts in silence but as soon as the sound initiates it has the echoing effect of something recorded in a large room. The medical professional seems, to me, to be a tad on the loud side. The examination itself, though, is quite well paced and the tone, whilst the exam is being performed, is far better than when the medical professional presents to camera. Many students make this mistake. There is a microphone, it is not necessary to project in the manner of an opera singer, not in the twenty first century in any case. Actually, some lecturers seem to make the same error.
I would say it is a little too loud for me, and I am not convinced that the moments of quiet appropriately compensate. However, your mileage may vary. The people feeding back in the comments, associated with this video, are not showing the normal level of ASMR sycophancy. This makes me think it may not be a favourite for ASMR fans either. (Not that I often agree with ASMR fans as I seem to set more demanding requirements in a number of cases). I just want a quiet voice. Whilst I am not averse to a whispered voice, a voice that stays away from whispering is often more interesting. This voice is one step away from a shout, I would say, and I do not think volume adjustment is going to help here.
The video is no doubt a student demonstrating their learning in a specific area and for this purpose it seems adequate. Probably not a great sleep aid though, sadly.
At fifteen minutes the second of the videos commences and, as expected, the sound level is completely different. The echoing is much more pronounced. The medical professional is not yelling to camera but is still loud. Not the calm quiet voice I was hoping for. Here the patient is considerably easier on the ear (at least they seem to be talking and not projecting into the room vocally). However, the sound is a bit off (probably the best that can be achieved when recording in a lecture theatre using a remote microphone). It is a better paced examination but for me just not quite quiet enough.
At thirty minutes the video changes over to the third in the series and this one seems way quieter. It shows that this video does not belong here. No echoey large halls but a small domestic setting. No projecting to a distant microphone. In fact, much more the kind of thing that I hope to find.
The medical professional has a good voice and has a measured delivery. In this case the “patient” has a good voice as well (not that common to find both participants have good voices for our purposes). There is background noise (possibly air conditioning) which is not excessively obtrusive. It is nicely paced and talking is not excessive in it either. My gut feel is that if I were reviewing the videos separately that only the last one would stand a chance in the Procrastination Pen playlist.
You may recall a previous post in which I mentioned a URL which linked to thirty two videos. The URL is this one:
It has thirty-two videos (discounting the introductory one). Last time we managed to review just four of these, so there is a fair few left to look at…
The next one in the series is this:
Guedel Airway Insertion
Just over a minute so don’t blink, notes are: “192,205 views 17 Feb 2012 Trauma Surgery
This video – produced by students at Oxford University Medical School in conjunction with the faculty – demonstrates how to size and insert a Geudel Airway. It is part of a series of videos on the Initial Assessment of a Trauma Patient.
All videos on this channel are linked to Oxford Medical Education (www.oxfordmedicaleducation.com)
This video was produced in collaboration with Oxford Medical Illustration – a department of Oxford University Hospitals NHS Trust. For more information, please visit www.oxfordmi.nhs.uk”
It is presented by the medical professional and is reasonably quiet.
C-Spine Immobilisation in Trauma
just over two minutes so again it is not hanging about, the notes are: “146,839 views 17 Feb 2012 Trauma Surgery
This video – produced by students at Oxford University Medical School in conjunction with the faculty – demonstrates how to immobilise a patient’s C-spine using collar, bags and tape. It is part of a series of videos on the Initial Assessment of a Trauma Patient.
All videos on this channel are linked to Oxford Medical Education (www.oxfordmedicaleducation.com)
This video was produced in collaboration with Oxford Medical Illustration – a department of Oxford University Hospitals NHS Trust. For more information, please visit www.oxfordmi.nhs.uk”
Again, it is announced by the medical professional participating rather than a narrator. It is not quite as quiet but it is still not excessively loud for our purposes. For some reason part way through the volume becomes very distant as if the microphone was transported way down a corridor.
C-Spine Collar Application in Trauma
Less than one and a half minutes, so none of these latter videos will keep you waiting for long.
The notes are: “93,033 views 17 Feb 2012 Trauma Surgery
This video – produced by students at Oxford University Medical School in conjunction with the faculty – demonstrates how to size and fit a C-spine collar. It is part of a series of videos on the Initial Assessment of a Trauma Patient.
All videos on this channel are linked to Oxford Medical Education (www.oxfordmedicaleducation.com)
This video was produced in collaboration with Oxford Medical Illustration – a department of Oxford University Hospitals NHS Trust. For more information, please visit www.oxfordmi.nhs.uk”
This is announced by the same medical professional and has some quite similar content to the previous one.
Nasoendoscopy (Nose Examination) – ENT
Just less than three minutes, the notes are “598,759 views 17 Feb 2012 ENT (Ear, Nose and Throat) Examinations
This video – produced by students at Oxford University Medical School in conjunction with the ENT faculty – demonstrates how to perform an examination of the nose, including use of a nasoendoscope.
All videos on this channel are linked to Oxford Medical Education (www.oxfordmedicaleducation.com)
This video was produced in collaboration with Oxford Medical Illustration – a department of Oxford University Hospitals NHS Trust. For more information, please visit www.oxfordmi.nhs.uk”
The medical professional is narrating and has a good voice for us initially, but later becomes slightly louder.
I think that I will conclude the blog post at this one and continue in another post. Failing that this blog post would become really large indeed, to the point of boredom, I imagine.
That’s it on this occasion, more next time.
The Oxford Medical Education Hospitals playlist on the Procrastination Pen is here:
The overall playlist of videos covered so far on the Procrastination Pen is here:
The videos weeded out because over time they are just not as good as the others is in this archive list:
I keep this in case subscribers to the Procrastination Pen have personal favourites that they want to hear.
The playlist of videos requiring age verification is here:
I can’t be bothered to stop my listening to log on, this interrupts the experience. You may not mind this in which case this list is for you.
I hope that you find the playlists restful and I hope you get plenty of sleep.
If you liked this blog article, why not follow this blog.
Until next time.
Photo by DeepAI
The Procrastination Pen 