From: MIT Technology Review
Etymotic’s BlastPLG earplugs are designed to safeguard troops from long-term hearing damage without compromising their “situational awareness.”
… Remember that scene in Black Hawk Down where a soldier literally goes deaf because his buddy is shooting a giant machine gun right next to his head? The movie played it for laughs, but military hearing loss is no joke. According to high-end audio company Etymotic Research, “an alarmingly high percentage of deployed soldiers” sustain permanent hearing loss and tinnitus.
Earplugs are the obvious solution, but you can’t exactly stay frosty on patrol when you’ve got foam jammed in your ears blocking everything out. Etymotic’s EB15 BlastPLG earplugs attempt to square the circle by electronically attentuating sudden blast sounds while letting normal decibel levels through — or even enhancing them.
The $450 price tag makes sense when you consider that the EB15 is a state of the art hearing aid and earplug at the same time.