Silence

I'd know. I'm hypervigiant and paranoid as a result of years of traumatic events; my situational awareness is off the charts. SA as it's called in wildland; I was always calling ot the widow makers and ash pits and hot spots near the hoses when everyone else was pretty much focused on the forty foot wall of fire. XD

Personally, I test mine on my father, who's a Vietnam vet. He has hypervigilance and PTSD, which means he's always aware of what's going on around him, to a point where he can even feel a person sneaking up behind him. If I can get within 5-10 feet of him, without his knowledge, I consider that pretty good.

Hero-Man: Hypervigilance and situational awareness does not equal stealth.  These are completely unrelated traits, and often hinder the ability to recognize actual threats rather than enhance it.

Anyman: Testing stealth on your father is no test.  He's not expecting an attack from his son, no matter how vigilant he may be.  And have you told him you're testing your stealth on him? If not then any "test" is not valid. because he will let his guard down.

I never tell him anything. I wait for him to acknowlege my presence.

If he can see any sign of me, or hear me coming, I consider my attempt a failure; if he can't, I've done pretty well.

I was refering to DS's saying he can sneak up on anyone and they wouldn't know; I'd probably know because I have a high situational awareness; didn't say anything about stealth, sorry for any confusion.

I'm getting good at shutting up when I'm riding elevators. But in the shower, I just HAVE to take a lil' song.

oops, the confusion was mine. Thanks 204(again???)

Yup, this number keeps coming back to me like a bad penny, looked more shiny this time around.

And no worries.

sage. . .you hit on something very important. . .silence is very hard to understand. . .being quiet is not silence. . .silence is listening without adding to the conversation. . .it's not adding to the conversation in your head. . .or thinking about your next question. . .it's simply receiving information from your surroundings. . .most people...when they are quiet are thinking about something. . .or preparing themselves for their next thing. . .silence...or active listening is very hard to master. . .good speakers struggle with this. . .but when they learn it. . .they become master speakers. . .strategists are the same way. . .when they learn how to listen. . .they learn how to overcome. . .martial artists. . .at higher levels learn how to listen or see an opponents movement. . .they don't interpret. . .they don't think it through. . .they just listen or see. . .and let their bodies deal with it from the training they have had. . .call it what you will. . .but silence is simply opening up to the world around you. . .without adding to it. . .if that makes sense. . .

I'm liking some of these definitions of silence, and how people seem to gauge how silent they are. Not too scientific.

Sometimes, not even science is that scientific. Watson and Crick developed their theory of the double-helix structure of D.N.A., based on hunches. Tesla always conducted experiments in his mind, before he tried them in real life. Most of Einstein's work was theoretical. Manuals like Shoninki and Bansenshukai were written hundreds of years, and thousands of miles, from the birthplace of modern science, and it shows. That doesn't mean the techniques are junk; it just means common men made do with what they had, and it happened to work.

The hypothesises can be based on hunches, but it's not considered theory unless it is scientific.

And testing on a subject who is relaxing in their home is not a real test of stealth.

I mean because you will not know if he didn't hear you or just didn't say anything.