A recent study of over 50 randomised people who either wore earplugs or did not at an outdoor music festival in Amsterdam give some interesting results. The average sound level was 100dB for over 4 hours and of those not wearing earplugs 42% suffered temporary hearing loss afterwards and of those who wore the earplugs […]
acoustics
Busting the most common myths about room acoustics!
Acoustics is more often considered a niche subject than the other physical aspects of interior comfort. Maybe this is why assumptions and preconseptions guide the way in which people tend to deal with the sound quality of the interior environment. In India where I’m from, I’m frequently confronted by several presumptions or myths when I meet specifiers and the users of interior spaces. In […]
The importance of acoustics in designing spaces for people with dementia
The sound environment of a building plays an important role for those with dementia. We have been working to understand the extent for some time with various different bodies. Including commissioning a literature review with Salford University of existing research in this field to help assess the impact of noise on people with dementia. What […]
Soundscapes – I think that acoustics are a bit overrated!
Soundscapes: Safe and Sound Kirsten Van den Bosh spoke under the title ‘Safe and Sound’ at EIAS 2015 and even though she mentioned that it was nearly blasphemy to say “I think that acoustics are a bit overrated!” during an international acoustic conference, she might have a point. Kirsten’s research focuses on soundscapes in special needs […]
Why vertical acoustics matter in Healthcare
Vertical acoustics an important asset in healthcare National standards in the Healthcare are lacking In many countries, national standards, regulations, and guidelines are lacking in the healthcare segment. One could therefore say that in many cases building hospitals, elderly care homes, and psychiatric wards is the ‘wild west’ regarding acoustics. We are lucky when new […]
The epic journey of activity based working
“Time and again, people fail to put enough effort into getting the acoustics right. Acoustics affect our behaviour and our productivity. The office design and the IT are the enablers.” Louis Lhoest – Veldhoen+Company Activity based working is more than desk sharing Activity based working (sometimes referred to as ABW) is frequently mentioned in […]
A sound environment for learning – is a must have!
NBCS Sydney Focusing on learning rather than teaching, changes almost everything we know about a school set up and organization but it is not an easy change. By Mie Guldbaek Broens, LOOP.bz I work with observing, studying and developing educational environments that are changing from a system where predominantly teaching is taking place, to an organisation […]
New Bond movie is quieter than many school canteens
Post by Swedish sound expert and blogger Jonas Christensson. The new Bond movie, Spectre, premiered a little while back and as I’m interested in sound, I measured the sound levels when I attended the premiere at my local cinema and was surprised that the sound level was 70 dB(A); less than many Swedish school canteens! It’s difficult […]
Designing for Special Educational Needs (SEN)
A 10 step guide by Adrian James, BB93 committee member The new BB93 Acoustic design of schools, sets out performance standards for schools in England and Wales. In this guest contribution post, Adrian James, a BB93 committee member, addresses the question many asked at the recent Acoustics and Noise Consultants conference in Birmingham, and which has caused […]
In Pursuit of Silence – Documentary Premiere at CPH:DOX
In Pursuit of Silence is a meditative film about the value of silence, our relationship with sound, and the implications of living in such a noisy world. See the trailer here This ground breaking documentary film collaboration In Pursuit of Silence funded by many contributors during two successful Kickstarter campaigns and which is the result of nearly […]
