Guest post by Hatice Kurukose Cal, Phd candidate, Institute for Environmental Design and Engineering, UCL, UK Teachers play a key role in shaping the soundscape of a school, but how do they perceive the acoustics around them, and how does it impact their work? Our research delves into UK teachers’ perceptions of school soundscapes, exploring how […]
acoustics
Acoustics, Music and Architecture podcast
How sound and buildings interact! A new BBC Sounds “Start the Week” podcast with sound guru Prof. Trevor Cox, Fiona Smyth author and musician Jess Gillam combine to give a great overview of the history and development of architectural acoustics… Some fascinating acoustic discussions and insights: Echo vs reverberation, distinct echo vs reverberant bloom… Listen […]
New Aural Diversity toolkit helping designers create more inclusive spaces
Aural Diversity Toolkit Arup and the Aural Diversity Network have developed a toolkit to help designers create spaces and environments that meet the needs of everyone. This toolkit addresses the broader needs of those with aural sensitivities and provides a comprehensive set of recommendations, further research and other relevant aspects to consider to better inform […]
Autistic Students’ Sensitivity to Classroom Noise: Implications for Acoustic Design (and the) Impact of classroom noise on autistic students
This study is by Marco Caniato (Free University of Bozen-Bolzano and University of Applied Science HFT of Stuttgart), Federica Bettarello (University of Trieste), Arianna Marzi (Free University of Bozen-Bolzano) and Andrea Gasparella (Free University of Bozen-Bolzano) Inclusion of Additional Support Needs (ASN) sensitivities Students on the autism spectrum often experience heightened sensitivity to environmental sounds, which […]
Salvation for civilization – could better listening be part of the solution….
“Listen to understand. Audioeducation for schools” A new book for teachers “Listen to understand. Audioeducation for schools” has been written to support teachers to create better conditions for deeper learning. We are living in a society which has increasing difficulty with attentive listening. Due to this, we talk over each other and argue instead of […]
From Theory to Reality : Assessing Predictive Models for Reverberation Time in Built Environments
Guest post by Marco Caniato University of Applied Science HFT of Stuttgart, based on his recent presentation at Forum Acousticum / Euronoise 2025 conference in Málaga. Background Reverberation time (RT) is a fundamental parameter in room acoustics, directly affecting speech intelligibility, comfort, and the overall acoustic quality of a space. Yet, despite decades of research […]
Inter-Noise 2024: Healthcare Acoustics
It was with great pleasure we visited this years Inter-Noise in beautiful Nantes in France. Nantes is especially know for being the birthplace of Jules Verne, master of adventure who was also a poet and one of France’s most prolific authors of all time, with a specific interest in science. Some 1800 acousticians and researchers […]
Remodelling of open plan De Werkplaats primary school – acoustic design and operational challenges
Introduction De Werkplaats in Bilthoven, (NL) inspired by Kees Boeke’s educational philosophy, was designed as a progressive primary school with open learning environments. The aim: to stimulate collaboration, autonomy and inclusivity. In practice, however, the open spaces proved to pose considerable acoustic and organisational challenges. This led to a large-scale remodel, during which objective and […]
Irrelevant speech makes perceived workload higher
Irrelevant speech, or background conversations, has been shown to impair cognitive performance and cause physiological stress. Recently published research demonstrated that working during task-irrelevant speech not only increases stress, as measured by heart rate variability, and reduces accuracy but also increases annoyance and perceived workload. Method Thirty participants performed two cognitive tasks (n-back and serial […]
After a full 50 years, Slovakia has a new acoustic standard!
Slovakia has a new STN 73 0527 acoustic standard that can finally improve conditions in schools! The new updated STN 73 0527 acoustic standard deals with room acoustics. In schools, universities, and spaces used for cultural, sports, social and public purposes. It aims at ensuring better quality and healthier acoustic conditions. New acoustic standard highlights […]
