Thought Bytes...
August 2002

Noise Pollution

During my annual hiking trip, I always take a day off to sit, read and listen. Often it is the only day of the year where there are no cars, sirens, radios or people to listen to. Just the sounds of nature - and it is surprising how noisy nature can be. Chipmunks chattering, trees creaking, birds twittering, wind whistling. In the right context it is relaxing and refreshing.

The same sounds presented in the office would be noise. Chipmunks, trees, birds and wind while trying to work would be distracting. I equate noise to weeds. A weed is a plant growing in a place it is not wanted. Similarly, noise is a sound that is not wanted. If you don't like classical music and the person next to you plays it all day long, then it is noise.

In my work, I have the opportunity to meet hundreds of people in their offices and sometimes their homes. I have noticed that there is no longer such a thing as silence. In the home, the TV is on in another room. At the office, there is usually a radio playing in the background or someone talking on the phone. In the car we instinctively turn the radio on. People walking down the street wear headsets playing so loudly that passers-by can identify the music. We are constantly bombarded with noise.

Some work places have gone so far as to introduce "white noise" to mask the sounds of the office. The idea is that when you combine all the frequencies of a noise, your brain can't differentiate the extra background noises and therefore tunes out all of it. The introduction of white noise has it drawbacks however.

While white noise gives the perception of silence by masking sounds, your ear is still receiving sound waves. Your brain is still processing this information and deciding that it can be tuned out. According to classical learning theory, you can process limited sources of information at any moment in time. If white noise must be continually processed out, that means there are fewer critical sources of information that you can process. In a stressful situation, I wonder if white noise could limit your ability to cope by adding an extra load / stress to the system?.

Would it not be more effective to block the sources of noise (i.e. earplugs) and free up those brain cells? In workplaces, I would prefer to see methods of dampening and eliminating noise. With appropriate hygiene measures to control dust (i.e. vacuuming and regular cleaning) acoustic panels, upholstery and carpeting serve to reduce the transmissibility of noise across space. Walls and partitions are effective. Position staff so that voices are trapped in corners and not projected toward other workers. Encourage discussions to take place behind closed doors. Discourage competing radios, or allow workers who prefer musical accompaniment to wear headsets or earphones.

Noise pollution is more than just a social irritant. It affects concentration and, in the end, productivity. Controlling noise at the source will reduce the need to mask it, which only increases the amount of noise we have to cope with.

Feedback

Sharon: Your discussion of white noise really resonates (yes, pun intended) with me right now because of the construction happening right outside my apartment. I tend to work at home, and the sound of jackhammers for 8 hours a day is distracting, even sickening (I've had more low-grade headaches since they started work than ever before in my life). I do wear ear-plugs when the noise is at its worst, but they don't block it out entirely, and I think the constant filtering out of the noise makes me much more tired than usual. There is nothing really to be done about this--the construction has to be done. However, I think we as a society are becoming more and more accepting of noise--every store has music going (often competing music in different sections--am I the only one who is driven nuts by that?), cars revel in no-muffler roars, construction is allowed for incredibly long periods at a time. There has been a lot of attention paid to second-hand smoke as a cause of disease; I'd put second-hand noise right up there with it as a health hazard.

I believe I sound rather cranky and school-marmish about the whole thing--but then I hardly ever have music or television on as background noise, and if I can't turn it off when I want, that kind of thing really bothers me.

A. Howey

(Constantly filtering out noise is known to be a significant source of stress - no wonder AH feels slightly cranky)

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