Biology Reference
In-Depth Information
be different for residents and for visitors. The time of the day that for visitors is
generally more restricted, for instance, confined to the business hours (shops,
museum, gallery, events), for residents the sonic context especially of the outdoors
is longer lasting.
Noise maps and psychoacoustic maps combined together could improve the
further interpretation of the complexity of the sonic ambience and the non-sonic
context, especially where the sound level is not very high. In particular local
experts, people who have lived for a long time in the same place and have a good
knowledge of the sites and of the natural and anthropic dynamics, may have a
different idea of the sonic ambience.
The urban context represents an impressive laboratory to experiment with new
epistemic principles and methodologies in soundscape analysis.
Investigations based on past experience, collection of visual stimuli, consider-
ation of potential sonic context, and the contemporary collection of physical
characters of the sonic ambience, spectral analysis, and acoustic complexity metrics
represent elements for a new research agenda to be applied not only in urban areas
but also in rural and natural environments.
6.25 Effect of Noise on Humans and Society Health
Noise that may be defined also as “a sound that creates problems” has received
growing attention during the last decennia, becoming a very popular theme in
soundscape and acoustic ecology. The effects of noise pollution on human societies
are numerous, pervasive, persistent, and medically and social relevant (Goines and
Hagler
2007
). Noise produces tangible (economic) and intangible (well-being)
losses. Noise interferes with communication, recreation, concentration, and sleep-
ing. Following airborne pollution, noise represents a non-secondary factor that
should enter the political agenda of decision makers. Homes, yards, public spaces,
cars, theaters, restaurants, parks, arenas, beaches, and mountain ridges: there are no
spaces that can be subjected to unwanted noise pollution.
Noise poses health problems because doses that are not harmful for our hearing
apparatus influence the subconscious, which transforms sounds as danger signals
even during the sleeping hours.
The health problem is becoming important but is underestimated, and some
NGO organizations such as Noise Free America (
www.noisefree.org
)
or Noise
Pollution Clearinghouse (
www.nonoise.org
) are taking action to prevent noise
and to educate. Also the web is active on this subject; see, for example Noise Off
(
www.NoiseOFF.org
).
Health and well-being are two components necessary to assure quality of human
life. Among the factors that can negatively interact with health and human well-
being, growing importance is represented by sonic ambient noise. Noise increases
the health deficit, especially in urban societies. Noise interacts with health on two
levels: a primary health effect and a secondary health effect. In Fig.
6.17
are
Search WWH ::
Custom Search