Previous studies indicate that residents may benefit from a "quiet side" to their dwellings. The influence of the level of road traffic noise exposure at the least exposed side on road traffic noise ...annoyance was studied in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Road traffic noise exposure was assessed at the most and least exposed façade (Lden,most and Lden,least respectively) of dwellings for subjects in a population based survey (N = 1,967). It was investigated if and to what extent relative quietness at the least exposed façade affected the level of road traffic noise annoyance by comparing two groups: (1) The subgroup with a relatively quiet façade; (2) the subgroup without a relatively quiet façade (large versus small difference in exposure between most and least exposed façade; DIF ≥ 10 dB and DIF < 10 dB respectively). In addition, it was investigated if and to what extent Lden,least affected the level of road traffic noise annoyance. Results indicate a significantly lower road traffic noise annoyance score at a given Lden,most, in the subgroup with DIF ≥ 10 dB versus DIF < 10 dB. Furthermore, results suggest an effect of Lden,least independent of Lden,most. The estimated size of the effect expressed in an equivalent change in Lden,most approximated 5 dB for both the difference between the two subgroups (DIF ≥ 10 dB and DIF < 10 dB), and for a 10 dB change in Lden,least.
Noise is defined as "unwanted sound." Aircraft noise is one, if not the most detrimental environmental effect of aviation. It can cause community annoyance, disrupt sleep, adversely affect academic ...performance of children, and could increase the risk for cardiovascular disease of people living in the vicinity of airports. In some airports, noise constrains air traffic growth. This consensus paper was prepared by the Impacts of Science Group of the Committee for Aviation Environmental Protection of the International Civil Aviation Organization and summarizes the state of the science of noise effects research in the areas of noise measurement and prediction, community annoyance, children's learning, sleep disturbance, and health. It also briefly discusses civilian supersonic aircraft as a future source of aviation noise.
Recently, it has been suggested that the annoyance of residents at a given aircraft noise exposure level increases over the years. The objective of the present study was to verify the hypothesized ...trend and to identify its possible causes. To this end, the large database used to establish earlier exposure-response relationships on aircraft noise was updated with original data from several recent surveys, yielding a database with data from 34 separate airports. Multilevel grouped regression was used to determine the annoyance response per airport, after which meta-regression was used to investigate whether study characteristics could explain the heterogeneity in annoyance response between airports. A significant increase over the years was observed in annoyance at a given level of aircraft noise exposure. Furthermore, the type of annoyance scale, the type of contact, and the response percentage were found to be sources of heterogeneity. Of these, only the scale factor could statistically account for the trend, although other findings rule it out as a satisfactory explanation. No evidence was found for increased self-reported noise sensitivity. The results are of importance to the applicability of current exposure-annoyance relationships for aircraft noise and provide a basis for decisions on whether these need to be updated.
Exposure to nocturnal freight train vibrations may impact sleep, but exposure-response relationships are lacking. The European project CargoVibes evaluated sleep disturbance both in the field and in ...the laboratory and provides unique data, as measures of response and exposure metrics are comparable. This paper therefore provides data on exposure-response relationships of vibration and sleep disturbance and compares the relationships evaluated in the laboratory and the field. Two field studies (one in Poland and one in the Netherlands) with 233 valid respondents in total, and three laboratory studies in Sweden with a total of 59 subjects over 350 person-nights were performed. The odds ratios (OR) of sleep disturbance were analyzed in relation to nighttime vibration exposure by ordinal logit regression, adjusting for moderating factors common for the studies. Outcome specific fractions were calculated for eleven sleep outcomes and supported comparability between the field and laboratory settings. Vibration exposure was significantly associated with sleep disturbance, OR = 3.51 (95% confidence interval 2.6–4.73) denoting a three and a half times increase in the odds of sleep disturbance with one unit increased 8 h nighttime log10 Root Mean Square vibration. The results suggest no significant difference between field and laboratory settings OR = 1.37 (0.59–3.19). However, odds of sleep disturbance were higher in the Netherlands as compared to Sweden, indicating unexplained differences between study populations or countries, possibly related to cultural and contextual differences and uncertainties in exposure assessments. Future studies should be carefully designed to record explanatory factors in the field and enhance ecological validity in the laboratory. Nevertheless, the presented combined data set provides a first set of exposure response relationships for vibration-induced sleep disturbance, which are useful when considering public health outcomes among exposed populations.
Display omitted
•Exposure-response relationships of train vibration and sleep disturbance were derived from laboratory and field studies.•The odds of sleep disturbance increased with three and a half times with one unit increased 8 h nighttime log10 RMS.•Field and laboratory derived dose response functions were not significantly different.•Important differences were found between countries warranting further studies.
Exposure-response relationships of vibration exposure from trains and sleep disturbance were derived from laboratory studies and field studies, with no significant differences between the settings.
External cueing is a potentially effective strategy to reduce freezing of gait (FOG) in persons with Parkinson's disease (PD). Case reports suggest that three-dimensional (3D) cues might be more ...effective in reducing FOG than two-dimensional cues. We investigate the usability of 3D augmented reality visual cues delivered by smart glasses in comparison to conventional 3D transverse bars on the floor and auditory cueing
a metronome in reducing FOG and improving gait parameters. In laboratory experiments, 25 persons with PD and FOG performed walking tasks while wearing custom-made smart glasses under five conditions, at the end-of-dose. For two conditions, augmented visual cues (bars/staircase) were displayed
the smart glasses. The control conditions involved conventional 3D transverse bars on the floor, auditory cueing
a metronome, and no cueing. The number of FOG episodes and percentage of time spent on FOG were rated from video recordings. The stride length and its variability, cycle time and its variability, cadence, and speed were calculated from motion data collected with a motion capture suit equipped with 17 inertial measurement units. A total of 300 FOG episodes occurred in 19 out of 25 participants. There were no statistically significant differences in number of FOG episodes and percentage of time spent on FOG across the five conditions. The conventional bars increased stride length, cycle time, and stride length variability, while decreasing cadence and speed. No effects for the other conditions were found. Participants preferred the metronome most, and the augmented staircase least. They suggested to improve the comfort, esthetics, usability, field of view, and stability of the smart glasses on the head and to reduce their weight and size. In their current form, augmented visual cues delivered by smart glasses are not beneficial for persons with PD and FOG. This could be attributable to distraction, blockage of visual feedback, insufficient familiarization with the smart glasses, or display of the visual cues in the central rather than peripheral visual field. Future smart glasses are required to be more lightweight, comfortable, and user friendly to avoid distraction and blockage of sensory feedback, thus increasing usability.
Both the WHO and the EC recommend the use of Lnight as the primary indicator for sleep disturbance. Still, a key question for noise policy is whether the prediction of sleep quality could be improved ...by taking the number of events into account in addition to Lnight.
The current paper investigates the association between sleep quality and the number of aircraft noise events. The first aim of this study was to investigate whether, for the purpose of predicting sleep quality measured by motility, the nummer of events is adequately represented in Lnight for the purpose of predicting sleep quality measured by motility. The second aim was to investigate whether the number of events at a given Lnight has an additional predictive value. In addition, it was explored whether the total number of events should be taken into account for the production of sleep quality, or only the number of events exceeding a certain sound pressure level.
This study is based on data of a field study among 418 people living within a range of 20km from Amsterdam Airport Schiphol. The data from this study are well suited for this purpose, since for every subject both the number and the exposure level of events are available. Sleep quality was measured by motility, derived from actimeters worn on the wrist, and by self-reported sleep quality scored on a 11-point scale. Mixed linear regression models were built in a stepwise manner to predict sleep quality during a sleep period time.
The results show that, given a certain equivalent noise level, additional information on the overall number of events does not improve the prediction of sleep quality. However, the number of events above LAmax of 60dB was related to an increase in mean motility, indicating lower sleep quality. No effect of number of events was found on self-reported sleep quality.
This study suggests that the number of events is more or less adequately represented in Lnight and only the number of high noise level events may have additional effects on sleep quality as measured by motility. This may be viewed as an indication that, in addition to Lnight, the number of events with a relatively high LAmax could be used as a basis for protection against noise-induced sleep disturbance.
Despite the heavy burden of schizophrenia, research on biomarkers associated with its early course is still ongoing. Single-pulse Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation coupled with electroencephalography ...(TMS-EEG) has revealed that the main oscillatory frequency (or "natural frequency") is reduced in several frontal brain areas, including the premotor cortex, of chronic patients with schizophrenia. However, no study has explored the natural frequency at the beginning of illness. Here, we used TMS-EEG to probe the intrinsic oscillatory properties of the left premotor cortex in early-course schizophrenia patients (<2 years from onset) and age/gender-matched healthy comparison subjects (HCs). State-of-the-art real-time monitoring of EEG responses to TMS and noise-masking procedures were employed to ensure data quality. We found that the natural frequency of the premotor cortex was significantly reduced in early-course schizophrenia compared to HCs. No correlation was found between the natural frequency and age, clinical symptom severity, or dose of antipsychotic medications at the time of TMS-EEG. This finding extends to early-course schizophrenia previous evidence in chronic patients and supports the hypothesis of a deficit in frontal cortical synchronization as a core mechanism underlying this disorder. Future work should further explore the putative role of frontal natural frequencies as early pathophysiological biomarkers for schizophrenia.
Annoyance from environmental noise across the lifespan Van Gerven, Pascal W M; Vos, Henk; Van Boxtel, Martin P J ...
The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America,
07/2009, Letnik:
126, Številka:
1
Journal Article
Recenzirano
Curvilinear effects of age on self-reported annoyance from environmental noise were investigated in a pooled international and a Dutch sample of in total 62,983 individuals aged between 15 and 102 ...years. All respondents were frequently exposed to varying levels of transportation noise (i.e., aircraft, road traffic, and railway noise). Results reveal an inverted U-shaped pattern, where the largest number of highly annoyed individuals was found in the middle-aged segment of the sample (peaking around 45 years) while the lowest number was found in the youngest and oldest age segments. This pattern was independent of noise exposure level and self-reported noise sensitivity. The inverted U-shape explains the absence of linear age effects in previous studies. The results are discussed in light of theories predicting an age-related vulnerability to noise.
PDF
