International architecture student contest – a way to open the ears and eyes of designers regarding sustainable indoor environments. Architecture, the ‘‘mother of all arts,’’ is concerned with the design, arrangement, and manipulation of the physical properties of a space. However, architects almost exclusively consider the visual aspects of a structure. Only rarely do they […]
acoustics
Proposal for revised Building Code in Finland – key implications
Acoustic standards, guidelines and building codes have the potential of having a profound impact on future construction, for better or worse, for years to come. That is why we at Acoustic Bulletin keep a keen eye on the developments. We’ve written about this topic on several occasions, like this post from Poland, or this one about […]
The Problem With Acoustic Simulations
Predicting sound absorption is in general troublesome. We have too many definitions; e.g. normal incidence, random incidence, field incidence, angle-dependent absorption coefficient, local-reaction or extended reaction absorption coefficient, etc. Another problem is that there are various standardised methods, but none of them can give an absolute truth. Cheol-Ho Jeong, Associate Professor at DTU, was one […]
Simplifying acoustics
Acoustics can be confusing, here’s how to simplify it For someone that is new to the world of acoustics, going to a conference like Internoise can be an eye-opener in terms of the width of disciplines that’s included under the umbrella of acoustics. Acoustic Bulletin focuses to a large degree on room acoustics, and we […]
Open learning landscapes – if the acoustics aren’t right, the whole educational concept fails
De Werkplaats in Bilthoven is one of the Netherlands’ first primary schools without any classrooms, where pupils and teachers work in an open learning environment. “The success of such a concept largely depends on good acoustics,” says architect Kees Willems of Teeuwisse & Willems architects. In one corner we see a group of children watching […]
Sound and the senses at the centre of the design process
It’s refreshing to see an architectural graduate student who has used sound and the senses as key components that drive the architectural concept. Those of us who work in the industry are far too used to seeing acoustics being considered late in a project or not at all. In this article, we hear from Ashlea […]
Our podcast goes In Pursuit of Silence
Sound can be described as having an “invisible presence” but is this negative or positive? If your neighbour is having a party and you want peace and quiet, your perception of the sound you are hearing is very different from theirs. Within this fifth podcast, we discuss how silence can be the means for us […]
UNESCO hosted ”The sound for a new urbanism” conference
Each year in France “The Week of Sound” / “La Semaine du Son” pulls together a series of events that constitutes a vast range of knowledge, practical know-how and information about sound and the importance of the quality of the sound environment. It has a transversal – cultural, medical, industrial, educational and economic – approach and is recognised to […]
Sound schools: the importance of good acoustics
When we speak, we push air from our lungs, which continues up through the neck via the vocal chords, which in turn vibrate and create sound. The sound continues on via the nasal cavity and oral cavity, creating sound waves that are released into the room. These sound waves are received by someone’s ears via […]
Sound and school design from three architects’ point-of-view
In this post, we have collated three architects’ views on the role of sound in designing school buildings. The listening architect Architects focus on sight, as this has been quoted by giants such as Aristotle, Vitruvius, Palladio and Corbusier as “the noblest of all arts”. In other words, sight has been perceived by many as the […]
