Whether it’s a new neighbor moving in, or your sister dancing to Taylor Swift, most of us will have to deal with annoying noises coming from upstairs.
Many people find such sounds from above so annoying, they even overwhelm the sounds happening right next to them – and new research has a theory as to why.
Led by Markus Mueller-Trapet, a team at the National Research Council of Canada set up a living room-like setting in which participants would sit and listen to typical upstairs noises.
Among them are people who drop things, or walk around in heavy shoes.
Those sounds were recorded and then presented to the participants – participating in several countries – using different playback techniques and virtual reality.
They are distributed so that the direction, frequency, and nature of the noise match what you would expect from an upstairs apartment or bedroom, such as sudden thuds and bangs.
The study aims to reproduce the conditions of a living room. Photo: Markus Muller-Trapet
Calling them “impact sounds,” Mr Mueller-Trapet said they were particularly aggravating because they were “impulsive”.
That means they include one or more distinct sounds for short periods of time – like a neighbor dropping something when they move in.
Continuous sounds, such as music or speech, are thought to be relatively less irritating.
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Mr. Mueller-Trapet believes the topic has become even more relevant since the pandemic, when more people started working from home.
They are one of the main causes of complaints in multi-storey residential buildings, and long-term exposure can lead to health problems such as lack of sleep.
The researchers hope to continue their work and provide guidance to architects and developers, helping them ensure buildings – especially multi-storey apartment blocks – are designed design based on their findings.
The findings will be presented at the 183rd meeting of the Acoustical Society of America, taking place this week.
