Effects of adding natural sounds to urban noises on the perceived loudness of noise and soundscape quality

Introducing pleasant natural sounds to mask urban noises is an important soundscape design strategy to improve acoustic comfort. This study investigates the effects of signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) between natural sounds (signal) and the target noises (noise) and their temporal characteristics on the perceived loudness of noise (PLN) and overall soundscape quality (OSQ) through a laboratory experiment. Two types of urban noise sources (hydraulic breaker and traffic noises) were set to A-weighted equivalent sound pressure levels (SPL) of 55, 65, and 75 dB and then augmented with two types of natural sounds (birdsong and stream), across a range of SNRs. Each acoustic stimulus was a combination of noise and natural sound at SNRs from −6 to 6 dB. Averaged across all cases, the subjective assessment of PLN showed that augmenting urban noise separately with the two natural sounds reduced the PLN by 17.9%, with no significant differences found between the birdsong and stream sounds. Adding natural sounds increased the OSQ by on average 18.3% across the cases, but their effects gradually decreased as the noise level increased. The OSQ of the birdsong and stream sounds were similar for traffic noise, whereas the stream sound was rated higher than the birdsong for the breaker noise. The results suggest that increasing the dissimilarity in temporal structure between the target noise and natural sounds could enhance the soundscape quality. Appropriate SNRs were explored considering both PLN and OSQ. The results showed that the SNR of −6 dB was desirable when the A-weighted SPL of the noise rose to 75 dB

Effects of contexts in urban residential areas on the pleasantness and appropriateness of natural sounds

Before introducing natural sounds to potentially improve the soundscape quality, it is important to understand how key contextual factors (i.e. expected activities and audio-visual congruency) affect the soundscape in a given location. In this study, the perception of eight natural sounds (i.e. 4 birdsongs, 4 water sounds) at five urban recreational areas under the constant influence of road traffic was explored subjectively under three laboratory settings: visual-only, audio-only, and audio-visual. Firstly, expected socio-recreational activities of each location were determined in the visual-only setting. Subsequently, participants assessed the pleasantness and appropriateness of the soundscape at each site, for each of the eight natural sounds augmented to the same road traffic noise, in both audio-only and audio-visual settings. Interestingly, it was found that the expected activities in each location did not significantly affect natural sound perception, whereas audio-visual congruency of the locations significantly affected the pleasantness and appropriateness of the natural sounds. Particularly, the pleasantness and appropriateness decreased for water sounds when water features were not visually present. In contrast, perception with birdsongs was unaffected by their visibility likely due to the presence of vegetation. Hence, audio-visual coherence is central to the perception of natural sounds in outdoor spaces

A mixed-reality approach to soundscape assessment of outdoor urban environments augmented with natural sounds

To investigate the effect of augmenting natural sounds in noisy environments, an in-situ experiment was conducted using a mixed-reality head-mounted display (MR HMD). Two outdoor locations close to an expressway were selected for the experiment. A natural sound (birdsong or stream) along with a hologram (sparrow/fountain or loudspeaker) was projected through the MR HMD. Participants were asked to adjust the natural sound levels to their preferred level under ambient traffic noise conditions at each location. Participants also assessed the perceived loudness of traffic (PLN) and overall soundscape quality (OSQ) in conditions with and without the augmented natural sounds. The results showed that both natural sounds significantly reduced the PLN and enhanced the OSQ. No significant differences in subjective responses were found between the loudspeaker and visual representations of the natural sound source as holograms. Analysis on the preferred signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), i.e. ratio of natural sound to traffic levels, indicated a strong negative correlation between the preferred SNRs and ambient traffic noise levels. Overall, the preferred SNR of the birdsong was significantly higher than that of the water sound. Among the acoustic parameters tested, the A-weighted traffic noise level was the strongest predictor for the preferred SNR of both the birdsong and water sound. However, the correlation for the water sound was relatively higher than the birdsong. This was due to the larger variance in the subjective evaluation for the birdsong

Soundscape assessment: Towards a validated translation of perceptual attributes in different languages

The recently published ISO/TS 12913-2:2018 standard aims to provide researchers and practitioners around the world with a reliable questionnaire for soundscape characterization. The ISO Technical Specifications report protocols and attributes grounded in the soundscape literature, but only includes an English version. The applicability and reliability of these attributes in non-English speaking regions remains an open question, as research investigating translations of soundscape attributes is limited. To address this gap, an international collaboration was initiated with soundscape researchers from all over the world. Translation into 15 different languages, obtained through focus groups and panels of experts in soundscape studies, are proposed. The main challenges and outcomes of this preliminary exercise are discussed. The long-term objective is to validate the proposed translations using standardized listening experiments in different languages and geographical regions as a way to promote a widespread use of the soundscape attributes, both in academia and practice, across locations, populations and languages

Modulation of Glucose Transporter 1 (GLUT1) Expression Levels Alters Mouse Mammary Tumor Cell Growth In Vitro and In Vivo

Tumor cells exhibit an altered metabolism characterized by elevated aerobic glycolysis and lactate secretion which is supported by an increase in glucose transport and consumption. We hypothesized that reducing or eliminating the expression of the most prominently expressed glucose transporter(s) would decrease the amount of glucose available to breast cancer cells thereby decreasing their metabolic capacity and proliferative potential

Multiple Data Analyses and Statistical Approaches for Analyzing Data from Metagenomic Studies and Clinical Trials

Metagenomics, also known as environmental genomics, is the study of the genomic content of a sample of organisms (microbes) obtained from a common habitat. Metagenomics and other “omics” disciplines have captured the attention of researchers for several decades. The effect of microbes in our body is a relevant concern for health studies. There are plenty of studies using metagenomics which examine microorganisms that inhabit niches in the human body, sometimes causing disease, and are often correlated with multiple treatment conditions. No matter from which environment it comes, the analyses are often aimed at determining either the presence or absence of specific species of interest in a given metagenome or comparing the biological diversity and the functional activity of a wider range of microorganisms within their communities. The importance increases for comparison within different environments such as multiple patients with different conditions, multiple drugs, and multiple time points of same treatment or same patient. Thus, no matter how many hypotheses we have, we need a good understanding of genomics, bioinformatics, and statistics to work together to analyze and interpret these datasets in a meaningful way. This chapter provides an overview of different data analyses and statistical approaches (with example scenarios) to analyze metagenomics samples from different medical projects or clinical trials

The Current State of Proteomics in GI Oncology

Proteomics refers to the study of the entire set of proteins in a given cell or tissue. With the extensive development of protein separation, mass spectrometry, and bioinformatics technologies, clinical proteomics has shown its potential as a powerful approach for biomarker discovery, particularly in the area of oncology. More than 130 exploratory studies have defined candidate markers in serum, gastrointestinal (GI) fluids, or cancer tissue. In this article, we introduce the commonly adopted proteomic technologies and describe results of a comprehensive review of studies that have applied these technologies to GI oncology, with a particular emphasis on developments in the last 3 years. We discuss reasons why the more than 130 studies to date have had little discernible clinical impact, and we outline steps that may allow proteomics to realize its promise for early detection of disease, monitoring of disease recurrence, and identification of targets for individualized therapy

The Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress Response in Neuroprogressive Diseases: Emerging Pathophysiological Role and Translational Implications

The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) is the main cellular organelle involved in protein synthesis, assembly and secretion. Accumulating evidence shows that across several neurodegenerative and neuroprogressive diseases, ER stress ensues, which is accompanied by over-activation of the unfolded protein response (UPR). Although the UPR could initially serve adaptive purposes in conditions associated with higher cellular demands and after exposure to a range of pathophysiological insults, over time the UPR may become detrimental, thus contributing to neuroprogression. Herein, we propose that immune-inflammatory, neuro-oxidative, neuro-nitrosative, as well as mitochondrial pathways may reciprocally interact with aberrations in UPR pathways. Furthermore, ER stress may contribute to a deregulation in calcium homoeostasis. The common denominator of these pathways is a decrease in neuronal resilience, synaptic dysfunction and even cell death. This review also discusses how mechanisms related to ER stress could be explored as a source for novel therapeutic targets for neurodegenerative and neuroprogressive diseases. The design of randomised controlled trials testing compounds that target aberrant UPR-related pathways within the emerging framework of precision psychiatry is warranted