Soundscape of the Metropolis: Influence of Human Adaptation to the Sound Environment on Assessment of Its Quality

Abstract— The creation of quiet green areas to reduce acoustic stress contributes to improving the quality of life of citizens in noisy cities, reducing stress levels and enhancing the uniqueness of urban spaces. Quantitative indicators for assessing the quality of the sound environment are in demand when designing such zones, ensuring harmony between urban dynamics and the human need for silence. It is believed that human adaptation to the sound environment leads to the fact that residents of megacities stop noticing annoying sounds, although this does not negate their harmful effects on the nervous system, resulting in its exhaustion. In the interest of studying the properties of perception of the sound environment depending on its properties, as well as the degree of adaptation of residents to the environment, a cross-comparison of assessments of the quality of the sound environment, as well as the values of acoustic characteristics of spaces in the territories adjacent to the building, was carried out. The survey was conducted by two groups of respondents in academic buildings of two leading universities: Lomonosov Moscow State University (MSU) and Bauman Moscow State Technical University (MSTU). The first group consisted of 30 third-year students from MSU, and the second, of 25 third-year students from MSTU. To assess the quality of the sound environment, the hearing examination method introduced by the International Organization for Standardization for Analysis of Soundscapes (ISO) was used. We assumed that the students of the two universities are well adapted to the sound and landscape environment of Moscow, and over the years, they have developed a sustainable attitude towards the environment of their university. A comparison of estimates of the quality of sound media and their acoustic properties indicates that MSU students were less sensitive to loud noise and quiet sounds of nature on the territories of the two universities. The reason for such differences may be the adaptation of MSU students to the environment of their university, which promotes natural audiovisual relaxation and increases psychoemotional stability.