Interesting Facts

According to the World Health Organisation, Spain is the noisiest country in Europe, and Madrid is one of the noisiest capitals. (In fact Spain is the second noisiest country in the world, behind Japan. Most of the noise comes from traffic, such as cars, heavy lorries and noisy motorbikes and mopeds. This is closely followed by building works, discotheques and leisure activities in general; especially in summer. Having been to Valencia during Las Fallas, I'm sure fireworks, which are more like army ordnance, don't help.)

According to Amplifon, a specialist hearing aid retailer in the UK, people eating crisps create the most annoying sound at work. (The top ten sounds that drive office staff round the bend were:- Eating crisps Slurping tea and coffee Annoying mobile ring tones The boss's voice People collecting lottery money Hum of the air conditioning Personal phone calls IT jargon Hold music on the telephone Keyboard tapping They missed the sound of colleagues snoring.  Are there any noises that annoy you at work?) Source

According to Scottish charity Action on Hearing Loss (AHL) Scotland, thousands of young people are risking irreversible hearing loss by failing to turn down the volume on their iPods and MP3 players. (Many people, especially youngsters, listen to music for up to one third of their waking day, but any noise over 85 decibels can be harmful. The built-in limit to iPods is around 100dB but many people have found ways to override it. The problem is, it's a bit like smoking; the damage is a gradual process, which means that it sneaks up on people and is only noticed when it is too late. So, here's your chance to learn phrasal verbs by doing: Turn it down.)

The city of Kherson in Ukraine, has passed a law banning dogs from barking between 10pm and 8am to make life quieter for residents. (The rule also applies to cats miaowing and pigs grunting.  According to reports, anyone who flouts the law faces fines of up to £65.  So, no dog treats for a week.)

Two churches in London have been ordered to keep their singing voices down after neighbours complained about their Sunday services. (The churches face a fine of £20,000 if they break the order. It all seems very strange until you read what one pastor said; "Because we have had to cut down the drums and sing very low and even without a keyboard, most of our members are not enjoying their worship service, especially our youth, and so they go elsewhere," she said." Drums? Keyboard? I think church has changed since I was a lass.)

The Office for National Statistics' Social Trends survey says that complaints about noise pollution from UK households increased nearly five-fold between 1984/5 and 2004/5. (Anyone who thinks noise pollution isn't serious has never lived underneath a bunch of DJs. And yes I have.)

Newcastle is the noisiest place in England. (A report by Professor Deepak Prasher, of the Ear Institute, said it topped a traffic noise table with 80.4 decibels, said to be the equivalent of a loud alarm clock constantly ringing in a person's ear.)