Experimental Study on the Effect of Urban Road Traffic Noise on Heart Rate Variability of Noise-Sensitive People

Epidemiological studies have confirmed that long-term exposure to road traffic noise can cause cardiovascular diseases (CDs), and when noise exposure reaches a certain level, the risk of related CDs significantly increases. Currently, a large number of Chinese residents are exposed to high noise exposure, which could greatly increase the risk of cardiovascular disease. On the other hand, relevant studies have found that people with high noise sensitivity are more susceptible to noise. And it is necessary to pay more attention to the high noise-sensitive people. This study investigated the acute physiological effect of different noise-sensitive groups by indoor-level noise stimulus experiments under laboratory conditions, by observing heart rate variability (HRV) indicators, including standard deviation of NN intervals (SDNN), low frequency/high frequency (LF/HF), and heart rate (HR). The results showed that (a) there was no significant difference in HRV between the high-sensitive group and the low-sensitive group at the physiological baseline and the different stimulating noise levels. (b) Then, based on the theory of cumulative effect of noise proposed by WHO Regional Office for Europe, non-significant but observable differences between groups were further discussed. By analyzing differences of the variation trends and the within-group significant changes of SDNN and HR between the two groups, the results tended to show that the high-sensitive group is more affected by road traffic noise. In addition, the values of SDNN and HR showed observable between-group differences at 55 dB (A) and 65 dB (A) which corresponding to the SPL associated with a significantly increased risk of cardiovascular disease concerned by epidemiological studies. According to the cumulative effect theory (WHO), these differences in HRV caused by short-term noise stimulation may have the potential to produce physiological response and lead to between-groups differences in prevalence after long-term recurrent effect, and deserve attention and further research.

Octave Band Technique for Noise Measurement at the Source, Path, and Receiver of Gas Turbines in Oil and Gas Facilities

Noise measurement is essential for industrial usage. However, further attention to preventing noise pollution is needed, especially when working with equipment generating a high noise level, such as gas turbines. This study aims to determine the best way to perform noise measurement and analyze the octave band frequency generated by noise pollution caused by gas turbine equipment. Data from site measurements show that the gas turbines produce more than 85 dB of noise with a Z-weighted measurement. A noise measuring investigation was conducted to obtain the data for the 1/3 octave band. A frequency-domain was used to comprehend the properties of the noise measurement frequency band. The frequency band was classified into three different zones called low, medium, and high frequency, which is useful in noise measurement analysis to identify a viable solution to reduce the noise. On-site sampling was performed at the source, path, and receiver of three separate gas turbine locations within oil and gas operations. The 1/3 octave band data collection results at the sound source, path, and receiver demonstrate the noise level distribution at the perimeter of gas turbine installations in the low and medium frequency ranges. Most of the high noise frequency range is between 250 Hz and 2 kHz for source, path, and receiver. All acquired values are compared to the Department of Safety and Health (Occupational Safety and Health (Noise Exposure) Regulations 2019 in Malaysia. As a result, oil and gas service operators can monitor and take countermeasures to limit noise exposure at oil and gas facilities.

Noise Exposure and Quality of Life Among Nurses

Background: The purpose of this study was to describe the relationship between noise exposure, selected health conditions, and well-being among nurses. Methods: A secondary analysis was performed on data obtained from 3,818 U.S. nurses who responded to a survey regarding noise exposure, health conditions, stress, professional quality of life, and workplace support. Findings: Those who reported high noise exposure reported more health conditions, higher stress and burnout scores, and lower supportive environments. High noise exposure was significantly associated with lower professional quality of life. Conclusion/Application to Practice: Noise may impact the health and quality of professional life of nurses. Occupational health nurses should advocate for the regular monitoring of nurses’ exposure to hazardous noise at work, compare it to OSHA permissible levels, and collaborate with the occupational health team to ensure safe noise levels are maintained. Occupational health nurses should advocate for expanded research on effects of noise on health.

Sandblasting Defect Inspection of Investment Castings Based on Deep Convolutional Neural Network

Investment castings often have surface impurities and pieces of shell molds can remain on the surface after sandblasting. Identification of defects involves time-consuming manual inspections in working environments of high noise and poor air quality. To reduce labor costs and increase the health and safety of employees, we applied automated optical inspection (AOI) combined with a deep learning framework based on convolutional neural networks (CNNs) to the detection of sandblasting defects. We applied the following four classic CNN models for training and predictive classification: AlexNet, VGG-16, GoogLeNet, and ResNet-34. In terms of predictive classification, AlexNet, VGG-16, and GoogLeNet v1 could accurately determine whether there were defects. Among the four models, AlexNet was the most accurate, with prediction accuracy of 99.53% for qualifying products and 100% for defective products. We demonstrate a direct detection technique based on the AOI and CNN structure with a fast and flexible computational interface.

Noise Pollution in Onitsha Metropolis: Challenges and Solution

This study evaluated noise pollution in Onitsha metropolis, Anambra State, Nigeria in 2019. Noise levels were measured at forty sampling stations in the morning, afternoon and night within the study area for dry and wet seasons using modern noise level instruments. A control point was established at ldeani/Nnobi Junction with coordinates N 06o 05’.282’’ E 006o 55’.891’’ which was used as a reference point and for comparison with the sound levels recorded in designated locations. The results showed that the maximum noise level in the study area exceeded the Federal Ministry of Environment (FMEnv) limit by 7.8% in the dry season and by 13.11% in the wet season. Noise LAeq exceeded the NESREA LAeq limit by 29.89% in the dry season and by 33.44% in the wet season. The study indicated that the mean noise levels in the dry and wet seasons were within FMEnv limit of 90dB .It also showed that high noise levels were recorded around major junctions and market places within Onitsha, which are harmful to public health. The study further showed that transportation activities and trading activities at the market places are the main sources of high noise levels in the study area. Health impact assessment should be conducted in Onitsha metropolis for residents. State government should enforce compliance laws and regulate the activities of industries in the areas.

ANALISIS TINGKAT KEBISINGAN TERHADAP STANDAR BAKU MUTU TINGKAT KEBISINGAN DI RUMAH SAKIT MESRA KABUPATEN KAMPAR TAHUN 2020

High noise levels in hospitals can contribute to stress and fatigue in hospital staff, reducing the speed of healing of patients. Noise level measurement is in accordance with the existing quality standard in Permenkes No. 7 of 2019 in Mesra Hospital, Kampar Regency, there are several rooms that exceed the predetermined standard values. The purpose of this study was to determine the level of noise against quality standards at Mesra Hospital in Kampar Regency. This type of research is descriptive qualitative. Interviews and observations were conducted to 5 informants through in-depth interviews. The location of the study was conducted at the Mesra Hospital of Kampar Regency in May-July 2020. The results of the study and the measurements made showed that in front of the intimate hospital had a high noise level such as the lobby during the day the measurements were made with 69 dBA results, for the results of corridor measurements / which hall from the measurement results during the day produces a value of 67 dBA, and the results of measurements during the day in the medical record room produces a value of 67 dBA. From observations and interviews with informants it was found that in handling noise levels were inadequate such as the absence of standard operating procedures regarding noise handling, as well as the absence of printouts of noise measurements that had been carried out and also the lack of noise control at the front of the mesra hospital. Still the loud voice of a traffic vehicle inside the lobby was caused by the lack of tree planting in the front of the mesra hospital.

A Case Study to Improve the Quality of Median Filter

The median filter is used to reduce the effect of noise, but it treats all pixels, whether they are noise points or not, which negatively affects many non-noise values in the digital image, and the negative effect increases as the noise ratio increases. In order to get rid of some of the disadvantages of the median filter, we will present in this research paper a detailed study that works on treating the unaffected and infected pixels so that this treatment leads to improving the performance of the filter by raising the values of the quality factors of the filter. The improvements added to the median filter will raise the efficiency of the noise reduction process, especially for high noise ratios.

Independent control of mean and noise by convolution of gene expression distributions

Gene expression noise can reduce cellular fitness or facilitate processes such as alternative metabolism, antibiotic resistance, and differentiation. Unfortunately, efforts to study the impacts of noise have been hampered by a scaling relationship between noise and expression level from individual promoters. Here, we use theory to demonstrate that mean and noise can be controlled independently by expressing two copies of a gene from separate inducible promoters in the same cell. We engineer low and high noise inducible promoters to validate this result in Escherichia coli, and develop a model that predicts the experimental distributions. Finally, we use our method to reveal that the response of a promoter to a repressor is less sensitive with higher repressor noise and explain this result using a law from probability theory. Our approach can be applied to investigate the effects of noise on diverse biological pathways or program cellular heterogeneity for synthetic biology applications.

Noise exposure and its impact on psychological health of agricultural tractor operators

Constant exposure of noise to the auditory system of the agricultural tractor opera- tor can cause physical and psychological problems. A field study was conducted in the Faisalabad and Narowal districts of Pakistan to examine the spread of tractor noise and its psychological effects on the safety of tractor operators driving tractors without cabins and other noise reduction measures. Four of the most common imple- ments used in Pakistan, including land scraper, cultivator, disk harrow and seed drill, were used to detect the changes in tractor noise at two speeds of 5.3 km/h and 10.6 km/h in all four directions. Lowest noise was produced during the field operation of the seed drill at a mean noise value of 81.9 dB(A) among all four implements. Disk harrow and cultivator were found to be the most noisy implement, and during oper- ation, the tractor operator was directly exposed to high noise levels of 86.9 dB(A) and 84.9 dB(A), respectively. This noise pollution caused psychological problems in agri- cultural tractor operators, as demonstrated by the highly positive correlations of de- pression, aggression, anxiety and stress. This trend had a negative effect on their social interactions relative to the comparable population of office employees. In or- der to mitigate the adverse health effects, tractor operators must be equipped with sound proof cabins or at least ear plugs because of direct exposure to high noise levels. Furthermore, a safe distance of 48 m or at least a warning distance of 26 m from the tractor must be maintained by farm workers.