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Creative noise: Ambient sound is just the job

By Peter Firth 15 : 07 : 2013 Play : Coffivity : Drink App

US – A new online service, Coffitivity, is boosting people’s creativity and concentration using ambient sounds that mimic a bustling coffee shop.

The service, which can be accessed via a website or through an app, was based on research that demonstrated that peripheral noise such as the whoosh of milk-frother machines and background conversation can be conducive to work. The research by the University of Illinois found that noise at around the 70 decibels level – about the loudness of a coffee shop or a tv playing in a room – improved performance more than a quieter atmosphere of about 50 decibels.

This is a counter-intuitive way of aiding concentration, and fits in with the Bleisure lifestyle of working from home, and blurring the lines between work and play. For more on the power of sound, read our Inform with Robin Rimbaud.

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