Data Analytics in Urban Design: Noise Mapping

#MakeSomeNoise

Carnegie Mellon University is a centralized hub in Oakland, Pittsburgh. As such, students have an array of communal spaces for studying that range from on-campus facilities, local libraries, coffee shops and even surrounding university facilities that are open to the public. Many of the students live in adjacent neighborhoods such as: Squirrel Hill and Shadyside. Their active commercial districts provide additional gathering spaces for studying and group discussions off campus, making it convenient to do work off campus after school hours and during weekends. This noise analysis will help to determine the best location to study or work during your free time. Whether you prefer working on or near campus, or off campus closer to your home. Additionally it will map the best locations for the type of work you are seeking: solo quiet reading, versus group discussions, based on the median standards established for maximum productivity.

The Study

We've conducted a poll for Graduate architecture students (due to analogous schedules/interests/work material) to see where they like to study and their preferred off campus location. This is to gain some insight and understand our assumptions better. This does not need to be officially documented in the data but just provide a back story for our narrative.

https://www.surveymonkey.com/results/SM-HQP882288/

The Survey Areas

Determined by suggested locations in the poll as well as popular center of student living, we will divide the study areas into relative location and ease of access: Oakland, CMU campus, Shadyside, & Squirrel Hill. The goal is to survey areas in relative proximity to find the best location for studying at specific times. I think it’s best to keep the areas to. The list below will be edited based on your ideas and poll.

Oakland: Starbucks, Carnegie Library, Frick Library, Frick Gallery

Shadyside: Starbucks, Coffee Tree Roasters, Jitters Cafe, Arriviste

Squirrel Hill: Coffee Tree Roasters, The Common Place Coffee House, Dobra Tea, Cafe Mocha Carnegie Mellon University: University Center, Sorrell's Library, Gates Hillman Center, Hunt Library

Surveying Process

Choose a centralized area in the space to survey from (and be consistent). Hold phone away from you. Capture readings over a 3 minute period. Note Conditions for the space/ anomalies (Ex: weather). Walk to other locations in your survey area. 

ssrikar

The guiding factor to assess the data collected was to be able to be able to ask statistical queries of the data. To me, the first step to doing this was to understand if there is a base comparison or control we can use to create parameters for assumptions. This is crucial since the data collected is a truly random set with major gaps and no continuity. This is to say that while interpretations may be extrapolated, none of the data patterns or apparent inferences is conclusive.

Project Control: Sample Set

Having accepted thus, the first step was to study the data that I personally collected on Walnut Street in Shadyside. This is because it was the only data set that collected decibel levels in the same four locations not only over the weekdays and weekends but also twice a day during what may be considered popular times to frequent a coffee shop: Mornings and Afternoons. In all four outlets, the average decibel level did not undergo any major changes: the range varied between less than one decibel-to at most 2 decibel. Additionally, the mean and standard deviation corroborated this overarching uniformity. Accounting for the limited scope to make inferences, I took from the study that the noise levels in the coffee shops remain more or less consistent throughout the business hours (not accounting for outliers). Link to Sample Set Analysis.

Noise Levels: Extrapolation

Taking the broad inference gained from the sample set in Shadyside, I implemented the same as a rule to the other locations. That is to say that the underlying assumption was that decibels levels remain consistent through business hours. Having assumed as such, the next step was to understand if weekdays faired better than weekends or vice versa. The average decibel readings for each location was contrasted against the weekdays vs. weekends query.

Take Away

If the data is indeed consistent, it would appear that Shadyside is as noisy as most places in Carnegie Mellon itself. While Oakland is more vibrant, cafes in Squirrel Hill seem to be an under utilized space to study. However this might be impacted by the preference shown by most SoA graduate students to study either in the studio (For the comfort of syllabus and general coordination for studio work) and home.

On a personal note, while I have had the opportunity to study random variables and their statistical attributes, it was very interesting to see the necessity for statistical inquiry in the context of the fact that it is, at the end of the day, only an inference and inconclusive.