Why Is the World So Loud?, The Atlantic, Bianca Bosker, November 2019

A landmark study published in 1975 found that the reading scores of sixth graders whose classroom faced a clattering subway track lagged nearly a year behind those of students in quieter classrooms—a difference that disappeared once soundproofing materials were installed. Noise might also make us mean: A 1969 study suggested that test subjects exposed to noise, even the gentle fuzz of white noise, become more aggressive and more eager to zap fellow subjects with electric shocks.

One of the big points I make in my writing is that this kind of thing is real. It does not mean we do not have free will. But it means human behavior does not exist in a vacuum.

Also this:

“Sound is when you mow your lawn, noise is when your neighbor mows their lawn, and music is when your neighbor mows your lawn,” says Arjun Shankar, an acoustic consultant.

The real drama of the story is about an Arizona resident trying to track down a constant whine, which he locates in a data center. Which place has some of the most data centers in the world? Northern Virginia. Huh.

There’s also a really key point here, which that looking like or being coded as a crank doesn’t mean you’re wrong.

Read the whole thing.

Pecans and family pride, key ingredients for Stuckey’s Corp.’s turnaround (Podcast), Crystal Edmonson, November 29, 2022

“Her aim is to do what Planters did for peanuts. To become the “go-to” brand for pecans.”

Also:

After two years of Covid-19 lockdowns, it seems there is a “rediscovery of the road trip,” said Stephanie Stuckey, CEO of Stuckey’s Corp. In the mid-20th century, the convenience store chain was a fixture along U.S. interstates.

I featured an old Stuckey’s store building once here. It used to be chain of food stores/truck stops, but now it’s mostly a food (snacks/candy) manufacturer. It’s a very neat corporate story too. Give it a listen.

Zoning reform, human-scale design, and planning for people, Urbanism Speakeasy, Andy Boenau, November 30, 2022

This is a conversation (podcast or transcribed) with Coby Lefkowitz, an urbanist who believes we can built a lot more and do so with beauty.

Why is it that we have to drive 30 minutes to get to soccer practice, or to get to work? 

Why is it that we can only have a single-family home here and I can’t walk to the coffee shop?

Why is it illegal to build more than three stories in certain places?

I think that intellectual curiosity is increasing. People are reconciling what might work in theory versus what works in practice. There’s been an over-reliance on things that theoretically should work.

There’s a lot here. Check it out.

Would You Compost Your Underwear?, Bloomberg, Olivia Rockeman, December 5, 2022

As apparel goes, underwear might seem simple. But it’s emblematic of the challenges facing companies looking to repurpose used clothes. While Kent’s secret is using 100% cotton — with zero other materials, synthetic dyes or softeners — customers tend to prefer underwear that’s also stretchy, which requires the use of spandex or elastane. Neither is compostable or recyclable, and both have a low melting point that makes it difficult for the shredders used in textile-recycling plants to process in any large quantity, says Jessica Schreiber, founder and CEO of Fabscrap, a New York City-based company that specializes in textile recycling and reuse. 

It’s always interesting to get a look at the behind-the-scenes aspects of the manufacturing and/or recycling of everyday products. Also this:

Underwear and other stretchy garments that arrive at textile-recycling facilities are thus rarely shredded; instead they’re repurposed into padding in products like car seats, punching bags and pet beds.

It’s a neat read.

Related Reading:

New and Old #17

New and Old #18

Thank you for reading! Please consider upgrading to a paid subscription to help support this newsletter. You’ll get a weekly subscribers-only post, plus full access to the archive: over 400 posts and growing. And you’ll help ensure more material like this!

Share