Noise

Days after state environmental officials found unacceptable noise levels from wind turbines in Falmouth, they are considering new regulations that would require the state to review potential noise issues before wind turbines are built in Massachusetts. The state might also conduct sound studies in other communities, such as Fairhaven and Kingston, where residents, as in Falmouth, have complained about newly installed turbines, officials said. A panel of independent scientists and doctors, convened by the state to look at the effects of wind turbines on the health of nearby residents, urged the...

RE " STATE moves to shut turbine over noise levels: Step may boost wind-power foes " (Page A1, May 16): A wind turbine in Falmouth that is too noisy will be shut down at night? Well, highways and airports are noisy too, and they, more than turbines, are often near housing. So we should shut them down at night as well, right? Wait, I heard that. You just said, "But we need highways and airports. " So what makes you think we don't need wind turbines? R. Philip Dowds Cambridge

NEWTON - Dan Kennedy will graduate from Boston College on Monday, summa cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa, and the recipient of the school's most prestigious prize, the Edward H. Finnegan Award. Winners of the Finnegan, given to the student who best exemplifies the BC motto, "ever to excel," tend to go big - top grad schools, Wall Street, overseas fellowships. Kennedy is planning to give away his computer, recycle his Blackberry, and move to a modest communal house in St. Paul, Minn.

The cautionary tale of the rock band led astray by the allure of pop stardom is a hoary one, but it's rare to see such a glaring example. For Gossip, success came from the shores of the UK, where the Washington trio, and vocalist Beth Ditto in particular, have become a staple of the rock press. There's little evidence of the band's prior garage-soul identity on this slick production of danceable beats, save for Ditto's rightfully mythologized vocals. Guitarist Nathan Howdeshell, whose spiked darts of riffing gave their early work such energy, seems to have barely plugged in his amp here.

IRVING, Texas - Cowboys linebacker Keith Brooking remembers the loudest game of his career coming in Minnesota’s Metrodome. And he remembers winning it - a victory that sent his team to the Super Bowl. Brooking also remembers that the loudest game Dallas played this year was indoors, at New Orleans’s Superdome. He remembers winning that one, too. So as the Cowboys prepare for a trip to Minnesota for tomorrow’s divisional-round playoff game, the message from the Dallas locker room is clear: Bring it on, Vikings fans; make all the noise y’all want.

The town's ad hoc amplified sound committee has submitted a proposed policy for its use in parks to the Board of Selectmen. The new policy would define the term and restrict its use for recurring events, such as weekly baseball games at Morton Field, which in the past triggered complaints from neighbors. Under the proposal, permits for one-time use of amplified sound could still be obtained from the town's Recreation Department, but all permits for its recurring use would have to be approved by the Board of Selectmen.

DEATH VALLEY NATIONAL PARK, Calif. -- You know it is quiet when you become aware of the buzzing in your ears that is unmasked by the total absence of sound. Maybe you're going insane, but you swear you could hear that shooting star fall. Seconds later, you start to wonder if there is a faltering fluorescent bulb in the parking lot below. But all you can see is the fading night sky, a brightening horizon, and Zabriskie Point. Shape shifting from a faint silhouette when I arrived at 4:30 a.m., it has become a giant arrowhead towering over undulating rock formations now emerging into crazed ribbons of gold,...

PHOENIX - A Phoenix church leader received a suspended 10-day jail sentence because his tolling church bells violated a city noise ordinance. Bishop Richard Painter says he will appeal. The bells at the Cathedral of Christ the King normally chime at the top of every hour from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Neighbors say the bells are too loud and ring too often. In addition to Painter's sentence, the judge on Wednesday restricted chimes at the church to no more than 60 decibels for two minutes on Sundays and specific religious holidays.

The human desire to produce a loud noise by striking one object with another must be as old as communication itself, and like all histories, it has its high points and lows. The period between the two world wars, for instance, was a very good time for the art and science of banging. The Boston Modern Orchestra Project reminded us of this fact on Friday night with a memorable concert that was in equal parts ambitious musical event, cultural time warp, and sonic magical mystery tour. The night began and ended with landmarks of that period: Varese’s “Ionisation,’’ a...

A thousand students recently took part in Make Noise to Save a Life, a fund-raiser for Samaritans. The event was held at the House of Blues featured music by Joe Bermudez and Davis Ballard. All photos by Bill Brett. For all of the latest Party Lines photos, see the full gallery on boston.com.

Kevin Garnett will miss the TD Garden crowd when the Celtics visit Philadelphia for Game 6 of their playoff series Wednesday night. "No comparison," Garnett said, talking about the Celtics' and Sixers' home crowds. "This crowd sparks you - it doesn't take much here, man," Garnett said when asked the response to an offensive foul call on him early in the third quarter of the Celtics' 101-85 win over the Sixers Monday night. "Speaking about this crowd, it's like plugging in, man - enthused from 48 minutes on, from the tip on," he added.

Days after state environmental officials found unacceptable noise levels from wind turbines in Falmouth, they are considering new regulations that would require the state to review potential noise issues before wind turbines are built in Massachusetts. The state might also conduct sound studies in other communities, such as Fairhaven and Kingston, where residents, as in Falmouth, have complained about newly installed turbines, officials said. A panel of independent scientists and doctors, convened by the state to look at the effects of wind turbines on the...

Days after state environmental officials found unacceptable noise levels from wind turbines in Falmouth, they are considering new regulations that would require the state to review potential noise issues before wind turbines are built in Massachusetts. The state might also conduct sound studies in other communities, such as Fairhaven and Kingston, where residents, as in Falmouth, have complained about newly installed turbines, officials said. A panel of independent scientists and doctors, convened by the state to look at the effects of wind turbines on the health of nearby residents,...

For the first time since the state began promoting wind power, environmental officials have recommended shutting down a wind turbine because of elevated noise levels that they described as unacceptable to local residents. The state Department of Environmental Protection, in a long-awaited response to Falmouth residents' complaints about noise from two turbines, released a report Tuesday finding that one turbine less than 1,500 feet from the nearest home repeatedly exceeded allowable noise levels.

Q. We have a problem and I cannot find an answer on how to fix it; even searched Kohler's trouble-shooting on the Internet. Our two-story cape style house was built in 1983 with two bathrooms, one upstairs and one downstairs, but not directly over one another but in the general area. A few months ago the upstairs toilet was replaced with a new Kohler (1.6 gallon/6 liters per flush or less) and whenever the upstairs Kohler is flushed the main floor toilet gurgles and bubbles. It is very loud, annoying, and embarrassing especially if one is using the downstairs facility.

Some Boston area residents may wake up Wednesday to an alarming sight: a dramatic flame coming from a natural gas pipeline in Everett, but the public won't be in any danger, National Grid said today. The flame, which will be accompanied by a "loud blowing noise," will come as the company burns off extra gas before inspecting and cleaning the pipeline, the company said in a statement. The operation will begin at 6 a.m. on Rover Street in Everett. "While this may be visually dramatic, the natural...

Old story, new beat: That sums up "Feel the Noise," an acceptable if resolutely average low-budget drama set in the New York/Puerto Rican musical melting pot known as reggaeton. Reggaeton's a hybrid of hip-hop, merengue, reggae, dance hall, and everything else from the Caribbean buffet table; it's been around more than a decade, which makes the movie a little late to the feast. Co-produced by Jennifer Lopez, "Feel the Noise" won't convert anyone who's not already a fan, but it gives performing artists like Voltio and Alexis & Fido some screen time, onstage and off, and director Alejandro...

Paul Ward jolted awake on a vacation day 11 years ago because his ears were "squealing away" with a noise only he could hear. The electrical engineer had abruptly developed tinnitus, a ringing in the ears that can interfere with sleeping, concentration, and peace of mind. Ward, now 50, knows the condition intimately. The high-pitched squeal cycles up and down on a predictable, three-day cycle: high, medium, low. Now, a colleague of Ward's at Draper Laboratory in Cambridge has received a small grant from the Department of Defense to fund the development of a device...

The NHL says the loud crowd in the Capitals' arena contributed to a miscommunication leading to an extra 5.3 seconds being played in Washington's 2-1 victory over Boston. The league says Thursday night it "immediately was aware" of the problem "and, therefore, would have disallowed a goal scored with 5.3 seconds or less showing on the clock. " With 9.5 seconds left on the clock in the third period, the game-clock operator realized 0.9 seconds should have been added. But off-ice officials couldn't get the attention of on-ice officials to delay dropping the puck for a faceoff...

Q.I had vinyl siding installed last year. The installers removed the original clapboard; installed 3/4-inch insulation and then the siding. Ever since, the siding has been making noises as if it is constantly expanding and contracting. Is this normal? LAT, by e-mail A. Yes and no. This rather flip reply does have some truth in it, for this reason: Solid objects expand when they warm up, and contract when they cool off. Vinyl is a solid and will indeed react, and that is the sound you hear.