The Exchange of Information at NOISE-CON 2025: Highlights of the Technical Program
This year, the annual NOISE-CON conference was held at a spectacular resort in Stowe, Vermont – the heart of the Green Mountains – with a focus on preserving the quiet. The conference was hosted by the Institute of Noise Control Engineering of the USA (INCE-USA) in conjunction with the Transportation Research Board (TRB).
The conference included five concurrent technical session rooms for a full two and half days to host 163 presentations and two workshops. Talks ranged from uses of AI in detection of construction noise to the design of a quiet chicken coop to the optimization of metamaterials to a workshop discussing the changing standards and codes in building acoustics. TRB was fully integrated within the technical program, with transportation noise related sessions occurring for the full program and including topics such as the reduction of noise from underwater vessels and implementation of the updated Federal Highway Administration Traffic Noise Model.
Dr. Peter Newman provided the first plenary talk, which passionately described the challenge of welcoming high numbers of visitors while simultaneously protecting the ecological and experiential values at U.S. national parks. A plenary panel that included Garret Keizer, Judy Rochat, Reuben Peckham, and Les Blomberg provided a discussion highlighting technologies and policies that may have a significant impact in quieting the future soundscape.
New for NOISE-CON 2025 – Additional Students and Young Professionals Opportunities
New opportunities were provided for young professionals – intended to provide opportunities for young people to present their work at a national conference without the added pressure of writing a paper. Students and early-career professionals were also given an opportunity to hear inspirational information about the kinds of projects and work they’ll encounter in the workplace from four industry veterans. This is in addition to the other regular student activities, such as the student and classic paper competitions and discounted registration.
Let’s Quiet the Airspace – Technical Tour at Beta Technologies
The conference included a technical tour with Beta Technologies, an aerospace company manufacturing quieter electric aircraft. The tour provided a behind-the-scenes look at the company’s electric aircraft development and manufacturing. Attendees learned about the systems and operations that support Beta Technologies’ efforts to develop an electric transportation system, toured the fossil fuel-free facility that manufactures electric aircraft and learned about the company’s sustainable manufacturing practices. After the tour, attendees were able to watch – and listen to – a test flight to experience how quiet air travel might become.