To the Editors of the CRIMSON:
An article in your issue of May 5th referred to the possibility of "soundproofing" House dining halls by means of acoustical treatment of the ceilings. The use of the word "soundproofing" in this connection is a common error which unfortunately reflects more than semantic confusion.
The use of sound absorptive materials can reduce the din caused by reverberation of sound in the room where it originates,--which, in the case of Harvard dining halls, is more desirable than containing the sound. Sound absorptive materials do not greatly attenuate noise passing through it, and so do not "soundproof." Attenuation of noise in transmission is achieved by air-tight and usually heavy constructions.
I pass this information on in the hope that it may be of value, financial and spiritual, to your readers after they leave their quiet halls for the din and noise of life. Preston W. Smith, Jr., Cambridge Acoustical Associates.
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