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Summerland student examines effects of sound

Science fair project will go to national competition in New Brunswick
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SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH Jacqueline Mansiere, a Grade 11 student at Summerland Secondary School, will take her science fair project to the Canada Wide Science Fair in New Brunswick next month. Her project studies the effects of sound. (Photo submitted)

Jacqueline Mansiere’s science fair project, examining the effect of sound on health , will be presented at the Canada-Wide Science Fair in New Brunswick this spring.

Earlier this month, Mansiere, a Grade 11 student from Summerland Secondary School, was one of 20 students to show their science fair projects at the regional science fair in Penticton.

She is the only student from the school district to attend the national science fair, which will be held May 11 to 17.

“We’re really excited to see how Jaqueline does out there,” said Shona Becker, a science teacher at Summerland Secondary School.

Mansiere said her project began after reading how sounds could contribute to health problems for some people.

Sounds were found to cause stress and could contribute to heart and stroke issues, according to the studies she read.

However, the information she saw did not include studies of how sound affected younger, healthy people.

After researching further, she learned that sounds can affect all people.

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“Sounds can have very serious health effects on all members of society,” she said.

Her tests included sounds of 50 decibels, or slightly quieter than a normal conversation, and 70 decibels, or a little lounder than a normal conversation.

She added that being in noisy places can leave people feeling exhausted.

“It’s because of the sound you’re exposed to,” she said.

Noise-cancelling pillows and noise-cancelling windows can help to reduce the amount of sound coming into a room and can help those who are noticing the effects of noisy environments.

In addition, some will choose to spend time in nature or other quiet spaces in order to get a reprieve from loud environments.

“There’s a reason people go camping or go away from cities for vacations,” Mansiere said. “It makes them feel better. It makes them feel calmer.”

Mansiere said her interest in science goes beyond the study into sounds. After high school, she would like to pursue a career in science.

“Science and math have always fascinated me,” she said.

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John Arendt

About the Author: John Arendt

John Arendt has worked as a journalist for more than 30 years. He has a Bachelor of Applied Arts in Journalism degree from Ryerson Polytechnical Institute.
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