There's an awful lot of noise out there in the world, both literally and figuratively. We could all use a little peace and quiet from time to time. But what about a place that's SO quiet, you can hear your own heartbeat? Would you find that soothing, or eerie?

You won't find this level of soundlessness in nature. It's called an anechoic chamber, and you can find one in Upstate New York.

WHAT IS AN ANECHOIC CHAMBER?

Maybe you've seen studios with a couple of pieces of foam on the wall, and heard it referred to as "soundproof." Well, an anechoic chamber is soundproof to the extreme. It's specifically designed to stop reflections of sound and/or electromagnetic waves. Special foam completely lines the room from floor to ceiling.

The chambers are so quiet, that you can not only hear your own heartbeat, but the creaking and shifting of your own bones. Auditorily speaking, it's as close as you can come to being in a vacuum.

Orfield Laboratories in New York City has an anechoic chamber, and it's earned itself the nickname "The Quietest Place on Earth." In 2013 it earned a spot in the Guinness Book of World Records for a sound reading of negative 2.5 decibels.

BUT THERE'S ALSO ONE IN UPSTATE

The Watson College of Engineering & Applied Science at Binghamton University has its own anechoic chamber, in its Acoustics Core facility:

The Core includes an anechoic chamber used by faculty and students to create a sound field that is not affected by acoustic reflections and is isolated from external noises.

The high-performance laser vibrometer enables the acoustic characterization of silicon MEMS acoustic sensors being developed by Watson College researchers.

If you'd like to book an appointment to scream in the chamber, you can contact Ron Miles, Associate Dean for Research at miles@binghamton.edu.