The National Academy of Engineering (NAE), in its role as an advisor to the nation on matters of engineering and technology policy, proposes to investigate the economic and quality-of-life benefits that might be realized through a more focused effort to control the negative effects of noise in the workplace, in communities, and in the home. The study will examine the existing and potential engineering solutions along with the policies that will help to develop and deploy solutions to these challenging problems. Currently, the community of engineers and scientists that are addressing various aspects of noise control and assessing the impacts of noise is a small and fragmented community. Practitioners often recognize that this fragmentation may result in "silos" of knowledge regarding highly specialized noise control applications and fields, but that there is little dissemination of that knowledge that could be highly applicable to other noise related challenges. Therefore, the scope of this study will be intentionally broad, such that the authoring committee can begin to see connections regarding how solutions within one specialty could be applied to ongoing challenges in another. The study committee will also be in a position to recommend mechanisms that could lead to greater cooperation and coordination among agencies and individuals that are stakeholders to the study.The information gathering activities of the study committee will be assisted through the use of several subcommittees that will include a chair from the study committee membership and will include other experts in the area being addressed. The information collected by the subcommittee will be forwarded to the study committee for consideration in authoring the final report. The subcommittee members and statements of task will be listed separately in the Current Projects System.At the conclusion of this project, a consensus report will be issued that will:- Summarize the current state of the practice of noise control engineering, - Recommend how existing knowledge can address current challenges, - Present a research and education agenda that will generate new knowledge in the field in areas that can provide the greatest benefit to society (employees, corporations and manufacturers, and members of communities), and- Recommend policies that agencies can develop in order to further improve the American soundscape.The approximate start date for the project is February 1, 2006.This project is funded by the National Academy of Engineering Fund, with funding for certain subcommittee activities from the United States Department of Transportation.A report will be issued at the conclusion of the project - approximately 30 months.