Multi-Scale Effects of Landscape Pattern on Soundscape Perception in Residential Green Spaces
Round 1
Reviewer 1 Report
Comments and Suggestions for AuthorsThe submitted paper scientifically sounds, facing the multi-scale effects of landscape patterns on soundscape perception in residential green spaces. The experimental design is appropriate, the design and organization of the paper, too. The paper is rich of information to elaborate, consequently it is relatively long but quite readable and good written. Also, the discussion section is interesting as the overall manuscript.
I suggest to authors to consider the following revisions to improve the paper:
The introduction, even if very detailed and good written, should be integrated in some part by adding, also, some other references.
Line 69: I suggest to add some, or all, of the following significant reference in the field like:
Brambilla, G.; Gallo, V.; Zambon, G. The Soundscape Quality in Some Urban Parks in Milan, Italy. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2013, 10, 2348–2369.
Liu, J.; Kang, J.; Behm, H.; Luo, T. Effects of landscape on soundscape perception: Soundwalks in city parks. Landsc. Urban. Plan. 2014, 123, 30–40
Lavandier, Catherine & Defreville, B.. (2006). The contribution of sound source characteristics in the assessment of urban soundscapes. Acta Acustica United with Acustica. 92. 912-921.
After line 76, I suggest to authors to introduce some sentence and reference about different methodologies used in the soundscape assessment. Authors should consider, for example, a sentence like this: “There are many methods for investigating soundscapes, expressly tested for collecting data on human perception and physical and psychoacoustic data about the acoustic environment and context. The definition and the use of different data collection methods are defined in the ISO12913 series. […]” from the following reference:
Mancini, S.; Mascolo, A.; Graziuso, G.; Guarnaccia, C. Soundwalk, Questionnaires and Noise Measurements in a University Campus: A Soundscape Study. Sustainability 2021, 13, 841
where noise measurements were performed in the selected station point beside questionnaires distributed in the context of a sound walk. Authors could consider to mention this reference also as an idea for further developments to include in the 4.3 or 5 section, as well as, the improving of further studies by using methods descripted in:
De Lauro, Enza, Falanga, Mariarosaria and Lalli, Laura Tedeschini. "The soundscape of the Trevi fountain in Covid-19 silence" Noise mapping, vol.7. n1, 2020 pp212-222.
Line 146 Why “Data were collected during 8:00-11:00 am 146 and 3:00-6:00 pm”? Please, explain if there is a particular reason related to traffic or other variables considered.
Line 166 People were trained about the questionnaire? If not, please consider for next research this part as a very important preliminary phase for acquiring reliable results and specify it in the limitation of the study. If yes please specify it in the text, instead.
Author Response
The submitted paper scientifically sounds, facing the multi-scale effects of landscape patterns on soundscape perception in residential green spaces. The experimental design is appropriate, the design and organization of the paper, too. The paper is rich of information to elaborate, consequently it is relatively long but quite readable and good written. Also, the discussion section is interesting as the overall manuscript.
I suggest to authors to consider the following revisions to improve the paper:
The introduction, even if very detailed and good written, should be integrated in some part by adding, also, some other references.
Line 69: I suggest to add some, or all, of the following significant reference in the field like:
- Brambilla, G.; Gallo, V.; Zambon, G. The Soundscape Quality in Some Urban Parks in Milan, Italy. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2013, 10, 2348–2369.
- Liu, J.; Kang, J.; Behm, H.; Luo, T. Effects of landscape on soundscape perception: Soundwalks in city parks. Landsc. Urban. Plan. 2014, 123, 30–40
- Lavandier, Catherine & Defreville, B.. (2006). The contribution of sound source characteristics in the assessment of urban soundscapes. Acta Acustica United with Acustica. 92. 912-921.
Response: We added these references in the manuscript. Please see Line 78.
After line 76, I suggest to authors to introduce some sentence and reference about different methodologies used in the soundscape assessment. Authors should consider, for example, a sentence like this: “There are many methods for investigating soundscapes, expressly tested for collecting data on human perception and physical and psychoacoustic data about the acoustic environment and context. The definition and the use of different data collection methods are defined in the ISO12913 series. […]” from the following reference:
- Mancini, S.; Mascolo, A.; Graziuso, G.; Guarnaccia, C. Soundwalk, Questionnaires and Noise Measurements in a University Campus: A Soundscape Study. Sustainability 2021, 13, 841
Response: Thanks for the suggestion, we would like to introduce these contents as general knowledge background. Thus, we actually added the similar sentence and the reference at the end of the first paragraph in the Introduction. Please see Line 55 to Line 62.
where noise measurements were performed in the selected station point beside questionnaires distributed in the context of a sound walk. Authors could consider to mention this reference also as an idea for further developments to include in the 4.3 or 5 section, as well as, the improving of further studies by using methods descripted in:
- De Lauro, Enza, Falanga, Mariarosaria and Lalli, Laura Tedeschini. "The soundscape of the Trevi fountain in Covid-19 silence" Noise mapping, vol.7. n1, 2020 pp212-222.
Response: We discussed this idea and added this reference in Section 4.3. Please see Line 517 to Line 520.
Line 146 Why “Data were collected during 8:00-11:00 am and 3:00-6:00 pm”? Please, explain if there is a particular reason related to traffic or other variables considered.
Response: Thanks for the suggestion, we missed the explanation before. We have added specific reasons for this selection. Please see Line 157 to Line 160.
Line 166 People were trained about the questionnaire? If not, please consider for next research this part as a very important preliminary phase for acquiring reliable results and specify it in the limitation of the study. If yes please specify it in the text, instead.
Response: Thanks for the addition. We have indicated this in Section 4.3. Please see Line 512 to Line 516.
Reviewer 2 Report
Comments and Suggestions for Authorsplease see the attachment
Comments for author File: 
Comments.pdf
Author Response
The manuscript “Multi scale effects of landscape pattern on soundscape perception in residential green spaces” is good written and fits well the general scope of Forests. The topic of the study presented is interesting and it includes a novelty.
This article seeks to new perspective on the interrelationships between soundscape perception and landscape pattern on multi scale, based on a case study of 30 residential green spaces in Fuzhou, China. Percentage of Landscape (PLAND), Patch Density (PD), Landscape Shape Index (LSI), and Patch cohesion index (COHESION) were utilized to represent the landscape pattern of vegetation, buildings and roads in the residential areas.
The research object was aptly selected and is well described. The research methods, discussion, results and conclusions are correct A questionnaire survey of 308 respondents. The conclusions were properly presented. Photos, graphs, charts or diagram are well prepared. I have read the attachments. I checked the literature. I confirm that the manuscript is of high scientific reliability.
My experience as a green designer shows that the city soundscape is a rich amalgamation of various sounds, often characterized by its constant motion and the fusion of both natural and man-made elements. Depending on the time of day, location within the city, and the specific events occurring, the soundscape can vary significantly. Sound is recognized as one of the important elements of multisensory landscape perception. It is an important element of a deep emotional (aesthetic) experience associated with contact with nature and city. Soundscape researchers distinguish the so-called sound events, some of which are sound marks. Such recognition sounds may be, for example, the sounds of seagulls that are irresistibly associated with the sea and space, or the song of a birds associated with spring. Furthermore, it is important to mention that sound is also one of the keys to exploring the world for sighted people by permanently connecting remembered sounds with a given place landscape and, above all, for blind people.
In my opinion the article is suitable for publication.
Response: Thanks a lot for the reviewer’s comments. We strongly agree with the reviewer’s opinions, especially the connection between both normal-sighted and visually impaired people with the real world. We added this point as one of the importance of soundscape into Introduction in the manuscript. Please see Line 69 to Line 71.
Reviewer 3 Report
Comments and Suggestions for AuthorsThe paper entitled “Multi-scale effects of landscape pattern on soundscape perception in residential green spaces” presents an interesting research which fits to the scope of the journal. Below I present comments which should be considered while improving the paper.
1. Table 1: the proposed structure of sounds seems to be very limited. Within anthropophonics we can distinguish sounds caused by human voices, human movements, technophonics; within sounds not generated by human activities we can distinguish biophonics or geophonics (with many different subcategories). Therefore, my main concern is basis to analyze only six types of sounds.
2. Did the study receive an ethical approval? This is especially important considering that some respondents were younger than 18 years old.
3. Although mentioning soundscape and well-being in this paper, in my opinion linkages between these two elements are missing. Not in every case positive or negative impression of these two aspects are the same in each location. Please see for instance: Redefinition of Park Design Criteria as a Result of Analysis of Well-Being and Soundscape: The Case Study of the Kortowo Park (Poland). Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18, 2972; or other papers in that field and highlight this phenomenon.
4. I recommend to add samples of soundtracks from representative points as a supplementary material in a digital form. The research on soundscape in relatively new and still many datasets are needed to carry out more comparative analyzes of soundscape studies globally.
Author Response
The paper entitled “Multi-scale effects of landscape pattern on soundscape perception in residential green spaces” presents an interesting research which fits to the scope of the journal. Below I present comments which should be considered while improving the paper.
- Table 1: the proposed structure of sounds seems to be very limited. Within anthropophonics we can distinguish sounds caused by human voices, human movements, technophonics; within sounds not generated by human activities we can distinguish biophonics or geophonics (with many different subcategories). Therefore, my main concern is basis to analyze only six types of sounds.
Response 1: Thanks for the concern. The primary category and the six typical sounds were identified and classified based on our pilot study in the residential areas and relevant literature. We have indicated this in the manuscript. Please see Line 125 to Line 128.
- Did the study receive an ethical approval? This is especially important considering that some respondents were younger than 18 years old.
Response 2: Yes, we have the ethical statement. Please find it in the supplementary file we resubmitted this time.
- Although mentioning soundscape and well-being in this paper, in my opinion linkages between these two elements are missing. Not in every case positive or negative impression of these two aspects are the same in each location. Please see for instance: Redefinition of Park Design Criteria as a Result of Analysis of Well-Being and Soundscape: The Case Study of the Kortowo Park (Poland). Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18, 2972; or other papers in that field and highlight this phenomenon.
Response 3: We added this point with the reference into Section 4.3 to regard it as a possibility that can be further investigated at the next step. Please see Line 500 and Line 501.
Yes, we indeed mentioned the contribution of soundscapes to human benefits. However, what we would like to express is the significance and importance of soundscape to human well-being through the empirical evidence in existing literature. Therefore, in this paradigm, the contribution of soundscape is the background and reason for how and why we set the objective of this study. This is also why the analysis of the linkages between these two elements is missing, because it is out of our scope.
- I recommend to add samples of soundtracks from representative points as a supplementary material in a digital form. The research on soundscape in relatively new and still many datasets are needed to carry out more comparative analyzes of soundscape studies globally.
Response 4: We completely agree and understand your point of view. This recommendation can indeed help advance soundscape research globally. We do have the soundtrack samples recorded in the study area, and would also like to contribute our efforts in this field. However, we are not considering providing such soundtracks currently. This is because, initially, we did not use and analyze these recordings at all in this study. Furthermore, these soundtrack samples are one of the essential datasets for another study of ours, which is still being processed and has not been published yet. Therefore, unfortunately, we are unable to submit these samples for this article at this time. Still, we would like to share them when another study (using these samples) is submitted.
Round 2
Reviewer 3 Report
Comments and Suggestions for AuthorsThe paper has been corrected according to my previous comments, therefore, in my opinion it can be published in the current form.
