I’d like to see a decibel meter installed on the first floor of Paley. When it goes above a certain level (Craig LaBan, Inquirer Restaurant Critic in his reviews lists “Ideal is 75 decibels or less”) staff should take action calming groups down. 

There’s no question that it can get loud on the first floor of Paley Library – but that’s mostly true only of the west side where all the computers are located. Just as with any area where you have computers, students will gather to socialize and then it can get loud. We have looked into getting one of the meters you suggest. They actually have one in the TECH Center. Given the expense of this device we felt that it would not be the best use of our funding allocation.

If you believe it is too loud in this area here are some suggestions:

1. Find a quieter area of the library. We have designated quiet zones throughout the Paley Library. For example, the west side of the second floor. It is also quite quiet in the Media Services area on the lower level.
2. If you need to work in the computer area on the first floor and a group of students is really loud, go to the service desk and report it to someone at the desk. Our service desk staff will ask students to tone it down, but we can’t expect this area to be always be 75 decibels or less.
3. Did you try to check out the flex study area on the first floor in the computer area. We have some sound-dampening walls that you can fold out to make an on-the-fly study space. There are some work tables there. You may find this is a slightly quieter space to do your work.

We hope these tips are helpful to you. Thanks for sharing this suggestion.