New “Tranquility Rating” Measures How Different Environments Invoke Relaxation
Nowadays, LEED ratings are fairly commonplace and help keep architectural projects in line with the nature and conscious of environmental impact.
But what about the “good vibes” of the space? Turns out science has a way of measuring that too.
The Highline, NYC
The Highline, NYC
Skygarden, in Seoul, South Korea
Skygarden, in Seoul, South Korea
Ford Foundation - NYC
MFO Park - Zurich
MFO Park - Zurich
According to Science Daily, a team of researchers has developed a Tranquility Rating Prediction Tool (TRAPT), the culmination of ten years of careful research. The results were recently published in Urban Forestry and Urban Greening and outlined how the system works and how it can applied.
TRAPT offers a scientific, quantitative means of measuring and understanding the importance of nature and greenery in designed spaces…
As the scientists behind the tool explain, the score is developed by studying three distinct categories of a space: soundscape (like the presence of cars and traffic), landscape, and “moderating factors” (which encompasses the visibility of organic features like trees, shrubs, flowers, or water). From these three categories, a number is calculated between 1 to 10. For city planners, architects, and anyone else working on infrastructure scales, TRAPT offers a scientific, quantitative means of measuring and understanding the importance of nature and greenery in designed spaces and how different choices can influence the space.
Developed in response to the increasing body of research around nature-based wellness, TRAPT unites trends like earthing and flower gazing meditations with a more concrete sense of why and how they work. (Gwenyth Paltrow has often come under fire for not being able to back up GOOP’s claims.) For more natural, holistic modes of healing, TRAPT is an important step forward and a significant uniting of Western medicine and more “hippie dippie” alternatives.
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