Ever feel like your office is a little too loud and distracting? Or have those moments when you're at home and you think it's quiet, but then you start to hear the hum of the refrigerator and the low rumble of distant traffic? Maybe you'd like a holiday to the quietest place in the world - though be warned, you're probably not prepared for what total silence does to the human brain.

When I walk into my local cycling studio, the music is at a level that's easy to talk over. But once the instructor clips in, the volume goes way up. The sound fills your ears, so you can't hear the person next to you breathing heavy. You feel like you're inside the song, which helps you to really feel its energy. Perfect volume, right?

It's not just you -- shows and movies can be really loud. Carrying earplugs in your purse or pocket might sound like the kind of thing a cranky old person might do, but if you want to be able to complain about things like theatre noise when you're ancient, it's best to protect your hearing now.

When you live in an apartment building with other people, you're bound to encounter at least one tenant who is a bit noisier than the rest. Whether it's excessively loud music, lovemaking or whatever, here's how to approach the situation without being an equally obnoxious neighbour.

I spend most of my day on a computer. When I'm not working I spend my spare time programming or blogging. When I take a break I spend it looking at my phone. One of the problems with all this time spent looking at screens is the amount of digital clutter these habits have created in my life.

Shhh. Hear that? No? That's surprising. Odds are, you can hear something right now: A siren, the hum of a fan, the blur of background conversations, the ticking of a watch. It's seldom our worlds are fully silent -- so seldom that complete silence feels shocking.

It can seem like our lives are filled with busyness, noise, distractions and often meaningless activities. What if we could filter out all that noise, and focus on the meaningful? What if we could find stillness instead of constant distraction?

It's game day. You want to be as loud as you possibly can so people know who you're cheering for, and so you can mess with the opposing team's heads. Here are your best options.

If you like to wake up to a smoothie every morning, or mix up a milkshake at night, a loud blender has the potential to wake up everyone in your household. Here's a simple trick to help quiet it down.

Dear Lifehacker, our neighbour has a drone equipped with a camera. We have not given him permission to film our residential property and have previously told him we feel it's an invasion of our privacy. Today at approximately 3pm, he was within one metre of our rear deck (not visible from street). In addition to possibly filming us, the drone was quite noisy. Is this noise pollution? Is it trespassing? An invasion of privacy? Please help!

Loud environments like concerts, clubs, and sporting events aren't well suited for conversations with your friends, but if you need to exchange a few words, try plugging your ears and speaking in a normal voice.

A global survey into the effectiveness of open plan offices has found that most workers believe they are noisy environments that hamper productivity. Around half of respondents admitted they regularly used quiet meeting rooms or elected to work from home to avoid office racket. What do you think is the worst thing about open plan working environments?

If your computer is running a little loud for your tastes, it's probably because your fans are running at full speed -- even if they don't need to be. Here are a few ways to manage your fan's speed so they're keeping your computer cool when they're necessary and silent when they're not.

We've previously pointed out tools like SimplyNoise for the generation of white noise to drown out other sounds. The Scientific American suggests that, for some workers, steady background noise might actually increase stress levels and impair working memory.