European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - December 23, 1993, Darmstadt, Hesse By Hans Fanti the new York times no i did t Steep. I can never sleep on planes. But after More than eight hours Enright from Kennedy International in part i arrived in Vienna Austria apr singly rested and fresh. The noise Buster a new portable device combat stress and fatigue caused by ise did the trick. Basically a Small electronic Box wired to a pair of Sony dr-84 stereo headphones the system n create what seems like a personal land of quiet in noisy settings like planes Ains buses or factories. Ear plugs or Bulky ear protectors which n Cut Down the higher frequencies Are effective against Low droning sounds like Irp Tane engine noises which penetrate mechanical barriers. It is precisely such robbing vibrations that can cause tension and fatigue. Pointers 1 the noise Buster deals with sound of this kind by artificially creating Quot anti noise a which for the person wearing the earphones cancels the unwanted noise in the environment until now devices of this kind came with four figure prices and were used mainly by the military. At $149, the noise Buster made by noise cancellation technologies inc. Of Stamford conn., is the first Model priced for the average consumer. A similar kind of anti noise Headset is under development by the Koss corp. Of Milwaukee the largest maker of earphones in the United states. The device uses a technology known As Active noise cancellation in which unwanted sound Waves Are snuffed out by the sound Waves of the same frequency but in opposite phase. It As if a 2-foot Ocean wave were to meet a 2-foot trough. The result would be Flat water. So too when a sound wave meets its Mirror opposite a sonic Canvis created. As a journalist who writes about audio equipment i was Lent a noise Buster for a working vacation with my wife Shea to my native Austria. When i slipped on the earphones during the flight it suddenly seemed that the plane a two engine Airbus 320, had stopped flying and was quietly hovering in midair. A person tends to associate engine noise with motion so when the noise stops we think the plane is standing still. Very relaxing. Despite the feeling of sonic privacy i was t really isolated. My wife sitting next to me could easily talk with me because the noise Buster does not Block frequencies above 1,500 Hertz that make human speech intelligible but because the lower frequencies were missing it sounded As if she were talking on the Telephone. new ways to Airport n London Frankfurt by the new York times Virgin Atlantic airways and Lufthansa German airlines ave recently devised some creative ways of ferrying sengers to two of Europe s busiest airports. Business class passengers on Virgin Atlantic airways of have a novel if potentially hair raising Way of Riding the Limo lock that can make the trip to Jathrow Airport As Lone As 90 minutes. Specially adapted motorcycles zip through traffic whisking the Aveler from Central London to the Airport in less than if an hour. The new Virgin motorcycles Are fitted with hands free Leppones heated leather seats and running boards and Ter coms that allow passengers to communicate with they Are Short on storage space a passengers allowed Only one Small suitcase a and of course is. Passengers Are provided with weather proof thing. The motorcycles Are available free to passengers. Veling upper class business class on the line s flights new York los Angeles and Tokyo. As with Virgin s limousine Transfer service which Mains available free to business class passengers the Ato cycles will pick up passengers from anywhere in Ndon or the surrounding counties and take them to throw. Since last May Lufthansa has been using regularly Hedu Ted German rail intercity trains so passengers now be a Choice of 16 trains daily to and from the Frankfurt port stopping at the Bonn Cologne and Dusseldorf main Elway stations an additional four trains link Frankfurt or Porto Stuttgart s main railway station. In the past Lufthansa ran a special Airport train four a Les a Day Between Frankfurt Bonn Cologne and a amps Dave Casoy travellers Tine up at Lufthansa s Check in counter at the Frankfurt Airport. get a seat in the first class rail compartments reserved for Lufthansa passengers should Book their rail tickets when they Book their flights. Those flying out of Frankfurt can Check their Luggage at Lufthansa counters at Aschaffenbur Bonn Cologne Dusseldorf Koblenz Nurnberg Stuttgart and Wurzburg railway stations up to 24 hours before their flights Are scheduled to depart. Passengers receive their air plane boarding passes at the train station counter. Ganda drops visa requirements to attract tourists to Kampala Uganda a the. Jug Ern ment has waived visa requirements for visitors from 32 countries in a bid to attract More tourists i a this is to facilitate the Quick and convenient flow of tace tourists said wildlife and tourism minister James Wapak Fabulo. The new regulations apply to visitors from All european Community members and scandinavian countries the United states most Middle Eastern nations several far Eastern countries Australia and new zealand. Tourists began avoiding Uganda once known As the Quot Pearl of Africa Quot after a 1971 coup by dictator Idi Amin. They continued doing so after his ouster nine years later due to continuing military take overs and civil War. Uganda began reviving its tourism Industry in 1989 after the Price of Coffee then the main foreign currency earner plummeted in the world Market. The government Hopes tourism will again begin pulling in hard currency for Uganda in 1970, tourism brought in a third of the nation s foreign currency earnings. Other ambient noise a a Rushing sound reminiscent of Ocean surf also persisted. But the More disturbing growl of the aircraft was virtually the movie groundhog Day started in raid at Flutts i plugged the noise Buster into the electronic earphone outlet on the armrest. Although it was a rather tame movie i Vas surprised that the crucial scenes seemed to pack quite an emotional punch. Later i figured out Why. The muffled Roar of background noise that normally flattens the dialogue of in flight movies had been filtered out by the noise Buster. The actors vocal nuances came through Crisp and Clear. Although it can make plane travel More restful the noise Buster can t eliminate Jet lag. After All it can t change time zones or reset the diurnal clock we All carry in our biological systems. So i still woke up at Odd hours after arriving in Austria and i got hungry at the wrong times. Countries from wire reports an Ever growing number of countries Are requiring his testing for foreign visitors says the state department which has just updated its list of entry requirements worldwide. Most countries require the test Only for those making extended visits a a students or applicants for work permits. While testing is done after arrival in some countries others permit testing stateside roundabout before departure under certain conditions. Check with the country s embassy for details. For a copy of Quot his testing requirements for entry into foreign countries Send a self addressed stamped business size envelope to the Bureau of consular affairs room 5807, department of state Washington . 20520 or request the document from the department s fax retrieval system 202 647-3000. A learn the Art of peaceful coexistence at the Oasis of peace guest House in the Arab jewish Village of Neve shalom what As Salam in Israel. The name Means Oasis of peace in hebrew and arabic and the Village Midway Between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv was established in 1972 to prove that arabs arid jews can live together in a Bicu Tural setting. Rooms in the air conditioned guest House Wilh private Baths individual terraces and commanding views Start at $21 per person double occupancy rooms in the youth Hostel Start at $14 per person including breakfast. Two hour Tours of the Village Are also available for $5 per person. If you can t find peace Here where can you find it information and reservations american friends of Neve shalom what As Salam 212 226-9246. Sleeping in Paris will be a Little More expensive next year. The City is set to impose beginning Jan. 1, a surtax on hotels and campsites ranging from $.1.20 per Day per person in Tbs luxury lodgings to 17 cents per Day per guest for alfresco accommodations. # Queen Elizabeth ii is counting on More Lup in footing the $60 million Bill for at Windsor Castle damaged by fire last year. Beginning Jan. 1, visitors will be charged one fee of about $12 for Entrance to the Castle s grounds the state apartments the gallery and St. George s Chapel. Previously visitors could stroll for free but had to pay for each attraction. Div Ember 21, 19 j stripes Magazine 21
