Neuroscience of Water – Seeing it, Hearing it

Water has been and will remain crucial to our species continued existence—so, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that neuroscientists have studied how seeing and hearing water influences what goes on in our heads, how it leads us to feel and yes, even to behave.

Rigorous studies have determined, for example, that:

• The positive implications of seeing and hearing water result when the water experience aligns with the sort of water our ancient ancestors would have experienced in a lovely meadow on a good-weather day.That means water that’s moving, quietly and gently—as a burbling brook does.  Water that brings to mind bad weather degrades our mood and experience. Researchers have shared that we may prefer shiny surfaces today to matte ones because in out prehistory potable water and water sources seen from a distance, for example, were likely to have shiny, reflective surfaces.
• Including water inside buildings and outside them, so that it can be experienced in-house or via views or open-air sojourns, can improve our mood as well as our mental performance, all while revitalizing our brains after they become exhausted by too much focused thinking and helping us feel less stressed.Water that can be seen and/or heard is an important tenet of biophilic design.
• We prefer views, natural or human influenced, with water in them (or at least some evidence that water is nearby) to those without it.
• Research consistently shows that looking at water, even relatively small amounts of it, is mentally refreshing. For example, people looking into a courtyard that’s devoid of nature are just as refreshed as people looking at a green nature scene if there is a small fountain with gently moving water in that courtyard.  Seeing water refreshes our mind, whether that water is naturally occurring or in some sort of man-made display.
• Being able to see water from home has been linked to being more physically healthy. Seeing water in a swimming pool can bring down our blood pressure; needless to say, seeing water in nature has the same effects on how hard our heart is working.
• Seeing water may also make us, at least for the moment, better humans, more generous, trusting, and helpful, for example.
• Hearing gently moving water (inside and outdoors) is just as desirable as seeing it. Doing so relaxes us and refreshes our minds (whether those nature sounds are masking other noises or not), helping us feel less stressed and our brains do their best work, on standard knowledge work type thinking and when creativity is key.  Hearing gently moving water can also have as desirable an effect on our physical health as seeing it.  Even thinking that a sound is naturally and gently moving water makes us think hearing it is mentally refreshing (even if the sound is actually something entirely different, humans are indeed a suggestible lot).
• Moodsonic (2022) reports that “EEG and Heart Rate data were recorded from 10 participants within an [real-world] office in London.  Each participant listened to a Moodsonic Soundscape (lapping lake waves) . . . and typical office sounds while they performed a series of tasks; Stroop Test (cognition), Alternative Uses Test (creativity).  . . . Comparative measures were taken from the typical office sounds and Moodsonic soundscape conditions to compare states of relaxation, engagement, creativity and speed of correct completion. The Moodsonic soundscape increased the relaxation response in individuals compared to typical office sounds.  . . . Participants were able to focus better, with greater attention, as reflected by the increased speed of correct completion of the cognitive tasks when listening to the Moodsonic soundscape. . . . Participants scored higher in creativity, as measured by the number of answers provided in the Divergent Thinking Task [when listening to the lapping waves].”
• If you have a fish tank, the effort required to keep all your piscine friends alive is worth it. Looking at even empty tanks is calming (it lowers our blood pressure, for instance) and mentally refreshing, and adding swimming fish increases the moving water’s effects.
• And yes, looking at water in art, paintings or photographs, still or moving, real or virtual, has the same effects on what goes on in our heads as being the in presence of actual water or seeing it through a window.
• All water seems good, but not all are equal.Luo, Yu, and Jiang (2023) “conduct[ed] a photograph-based experimental study to examine individual mental responses . . . to three types of bluespace (Falling, Flowing, and Static bluespaces) and one control condition (Streetspaces). The participants were assigned to view four conditions individually in a laboratory. The effect of each condition on mental health was primarily measured using a portable electroencephalogram (EEG) device that continuously recorded brainwaves throughout each contact. We then administered the Restorative Components Scale (RCS) questionnaire as a secondary measure to the participants. . . . contact with all three types of bluespace significantly promoted mental health compared to Streetspace. . . . Falling bluespace was found to be the most beneficial type, as contact with it yielded the highest level of alpha brainwaves, the lowest level of beta brainwaves, and the highest scores on the RCS questionnaire. . . . three-minute contact with bluespaces is sufficient to promote mental health.”