A room so quiet that you can hear your own breathing, the beating of your heart, the rush of blood in your veins. Can such a thing exist? A place where the echo doesn’t work, where one’s mind is scattered after a few minutes. In a room known as Microsoft’s anechoic chamber, supposedly no one lasts 60 minutes. It’s also known as the world’s quietest room. There’s even talk that anyone who lasts over an hour will receive a cash reward. However, this has only been spread on social media and Microsoft has never officially released any information about the payout.

Microsoft has its own audio lab, which is part of the B87 building. This is where the anechoic chamber is located, literally an echo chamber without an echo. It is considered one of the quietest places in the world. This chamber is used to test the sound characteristics of equipment such as microphones, speakers and headphones.

It’s not just the usual silence

If a normal room is quiet, people can constantly hear the creaking of a door, the cracking of the floor, their own heartbeat or their own breathing. It is very difficult to imagine complete silence because we always hear at least something. However, in the Microsoft room, the sound level is set at -20 dB, which is extremely quiet, much quieter than in normal empty rooms with no sounds.

Usually in soundless rooms, people report that they begin to perceive body noises. Heartbeat, blood in the veins, joints creaking. Many people find this uncomfortable. In the supposedly quietest room in the world, this happens almost as soon as one enters it. People find these sensations very uncomfortable, leading to psychological disturbance.

Instead of disorientation

In a room without sound, time passes differently for many people. A person locked in such a space becomes disoriented and confused. Most people feel they have been in the space for hours, but in reality it is only a matter of minutes. It is said that no one has ever lasted longer than 60 minutes in a Microsoft room. But this is not officially confirmed information.

What is certain is that there is a person who has managed to stay in the space for about 45 minutes. So it’s certainly true that there is a room that is very uncomfortable for people to be in, where they can literally hear the fluids flowing through their body. But a lot of the information is very inaccurate and Microsoft itself has never confirmed what is being said on social media.

So if you believe that no one has ever lasted an hour in a room, that someone who does will one day get a large financial reward, you’re probably just part of the group of people who have been caught out by the fake news spreading on social media.

How long do psychologists think you can last in a room like that? It’s very subjective. Experts agree that while some would have to leave after just a few minutes, there are individuals who are able to endure even extreme silence for tens of minutes. It depends on mental stamina, the ability to tolerate one’s own bodily sensations and possible claustrophobia.