Used to be offices not cubicles.

Not really for most people. When I interviewed with Boeing in the 80s, it was a room full of desks and no partitions with managers around the outside in offices. I did, at the time, have a job with another company where I had an office (though I spent most of my time on job sites) but offices for IC engineers were never the norm at most companies.

Cubicles are bad for collaboration: you can't easily hear all the conversations around you that have absolutely nothing to do with whatever you're working on. Corporate executives know that being constantly exposed to conversations on topics outside your expertise is great for collaboration and productivity.

I almost thought you were serious for a moment.

Sadly cubicles aren't very soundproof or private (but they are still better than open plan for people who need to concentrate or focus.)

University libraries tend to be somewhat open plan, though sometimes with study carrels, and students manage to get work done there. However they also typically quiet environments as well, there are no supervisors walking around, and falling asleep may be socially acceptable. The density might be better in some cases as well.

Cubicles obviously aren't soundproof of course, but they're normally made with cloth-covered walls that do a pretty good job of absorbing sound, so offices filled with cubicles tend to be fairly quiet, and conversations don't travel far.

Maybe in Japan...

If you think the laws of physics are different in different countries, I can't help you.

I think it's a reference to acceptable behaviour in different cultures. Tokyo station in rush hour is surprisingly quiet even though it's a sea of bodies.

Maybe, but my open-plan office here in Tokyo is much, much noisier than the cubicle farms I used to work in back in the US (back when cubicle farms were the norm).

It's not culture, it's physics. With a room full of a maze of cloth panels (which are specifically designed to absorb sound), sound is absorbed and can't bounce around the room, leading to much lower overall ambient noise levels.

You are joking, right? I have had managers saying just this with a straight face so I have to ask ...

We have separate offices for different teams (for the most part). Some are just glass walls and no doors (open in one end). Some are not really offices but partly divided by cubicle dividers. I feel that works pretty good. The most important thing is to divide the office up a bit so it's not just a huge open floor with desks.

And then there's "quiet offices" you can use if you need to take a sensitive call or have a quick meeting with 2-3 people.