If the notification beep in the Mastodon web interface is driving you nuts with its frequency, you can click the little "settings" icon on the top of the column and, for each type of event, can select whether the sound is played or not, whether it shows in the column (you can just filter likes or boosts out entirely if you like!), and whether it tries to give you a desktop notification.
huge reduction in anxiety since it no longer demands my attention :D