These houses don't prevent collaboration - they can be moved around, windows and doors can be open. The difficulty with open spaces/cubicles is that when you are not collaborating, some people won't think twice before interrupting you. When pair programming, it is different: the barrier to interruption seems higher when two programmers are working together. I think the type of 'zone' or 'flow' is different when pairing, too: not quite as deep, but easier to slip back into if you surface.

I have a really hard time zoning out chatter around me, and far too much of the chatter is completely irrelevant (e.g. personal grooming, youtube videos, etc).