WorldWideScience

Sample records for nonvocal communication sounds

  1. Vocal Imitations of Non-Vocal Sounds

    Science.gov (United States)

    Houix, Olivier; Voisin, Frédéric; Misdariis, Nicolas; Susini, Patrick

    2016-01-01

    Imitative behaviors are widespread in humans, in particular whenever two persons communicate and interact. Several tokens of spoken languages (onomatopoeias, ideophones, and phonesthemes) also display different degrees of iconicity between the sound of a word and what it refers to. Thus, it probably comes at no surprise that human speakers use a lot of imitative vocalizations and gestures when they communicate about sounds, as sounds are notably difficult to describe. What is more surprising is that vocal imitations of non-vocal everyday sounds (e.g. the sound of a car passing by) are in practice very effective: listeners identify sounds better with vocal imitations than with verbal descriptions, despite the fact that vocal imitations are inaccurate reproductions of a sound created by a particular mechanical system (e.g. a car driving by) through a different system (the voice apparatus). The present study investigated the semantic representations evoked by vocal imitations of sounds by experimentally quantifying how well listeners could match sounds to category labels. The experiment used three different types of sounds: recordings of easily identifiable sounds (sounds of human actions and manufactured products), human vocal imitations, and computational “auditory sketches” (created by algorithmic computations). The results show that performance with the best vocal imitations was similar to the best auditory sketches for most categories of sounds, and even to the referent sounds themselves in some cases. More detailed analyses showed that the acoustic distance between a vocal imitation and a referent sound is not sufficient to account for such performance. Analyses suggested that instead of trying to reproduce the referent sound as accurately as vocally possible, vocal imitations focus on a few important features, which depend on each particular sound category. These results offer perspectives for understanding how human listeners store and access long

  2. The songbird as a percussionist: syntactic rules for non-vocal sound and song production in Java sparrows.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Masayo Soma

    Full Text Available Music and dance are two remarkable human characteristics that are closely related. Communication through integrated vocal and motional signals is also common in the courtship displays of birds. The contribution of songbird studies to our understanding of vocal learning has already shed some light on the cognitive underpinnings of musical ability. Moreover, recent pioneering research has begun to show how animals can synchronize their behaviors with external stimuli, like metronome beats. However, few studies have applied such perspectives to unraveling how animals can integrate multimodal communicative signals that have natural functions. Additionally, studies have rarely asked how well these behaviors are learned. With this in mind, here we cast a spotlight on an unusual animal behavior: non-vocal sound production associated with singing in the Java sparrow (Lonchura oryzivora, a songbird. We show that male Java sparrows coordinate their bill-click sounds with the syntax of their song-note sequences, similar to percussionists. Analysis showed that they produced clicks frequently toward the beginning of songs and before/after specific song notes. We also show that bill-clicking patterns are similar between social fathers and their sons, suggesting that these behaviors might be learned from models or linked to learning-based vocalizations. Individuals untutored by conspecifics also exhibited stereotypical bill-clicking patterns in relation to song-note sequence, indicating that while the production of bill clicking itself is intrinsic, its syncopation appears to develop with songs. This paints an intriguing picture in which non-vocal sounds are integrated with vocal courtship signals in a songbird, a model that we expect will contribute to the further understanding of multimodal communication.

  3. Sounds of Modified Flight Feathers Reliably Signal Danger in a Pigeon.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Murray, Trevor G; Zeil, Jochen; Magrath, Robert D

    2017-11-20

    In his book on sexual selection, Darwin [1] devoted equal space to non-vocal and vocal communication in birds. Since then, vocal communication has become a model for studies of neurobiology, learning, communication, evolution, and conservation [2, 3]. In contrast, non-vocal "instrumental music," as Darwin called it, has only recently become subject to sustained inquiry [4, 5]. In particular, outstanding work reveals how feathers, often highly modified, produce distinctive sounds [6-9], and suggests that these sounds have evolved at least 70 times, in many orders [10]. It remains to be shown, however, that such sounds are signals used in communication. Here we show that crested pigeons (Ochyphaps lophotes) signal alarm with specially modified wing feathers. We used video and feather-removal experiments to demonstrate that the highly modified 8 th primary wing feather (P8) produces a distinct note during each downstroke. The sound changes with wingbeat frequency, so that birds fleeing danger produce wing sounds with a higher tempo. Critically, a playback experiment revealed that only if P8 is present does the sound of escape flight signal danger. Our results therefore indicate, nearly 150 years after Darwin's book, that modified feathers can be used for non-vocal communication, and they reveal an intrinsically reliable alarm signal. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  4. Moth hearing and sound communication

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Nakano, Ryo; Takanashi, Takuma; Surlykke, Annemarie

    2015-01-01

    Active echolocation enables bats to orient and hunt the night sky for insects. As a counter-measure against the severe predation pressure many nocturnal insects have evolved ears sensitive to ultrasonic bat calls. In moths bat-detection was the principal purpose of hearing, as evidenced by compar......Active echolocation enables bats to orient and hunt the night sky for insects. As a counter-measure against the severe predation pressure many nocturnal insects have evolved ears sensitive to ultrasonic bat calls. In moths bat-detection was the principal purpose of hearing, as evidenced...... by comparable hearing physiology with best sensitivity in the bat echolocation range, 20–60 kHz, across moths in spite of diverse ear morphology. Some eared moths subsequently developed sound-producing organs to warn/startle/jam attacking bats and/or to communicate intraspecifically with sound. Not only...... the sounds for interaction with bats, but also mating signals are within the frequency range where bats echolocate, indicating that sound communication developed after hearing by “sensory exploitation”. Recent findings on moth sound communication reveal that close-range (~ a few cm) communication with low...

  5. 'Non-vocalization': a phonological error process in the speech of severely and profoundly hearing impaired adults, from the point of view of the theory of phonology as human behaviour.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Halpern, Orly; Tobin, Yishai

    2008-01-01

    'Non-vocalization' (N-V) is a newly described phonological error process in hearing impaired speakers. In N-V the hearing impaired person actually articulates the phoneme but without producing a voice. The result is an error process looking as if it is produced but sounding as if it is omitted. N-V was discovered by video recording the speech of two groups, profoundly and severely hearing impaired adults in four elicitation tasks of varying difficulty, and analysing 2065 phonological error processes (substitutions, omissions, and N-V) according to 24 criteria resulting in 49,560 data points. Results, which are discussed in view of the theory 'Phonology as Human Behaviour' (PHB), indicate that: (a) The more communicative the error process was; the more effort was made for its production and the more frequent its distribution; (b) The easier the elicitation task was, the more frequent the use of communicative error processes; c) The more difficult the elicitation task was, the more frequent the use of the relatively less communicative and easier to produce error processes; and d) The process of N-V functioned like a communicative error process for the group of profoundly hearing impaired adults.

  6. "Non-Vocalization": A Phonological Error Process in the Speech of Severely and Profoundly Hearing Impaired Adults, from the Point of View of the Theory of Phonology as Human Behaviour

    Science.gov (United States)

    Halpern, Orly; Tobin, Yishai

    2008-01-01

    "Non-vocalization" (N-V) is a newly described phonological error process in hearing impaired speakers. In N-V the hearing impaired person actually articulates the phoneme but without producing a voice. The result is an error process looking as if it is produced but sounding as if it is omitted. N-V was discovered by video recording the speech of…

  7. Does competitive employment improve nonvocational outcomes for people with severe mental illness?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bond, G R; Resnick, S G; Drake, R E; Xie, H; McHugo, G J; Bebout, R R

    2001-06-01

    The authors examined the cumulative effects of work on symptoms, quality of life, and self-esteem for 149 unemployed clients with severe mental illness receiving vocational rehabilitation. Nonvocational measures were assessed at 6-month intervals throughout the 18-month study period, and vocational activity was tracked continuously. On the basis of their predominant work activity over the study period, participants were classified into 4 groups: competitive work, sheltered work, minimal work, and no work. The groups did not differ at baseline on any of the nonvocational measures. Using mixed effects regression analysis to examine rates of change over time, the authors found that the competitive work group showed higher rates of improvement in symptoms; in satisfaction with vocational services, leisure, and finances; and in self-esteem than did participants in a combined minimal work-no work group. The sheltered work group showed no such advantage.

  8. How do auditory cortex neurons represent communication sounds?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gaucher, Quentin; Huetz, Chloé; Gourévitch, Boris; Laudanski, Jonathan; Occelli, Florian; Edeline, Jean-Marc

    2013-11-01

    A major goal in auditory neuroscience is to characterize how communication sounds are represented at the cortical level. The present review aims at investigating the role of auditory cortex in the processing of speech, bird songs and other vocalizations, which all are spectrally and temporally highly structured sounds. Whereas earlier studies have simply looked for neurons exhibiting higher firing rates to particular conspecific vocalizations over their modified, artificially synthesized versions, more recent studies determined the coding capacity of temporal spike patterns, which are prominent in primary and non-primary areas (and also in non-auditory cortical areas). In several cases, this information seems to be correlated with the behavioral performance of human or animal subjects, suggesting that spike-timing based coding strategies might set the foundations of our perceptive abilities. Also, it is now clear that the responses of auditory cortex neurons are highly nonlinear and that their responses to natural stimuli cannot be predicted from their responses to artificial stimuli such as moving ripples and broadband noises. Since auditory cortex neurons cannot follow rapid fluctuations of the vocalizations envelope, they only respond at specific time points during communication sounds, which can serve as temporal markers for integrating the temporal and spectral processing taking place at subcortical relays. Thus, the temporal sparse code of auditory cortex neurons can be considered as a first step for generating high level representations of communication sounds independent of the acoustic characteristic of these sounds. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled "Communication Sounds and the Brain: New Directions and Perspectives". Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  9. Sound induced activity in voice sensitive cortex predicts voice memory ability

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rebecca eWatson

    2012-04-01

    Full Text Available The ‘temporal voice areas’ (TVAs (Belin et al., 2000 of the human brain show greater neuronal activity in response to human voices than to other categories of nonvocal sounds. However, a direct link between TVA activity and voice perceptionbehaviour has not yet been established. Here we show that a functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI measure of activity in the TVAs predicts individual performance at a separately administered voice memory test. This relation holds whengeneral sound memory ability is taken into account. These findings provide the first evidence that the TVAs are specifically involved in voice cognition.

  10. Type and severity of pain during phonation in professional voice users and nonvocal professionals.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Van Lierde, Kristiane M; Dijckmans, Joke; Scheffel, Lara; Behlau, Mara

    2012-09-01

    The purpose of this study was to determine the presence, frequency, and intensity of pain during speaking in professional voice users and nonvocal professionals and to determine if the presence of pain is significantly related with the profile of the professional voice user. Based on the available literature, significantly more pain symptoms in professional voice users can be hypothesized. Sample survey. To characterize the presence, type, and degree of pain symptoms during speaking, a questionnaire was used. Pain severity was measured by means of a numerical rating scale. Fifty-five (176/320) percent of the nonvocal professionals and 84% (698/832) of the professional voice users mentioned the presence of one or more pain symptoms during speaking. Throat pain was mentioned as the most common pain in both the professional and nonvocal professional voice users. The professional voice users showed significantly more throat, neck, shoulder, headache, ear, and back pain. Moreover, the intensity of throat pain was significantly increased in the professional voice users. This study showed evidence that several types of pain are present with significantly greater frequency in professional voice users. Vocal screening strategies, diagnostic, and treatment protocols should include the assessment of the type and severity of pain. Currently, the voice clinic is working on improving the diagnostic protocol with the objective of defining the combination of tests, which best diagnose voice problems and related complaints and which evaluate progress in vocal characteristics and pain after rehabilitation. Copyright © 2012 The Voice Foundation. Published by Mosby, Inc. All rights reserved.

  11. Suppression of sound radiation to far field of near-field acoustic communication system using evanescent sound field

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fujii, Ayaka; Wakatsuki, Naoto; Mizutani, Koichi

    2016-01-01

    A method of suppressing sound radiation to the far field of a near-field acoustic communication system using an evanescent sound field is proposed. The amplitude of the evanescent sound field generated from an infinite vibrating plate attenuates exponentially with increasing a distance from the surface of the vibrating plate. However, a discontinuity of the sound field exists at the edge of the finite vibrating plate in practice, which broadens the wavenumber spectrum. A sound wave radiates over the evanescent sound field because of broadening of the wavenumber spectrum. Therefore, we calculated the optimum distribution of the particle velocity on the vibrating plate to reduce the broadening of the wavenumber spectrum. We focused on a window function that is utilized in the field of signal analysis for reducing the broadening of the frequency spectrum. The optimization calculation is necessary for the design of window function suitable for suppressing sound radiation and securing a spatial area for data communication. In addition, a wide frequency bandwidth is required to increase the data transmission speed. Therefore, we investigated a suitable method for calculating the sound pressure level at the far field to confirm the variation of the distribution of sound pressure level determined on the basis of the window shape and frequency. The distribution of the sound pressure level at a finite distance was in good agreement with that obtained at an infinite far field under the condition generating the evanescent sound field. Consequently, the window function was optimized by the method used to calculate the distribution of the sound pressure level at an infinite far field using the wavenumber spectrum on the vibrating plate. According to the result of comparing the distributions of the sound pressure level in the cases with and without the window function, it was confirmed that the area whose sound pressure level was reduced from the maximum level to -50 dB was

  12. Communicative and narrative sound in Village

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Have, Iben

    2010-01-01

    The soundtrack of the TV spot Village tells a story of its own. Some of the sounds communicate meaning very close to the visuals, for example by creating an African soundscape. But the soundtrack also supplies narrative elements of its own, which is most remarkable when it adds a happy ending...

  13. Unconditional Positive Regard, Empathetic Listening, and the Impact of Digital Text Driven Communication

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cuny, Kimberly M.

    2012-01-01

    Generally speaking, Generation N students are known to enjoy working in groups yet they often do not communicate effectively when measured by traditional expectations. This activity calls into question the impact that our daily nonvocal digital communicating has on our ability to empathetically listen.

  14. The Picture Exchange Communication System.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bondy, A; Frost, L

    2001-10-01

    The Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS) is an alternative/augmentative communication system that was developed to teach functional communication to children with limited speech. The approach is unique in that it teaches children to initiate communicative interactions within a social framework. This article describes the advantages to implementing PECS over traditional approaches. The PECS training protocol is described wherein children are taught to exchange a single picture for a desired item and eventually to construct picture-based sentences and use a variety of attributes in their requests. The relationship of PECS's implementation to the development of speech in previously nonvocal students is reviewed.

  15. Primate auditory recognition memory performance varies with sound type.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ng, Chi-Wing; Plakke, Bethany; Poremba, Amy

    2009-10-01

    Neural correlates of auditory processing, including for species-specific vocalizations that convey biological and ethological significance (e.g., social status, kinship, environment), have been identified in a wide variety of areas including the temporal and frontal cortices. However, few studies elucidate how non-human primates interact with these vocalization signals when they are challenged by tasks requiring auditory discrimination, recognition and/or memory. The present study employs a delayed matching-to-sample task with auditory stimuli to examine auditory memory performance of rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta), wherein two sounds are determined to be the same or different. Rhesus macaques seem to have relatively poor short-term memory with auditory stimuli, and we examine if particular sound types are more favorable for memory performance. Experiment 1 suggests memory performance with vocalization sound types (particularly monkey), are significantly better than when using non-vocalization sound types, and male monkeys outperform female monkeys overall. Experiment 2, controlling for number of sound exemplars and presentation pairings across types, replicates Experiment 1, demonstrating better performance or decreased response latencies, depending on trial type, to species-specific monkey vocalizations. The findings cannot be explained by acoustic differences between monkey vocalizations and the other sound types, suggesting the biological, and/or ethological meaning of these sounds are more effective for auditory memory. 2009 Elsevier B.V.

  16. Speech versus singing: Infants choose happier sounds

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Marieve eCorbeil

    2013-06-01

    Full Text Available Infants prefer speech to non-vocal sounds and to non-human vocalizations, and they prefer happy-sounding speech to neutral speech. They also exhibit an interest in singing, but there is little knowledge of their relative interest in speech and singing. The present study explored infants’ attention to unfamiliar audio samples of speech and singing. In Experiment 1, infants 4-13 months of age were exposed to happy-sounding infant-directed speech versus hummed lullabies by the same woman. They listened significantly longer to the speech, which had considerably greater acoustic variability and expressiveness, than to the lullabies. In Experiment 2, infants of comparable age who heard the lyrics of a Turkish children’s song spoken versus sung in a joyful/happy manner did not exhibit differential listening. Infants in Experiment 3 heard the happily sung lyrics of the Turkish children’s song versus a version that was spoken in an adult-directed or affectively neutral manner. They listened significantly longer to the sung version. Overall, happy voice quality rather than vocal mode (speech or singing was the principal contributor to infant attention, regardless of age.

  17. Sex-specific asymmetries in communication sound perception are not related to hand preference in an early primate

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    Scheumann Marina

    2008-01-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Left hemispheric dominance of language processing and handedness, previously thought to be unique to humans, is currently under debate. To gain an insight into the origin of lateralization in primates, we have studied gray mouse lemurs, suggested to represent the most ancestral primate condition. We explored potential functional asymmetries on the behavioral level by applying a combined handedness and auditory perception task. For testing handedness, we used a forced food-grasping task. For testing auditory perception, we adapted the head turn paradigm, originally established for exploring hemispheric specializations in conspecific sound processing in Old World monkeys, and exposed 38 subjects to control sounds and conspecific communication sounds of positive and negative emotional valence. Results The tested mouse lemur population did not show an asymmetry in hand preference or in orientation towards conspecific communication sounds. However, males, but not females, exhibited a significant right ear-left hemisphere bias when exposed to conspecific communication sounds of negative emotional valence. Orientation asymmetries were not related to hand preference. Conclusion Our results provide the first evidence for sex-specific asymmetries for conspecific communication sound perception in non-human primates. Furthermore, they suggest that hemispheric dominance for communication sound processing evolved before handedness and independently from each other.

  18. Underwater sound from vessel traffic reduces the effective communication range in Atlantic cod and haddock.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stanley, Jenni A; Van Parijs, Sofie M; Hatch, Leila T

    2017-11-07

    Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary is located in Massachusetts Bay off the densely populated northeast coast of the United States; subsequently, the marine inhabitants of the area are exposed to elevated levels of anthropogenic underwater sound, particularly due to commercial shipping. The current study investigated the alteration of estimated effective communication spaces at three spawning locations for populations of the commercially and ecologically important fishes, Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua) and haddock (Melanogrammus aeglefinus). Both the ambient sound pressure levels and the estimated effective vocalization radii, estimated through spherical spreading models, fluctuated dramatically during the three-month recording periods. Increases in sound pressure level appeared to be largely driven by large vessel activity, and accordingly exhibited a significant positive correlation with the number of Automatic Identification System tracked vessels at the two of the three sites. The near constant high levels of low frequency sound and consequential reduction in the communication space observed at these recording sites during times of high vocalization activity raises significant concerns that communication between conspecifics may be compromised during critical biological periods. This study takes the first steps in evaluating these animals' communication spaces and alteration of these spaces due to anthropogenic underwater sound.

  19. Cortical representations of communication sounds.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Heiser, Marc A; Cheung, Steven W

    2008-10-01

    This review summarizes recent research into cortical processing of vocalizations in animals and humans. There has been a resurgent interest in this topic accompanied by an increased number of studies using animal models with complex vocalizations and new methods in human brain imaging. Recent results from such studies are discussed. Experiments have begun to reveal the bilateral cortical fields involved in communication sound processing and the transformations of neural representations that occur among those fields. Advances have also been made in understanding the neuronal basis of interaction between developmental exposures and behavioral experiences with vocalization perception. Exposure to sounds during the developmental period produces large effects on brain responses, as do a variety of specific trained tasks in adults. Studies have also uncovered a neural link between the motor production of vocalizations and the representation of vocalizations in cortex. Parallel experiments in humans and animals are answering important questions about vocalization processing in the central nervous system. This dual approach promises to reveal microscopic, mesoscopic, and macroscopic principles of large-scale dynamic interactions between brain regions that underlie the complex phenomenon of vocalization perception. Such advances will yield a greater understanding of the causes, consequences, and treatment of disorders related to speech processing.

  20. Teaching Children with Autism to Engage in Peer-Directed Mands Using a Picture Exchange Communication System

    Science.gov (United States)

    Paden, Amber R.; Kodak, Tiffany; Fisher, Wayne W.; Gawley-Bullington, Elizabeth M.; Bouxsein, Kelly J.

    2012-01-01

    We evaluated differential reinforcement of alternative behavior (DRA) plus prompting to increase peer-directed mands for preferred items using a picture exchange communication system (PECS). Two nonvocal individuals with autism participated. Independent mands with a peer increased with the implementation of DRA plus prompting for both…

  1. El sonido de los medios The Sounds of Media. An Interdisciplinary Review of Research on Sound as Communication

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Klaus Bruhn Jensen

    2010-03-01

    el sonido se ha puesto de moda.Sound remains significantly underresearched as a form of communication, as a modality of experience, and as a resource for cultural expression and social interaction. This is in spite of the centrality of sound in most media and communicative practices, including face-to-face interaction and digital networks. Recent years, however, have witnessed a revitalized interest internationally in the area. This review revisits previous research on three sound prototypes – speech, music, and environmental soundscapes – which has mostly been undertaken in separate disciplines: rhetoric, philology, linguistics, classical musicology, popular music studies, architecture, discourse analysis, and more. The article, further, outlines the potential for more interdisciplinary research on sound as communication – as a source of meaning and as a resource for action. This potential is suggested by the diffusion of mobile media and the pervasiveness of communication in everyday contexts. At present, ordinary media users are in position, not only to receive, but also to send diverse forms of auditory, visual, as well as textual information. Users are becoming senders in new configurations of one-to-one, one-to-many, and, increasingly, many-to-many communication. Ubiquitous soundscapes and other mediascapes are even challenging received notions of what a ‘medium’ is and could be. In conclusion, the article suggests that the growing current interest in sound studies itself may be the product of a reconfigured media environment in which sound has come back in style.

  2. Complex coevolution of wing, tail, and vocal sounds of courting male bee hummingbirds.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Clark, Christopher J; McGuire, Jimmy A; Bonaccorso, Elisa; Berv, Jacob S; Prum, Richard O

    2018-03-01

    Phenotypic characters with a complex physical basis may have a correspondingly complex evolutionary history. Males in the "bee" hummingbird clade court females with sound from tail-feathers, which flutter during display dives. On a phylogeny of 35 species, flutter sound frequency evolves as a gradual, continuous character on most branches. But on at least six internal branches fall two types of major, saltational changes: mode of flutter changes, or the feather that is the sound source changes, causing frequency to jump from one discrete value to another. In addition to their tail "instruments," males also court females with sound from their syrinx and wing feathers, and may transfer or switch instruments over evolutionary time. In support of this, we found a negative phylogenetic correlation between presence of wing trills and singing. We hypothesize this transference occurs because wing trills and vocal songs serve similar functions and are thus redundant. There are also three independent origins of self-convergence of multiple signals, in which the same species produces both a vocal (sung) frequency sweep, and a highly similar nonvocal sound. Moreover, production of vocal, learned song has been lost repeatedly. Male bee hummingbirds court females with a diverse, coevolving array of acoustic traits. © 2018 The Author(s). Evolution © 2018 The Society for the Study of Evolution.

  3. Making Sound Connections

    Science.gov (United States)

    Deal, Walter F., III

    2007-01-01

    Sound provides and offers amazing insights into the world. Sound waves may be defined as mechanical energy that moves through air or other medium as a longitudinal wave and consists of pressure fluctuations. Humans and animals alike use sound as a means of communication and a tool for survival. Mammals, such as bats, use ultrasonic sound waves to…

  4. Geluidsexpositie bij Gebruik van Otoplastieken met Communicatie (Sound Exposure Level of F-16 Crew Chiefs Using Custom Molded Communications Earplugs)

    National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

    Houben, M. M; Verhave, J. A

    2008-01-01

    .... In a previous study, we developed a method to assess the sound exposure level of CEP users. Not only was the attenuated F 16 noise taken into account, but also the sound exposure resulting from communication through the CEP...

  5. Empirical and genealogical analysis of non-vocational adult education in Europe

    Science.gov (United States)

    Manninen, Jyri

    2017-06-01

    Non-formal, non-vocational adult education (NFNVAE) is a low-cost, low-threshold learning activity that generates many benefits for individuals and society, and it should play a more central role in educational policy. NFNVAE's challenge is that it lacks clear concepts and definitions and is, therefore, less systematically covered in statistics, research and surveys. This article seeks to tackle these problems by providing (1) a mapping of NFNVAE courses in 10 European countries and (2) a conceptual framework for NFNVAE. The mapping is based on survey data ( n = 8,646) that contain information on 14,063 courses, which were coded into 24 categories and three general types: civic, liberal and basic skills education. Popular adult education courses (in the radical meaning of the term) were not found among these data; therefore, further mapping is needed. The genealogical analysis shows that ideological discourses and cultural practices should be taken into account when different concepts are used to describe NFNVAE. Especially the concept "popular" needs more clarification, since it is frequently used to refer to several different traditions, for example the Nordic " folkbildning", which is a civic education system, and therefore differs from Latin American popular adult education, which is a radical, non-governmental movement.[Figure not available: see fulltext.

  6. What is Sound?

    OpenAIRE

    Nelson, Peter

    2014-01-01

    What is sound? This question is posed in contradiction to the every-day understanding that sound is a phenomenon apart from us, to be heard, made, shaped and organised. Thinking through the history of computer music, and considering the current configuration of digital communi-cations, sound is reconfigured as a type of network. This network is envisaged as non-hierarchical, in keeping with currents of thought that refuse to prioritise the human in the world. The relationship of sound to musi...

  7. Propagation of sound

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Wahlberg, Magnus; Larsen, Ole Næsbye

    2017-01-01

    properties can be modified by sound absorption, refraction, and interference from multi paths caused by reflections.The path from the source to the receiver may be bent due to refraction. Besides geometrical attenuation, the ground effect and turbulence are the most important mechanisms to influence...... communication sounds for airborne acoustics and bottom and surface effects for underwater sounds. Refraction becomes very important close to shadow zones. For echolocation signals, geometric attenuation and sound absorption have the largest effects on the signals....

  8. Rapid training of a community job skill to nonvocal adults with autism: an extension of intensive teaching.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lattimore, L Perry; Parsons, Marsha B; Reid, Dennis H

    2009-01-01

    We evaluated an intensive program in a simulated format for rapidly teaching a job skill to nonvocal adults with autism. Following baseline probes with a new work task of assembling mailing boxes at a publishing company, 3 supported workers individually received repeated teaching sessions at a simulated work site. All workers met criterion with 1 day of simulation teaching, with subsequent criterion level performance upon returning to the job (1 worker required booster trials). Intensive teaching did not occasion problem behavior nor unhappiness indices. Improved work performance also occurred with two generalization tasks involving different materials. Implications for practitioners focus on improving worker performance without interfering with work completion that often accompanies on-the-job training. Potential applications of intensive programs for rapidly teaching other skills are discussed.

  9. OMNIDIRECTIONAL SOUND SOURCE

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    1996-01-01

    A sound source comprising a loudspeaker (6) and a hollow coupler (4) with an open inlet which communicates with and is closed by the loudspeaker (6) and an open outlet, said coupler (4) comprising rigid walls which cannot respond to the sound pressures produced by the loudspeaker (6). According...

  10. Symptom communication during critical illness: the impact of age, delirium, and delirium presentation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tate, Judith A; Sereika, Susan; Divirgilio, Dana; Nilsen, Marci; Demerci, Jill; Campbell, Grace; Happ, Mary Beth

    2013-08-01

    Symptom communication is integral to quality patient care. Communication between patients and nurses in the intensive care unit (ICU) is complicated by oral or endotracheal intubation and fluctuating neurocognitive status or delirium. We report the (a) prevalence of delirium and its subtypes in non-vocal, mechanically ventilated, critically ill patients; (b) impact of age on delirium; and (c) influence of delirium and age on symptom communication. Videorecorded interactions between patients (N = 89) and nurses (N = 30) were analyzed for evidence of patient symptom communication at four time points across 2 consecutive days. Delirium was measured at enrollment and following sessions. Delirium prevalence was 23.6% at enrollment and 28.7% across sessions. Participants age >60 were more likely to be delirious on enrollment and during observational sessions. Delirium was associated with self-report of pain, drowsiness, and feeling cold. Patients were significantly less likely to initiate symptom communication when delirious. Symptom identification should be carefully undertaken in older adults with or without delirium. Copyright 2013, SLACK Incorporated.

  11. Radio thermal sounding of natural environments

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gauss, Martin; Lomukhin, Yuriy

    2017-11-01

    At the moment, methods of sounding a status of soil, plant, forest and aquatic environments using radiometry and radar methods are intensively used. The main source of information using radar sounding is the back reflection ratio. The radiometric method is used for detection of the brightness temperature. In this paper, a communication between the back reflection ratio and the brightness temperature is described. This communication is proportional.

  12. Neurotensin neural mRNA expression correlates with vocal communication and other highly-motivated social behaviors in male European starlings.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Merullo, Devin P; Cordes, Melissa A; Susan DeVries, M; Stevenson, Sharon A; Riters, Lauren V

    2015-11-01

    Vocalizations coordinate social interactions in many species and often are important for behaviors such as mate attraction or territorial defense. Although the neural circuitry underlying vocal communication is well-known for some animal groups, such as songbirds, the motivational processes that regulate vocal signals are not as clearly understood. Neurotensin (NT) is a neuropeptide implicated in motivation that can modulate the activity of dopaminergic neurons. Dopaminergic projections from the ventral tegmental area (VTA) are key to mediating highly motivated, goal-directed behaviors, including sexually-motivated birdsong. However, the role of NT in modifying vocal communication or other social behaviors has not been well-studied. Here in European starlings (Sturnus vulgaris) we analyzed relationships between sexually-motivated song and NT and NT1 receptor (NTSR1) expression in VTA. Additionally, we examined NT and NTSR1 expression in four regions that receive dopaminergic projections from VTA and are involved in courtship song: the medial preoptic nucleus (POM), the lateral septum (LS), Area X, and HVC. Relationships between NT and NTSR1 expression and non-vocal courtship and agonistic behaviors were also examined. NT expression in Area X positively related to sexually-motivated song production. NT expression in POM positively correlated with non-vocal courtship behavior and agonistic behavior. NT expression in POM was greatest in males owning nesting sites, and the opposite pattern was observed for NTSR1 expression in LS. These results are the first to implicate NT in Area X in birdsong, and further highlight NT as a potential neuromodulator for the control of vocal communication and other social behaviors. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  13. Soft computing based feature selection for environmental sound classification

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Shakoor, A.; May, T.M.; Van Schijndel, N.H.

    2010-01-01

    Environmental sound classification has a wide range of applications,like hearing aids, mobile communication devices, portable media players, and auditory protection devices. Sound classification systemstypically extract features from the input sound. Using too many features increases complexity

  14. Social Context Predicts Vocalization Use in the Courtship Behaviors of Weddell Seals (Leptonychotes weddellii: A Case Study

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ludivine R. Russell

    2016-05-01

    Full Text Available Despite previous research, no study has convincingly demonstrated what role if any vocalizations might play in the reproductive behavior of Weddell seals (Leptonychotes weddellii. To better understand that role, we created an artificial territory for an adult, male Weddell seal under the shore-fast ice in McMurdo Sound, Antarctica, and recorded its in situ vocalizations and non-vocal behaviors with an underwater video camera and hydrophone while alone, with another male, and with one or more females. Additionally, we simultaneously recorded the vocalizations and non-vocal behaviors from a female interacting with the male. Analysis of 86 hr of video and audio recordings showed: 1 the male vocalized more than the female, 2 the male’s vocal repertoire was larger than the females’ repertoire, 3 vocalizations changed quantitatively and qualitatively with social context, and 4 patterns of vocalizations and non-vocal behaviors were detected with Theme, pattern recognition software from Noldus Information Technology. These results provided strong evidence that vocalizations played an important role during courtship, and together with the significant behavioral sequences, vocal and non-vocal, they provided insight into the function of their vocalizations including chirps, growls, jaw claps, knocks, mews, trills, and trills + knocks.

  15. PULSAR.MAKING VISIBLE THE SOUND OF STARS

    OpenAIRE

    Lega, Ferran

    2015-01-01

    [EN] Pulsar, making visible the sound of stars is a comunication based on a sound Installation raised as a site-specific project to show the hidden abilities of sound to generate images and patterns on the matter, using the acoustic science of cymatics. The objective of this communication will show people how through abstract and intangible sounds from celestial orbs of cosmos (radio waves generated by electromagnetic pulses from the rotation of neutrón stars), we can create ar...

  16. Differences in number and distribution of striatal calbindin medium spiny neurons between a vocal-learner (Melopsittacus undulatus and a non-vocal learner bird (Colinus virginianus

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Elena eGarcia-Calero

    2013-12-01

    Full Text Available Striatal projecting neurons, known as medium spiny neurons (MSNs, segregate into two compartments called matrix and striosome in the mammalian striatum. The matrix domain is characterized by the presence of calbindin immunopositive (CB+ MSNs, not observed in the striosome subdivision. The existence of a similar CB+ MSN population has recently been described in two striatal structures in male zebra finch (a vocal learner bird: the striatal capsule and the Area X, a nucleus implicated in song learning. Female zebra finches show a similar pattern of CB+ MSNs than males in the developing striatum but loose these cells in juveniles and adult stages. In the present work we analyzed the existence and allocation of CB+MSNs in the striatal domain of the vocal learner bird budgerigar (representative of psittaciformes order and the non-vocal learner bird quail (representative of galliformes order. We studied the co-localization of CB protein with FoxP1, a transcription factor expressed in vertebrate striatal MSNs. We observed CB+ MSNs in the medial striatal domain of adult male and female budgerigars, although this cell type was missing in the potentially homologous nucleus for Area X in budgerigar. In quail, we observed CB+ cells in the striatal domain at developmental and adult stages but they did not co-localize with the MSN marker FoxP1. We also described the existence of the CB+ striatal capsule in budgerigar and quail and compared these results with the CB+ striatal capsule observed in juvenile zebra finches. Together, these results point out important differences in CB+MSN distribution between two representative species of vocal learner and non-vocal learner avian orders (respectively the budgerigar and the quail, but also between close vocal learner bird families.

  17. Sounds of Web Advertising

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jessen, Iben Bredahl; Graakjær, Nicolai Jørgensgaard

    2010-01-01

    Sound seems to be a neglected issue in the study of web ads. Web advertising is predominantly regarded as visual phenomena–commercial messages, as for instance banner ads that we watch, read, and eventually click on–but only rarely as something that we listen to. The present chapter presents...... an overview of the auditory dimensions in web advertising: Which kinds of sounds do we hear in web ads? What are the conditions and functions of sound in web ads? Moreover, the chapter proposes a theoretical framework in order to analyse the communicative functions of sound in web advertising. The main...... argument is that an understanding of the auditory dimensions in web advertising must include a reflection on the hypertextual settings of the web ad as well as a perspective on how users engage with web content....

  18. The Acoustic Dimension of Social Protest: Notes from an Ethnography of Sound

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    José Luis Martin

    2017-09-01

    Full Text Available In this article we analyse the role of sound in protest marches from an interactional communication perspective. We present an inter-disciplinary proposal for the development of a methodology suited for the ethnography of sound in the contemporary context. We also present the results of the application of this methodology in the context of the protests against the forced disappearance of the 43 students from Ayotzinapa, Guerrero in Mexico. The study questions the social modes of sound as the acoustic materialization of the communication processes within specific sound contexts.

  19. Tool-use-associated sound in the evolution of language.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Larsson, Matz

    2015-09-01

    Proponents of the motor theory of language evolution have primarily focused on the visual domain and communication through observation of movements. In the present paper, it is hypothesized that the production and perception of sound, particularly of incidental sound of locomotion (ISOL) and tool-use sound (TUS), also contributed. Human bipedalism resulted in rhythmic and more predictable ISOL. It has been proposed that this stimulated the evolution of musical abilities, auditory working memory, and abilities to produce complex vocalizations and to mimic natural sounds. Since the human brain proficiently extracts information about objects and events from the sounds they produce, TUS, and mimicry of TUS, might have achieved an iconic function. The prevalence of sound symbolism in many extant languages supports this idea. Self-produced TUS activates multimodal brain processing (motor neurons, hearing, proprioception, touch, vision), and TUS stimulates primate audiovisual mirror neurons, which is likely to stimulate the development of association chains. Tool use and auditory gestures involve motor processing of the forelimbs, which is associated with the evolution of vertebrate vocal communication. The production, perception, and mimicry of TUS may have resulted in a limited number of vocalizations or protowords that were associated with tool use. A new way to communicate about tools, especially when out of sight, would have had selective advantage. A gradual change in acoustic properties and/or meaning could have resulted in arbitrariness and an expanded repertoire of words. Humans have been increasingly exposed to TUS over millions of years, coinciding with the period during which spoken language evolved. ISOL and tool-use-related sound are worth further exploration.

  20. Habilidades expressivas de um grupo de alunos com paralisia cerebral na atividade de jogo Expressive abilities of a group of students with cerebral palsy during game activities

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Fabiana Sayuri Sameshima

    2009-01-01

    cerebral palsy, with ages varying from 13 to 16 years, participated in this study. These students presented severe oral communication disability, without any visual, hearing or cognitive deficits. The students attended a special classroom and used alternative communication resources. An interaction situation among the group during six adapted games was filmed. From the transcriptions of the interaction, it was possible to define eight expressive abilities categories of the group. RESULTS: Data showed that the group of students used the following categories of expression to communicate: verbal without help/vocal; verbal with help/nonvocal; nonverbal/vocal; nonverbal/nonvocal + nonverbal/vocal; verbal without help/vocal + nonverbal/vocal; nonverbal/vocal + verbal with help/nonvocal; nd nonverbal/nonvocal + verbal with help/nonvocal. The most frequent categories were nonverbal/nonvocal; verbal with help/nonvocal and nonverbal/nonvocal + nonverbal/vocal. CONCLUSIONS: The games favored the use the different expressive abilities by the group of nonspeaking students with cerebral palsy, as, for example, with the use of representative gestures, facial and corporal expressions, vocalizations, articulate speech, and the use of augmentative and alternative communication board, as well as with the combinations of these abilities. Representative gestures and the facial and corporal expressions were the most frequent abilities used by the group, and therefore professionals should be aware of these expressive possibilities.

  1. SOUND LABOR RELATIONS AT ENTERPRISE LEVEL IN THAILAND

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Vichai Thosuwonchinda

    2016-07-01

    Full Text Available The objective of this research was to study the pattern of sound labor relations in Thailand in order to reduce conflicts between employers and workers and create cooperation. The research was based on a qualitative approach, using in-depth interview with 10 stakeholder groups of Thai industrial relations system. They were employees of non unionized companies at the shop floor level, employees of non unionized companies at the supervisor level, trade union leaders at the company level, trade union leaders at the national level, employers of non-unionized companies, employers’ organization leaders, and human resource managers, members of tripartite bodies, government officials and labor academics. The findings were presented in a model identifying 5 characteristics that enhance sound relations in Thailand, i.e. recognition between employer and workers, good communication, trust, data revealing and workers’ participation. It was suggested that all parties, employers, workers and the government should take part in the promotion of sound labor relations. The employer have to acknowledge labor union with a positive attitude, have good communication with workers , create trust with workers, disclose information, create culture of mutual benefits as well as accept sincerely the system that include workers’ participation. Workers need a strong labor union, good and sincere representatives for clear communication, trust, mutual benefits and seek conflict solutions with employer by win-win strategy. The government has a supporting role in adjusting the existing laws in the appropriate way, by creating policy for sound labor relations, and putting the idea of sound labor relations into practice.

  2. Integrated Human Factors Design Guidelines for Sound Interface

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lee, Jung Woon; Lee, Yong Hee; Oh, In Seok; Lee, Hyun Chul; Cha, Woo Chang

    2004-05-01

    Digital MMI, such as CRT, LCD etc., has been used increasingly in the design of main control room of the Korean standard nuclear power plants following the YGN units 3 and 4. The utilization of digital MMI may introduce various kind of sound interface into the control room design. In this project, for five top-level guideline items, including Sound Formats, Alarms, Sound Controls, Communications, and Environments, a total of 147 detail guidelines were developed and a database system for these guidelines was developed. The integrated human factors design guidelines for sound interface and the database system developed in this project will be useful for the design of sound interface of digital MMI in Korean NPPs

  3. Integrated Human Factors Design Guidelines for Sound Interface

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Lee, Jung Woon; Lee, Yong Hee; Oh, In Seok; Lee, Hyun Chul [KAERI, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of); Cha, Woo Chang [Kumoh National Univ. of Technology, Gumi (Korea, Republic of)

    2004-05-15

    Digital MMI, such as CRT, LCD etc., has been used increasingly in the design of main control room of the Korean standard nuclear power plants following the YGN units 3 and 4. The utilization of digital MMI may introduce various kind of sound interface into the control room design. In this project, for five top-level guideline items, including Sound Formats, Alarms, Sound Controls, Communications, and Environments, a total of 147 detail guidelines were developed and a database system for these guidelines was developed. The integrated human factors design guidelines for sound interface and the database system developed in this project will be useful for the design of sound interface of digital MMI in Korean NPPs.

  4. Auditory object perception: A neurobiological model and prospective review.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brefczynski-Lewis, Julie A; Lewis, James W

    2017-10-01

    Interaction with the world is a multisensory experience, but most of what is known about the neural correlates of perception comes from studying vision. Auditory inputs enter cortex with its own set of unique qualities, and leads to use in oral communication, speech, music, and the understanding of emotional and intentional states of others, all of which are central to the human experience. To better understand how the auditory system develops, recovers after injury, and how it may have transitioned in its functions over the course of hominin evolution, advances are needed in models of how the human brain is organized to process real-world natural sounds and "auditory objects". This review presents a simple fundamental neurobiological model of hearing perception at a category level that incorporates principles of bottom-up signal processing together with top-down constraints of grounded cognition theories of knowledge representation. Though mostly derived from human neuroimaging literature, this theoretical framework highlights rudimentary principles of real-world sound processing that may apply to most if not all mammalian species with hearing and acoustic communication abilities. The model encompasses three basic categories of sound-source: (1) action sounds (non-vocalizations) produced by 'living things', with human (conspecific) and non-human animal sources representing two subcategories; (2) action sounds produced by 'non-living things', including environmental sources and human-made machinery; and (3) vocalizations ('living things'), with human versus non-human animals as two subcategories therein. The model is presented in the context of cognitive architectures relating to multisensory, sensory-motor, and spoken language organizations. The models' predictive values are further discussed in the context of anthropological theories of oral communication evolution and the neurodevelopment of spoken language proto-networks in infants/toddlers. These phylogenetic

  5. Patterns in Early Interaction between Young Preschool Children with Severe Speech and Physical Impairments and Their Parents

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sandberg, Annika Dahlgren; Liliedahl, Marie

    2008-01-01

    The aim of this study is to examine whether the asymmetrical pattern of communication usually found between people who use augmentative and alternative communication and their partners using natural speech was also found in the interaction between non-vocal young preschool children with cerebral palsy and their parents. Three parent-child dyads…

  6. Patterns and risk factors associated with speech sounds and language disorders in pakistan

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Arshad, H.; Ghayas, M.S.; Madiha, A.

    2013-01-01

    To observe the patterns of speech sounds and language disorders. To find out associated risk factors of speech sounds and language disorders. Background: Communication is the very essence of modern society. Communication disorders impacts quality of life. Patterns and factors associated with speech sounds and language impairments were explored. The association was seen with different environmental factors. Methodology: The patients included in the study were 200 whose age ranged between two and sixteen years presented in speech therapy clinic OPD Mayo Hospital. A cross-sectional survey questionnaire assessed the patient's bio data, socioeconomic background, family history of communication disorders and bilingualism. It was a descriptive study and was conducted through cross-sectional survey. Data was analysed by SPSS version 16. Results: Results reveal Language disorders were relatively more prevalent in males than those of speech sound disorders. Bilingualism was found as having insignificant effect on these disorders. It was concluded from this study that the socioeconomic status and family history were significant risk factors. Conclusion: Gender, socioeconomic status, family history can play as risk for developing speech sounds and language disorders. There is a grave need to understand patterns of communication disorders in the light of Pakistani society and culture. It is recommended to conduct further studies to determine risk factors and patterns of these impairments. (author)

  7. Good vibrations: Controlling light with sound (Conference Presentation)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Eggleton, Benjamin J.; Choudhary, Amol

    2016-10-01

    One of the surprises of nonlinear optics, is that light may interact strongly with sound. Intense laser light literally "shakes" the glass in optical fibres, exciting acoustic waves (sound) in the fibre. Under the right conditions, it leads to a positive feedback loop between light and sound termed "Stimulated Brillouin Scattering," or simply SBS. This nonlinear interaction can amplify or filter light waves with extreme precision in frequency which makes it uniquely suited to solve key problems in the fields of defence, biomedicine, wireless communications, spectroscopy and imaging. We have achieved the first demonstration of SBS in compact chip-scale structures, carefully designed so that the optical fields and the acoustic fields are simultaneously confined and guided. This new platform has opened a range of new functionalities that are being applied in communications and defence with breathtaking performance and compactness. My talk will introduce this new field and review our progress and achievements, including silicon based optical phononic processor.

  8. Cognitive Bias for Learning Speech Sounds From a Continuous Signal Space Seems Nonlinguistic

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sabine van der Ham

    2015-10-01

    Full Text Available When learning language, humans have a tendency to produce more extreme distributions of speech sounds than those observed most frequently: In rapid, casual speech, vowel sounds are centralized, yet cross-linguistically, peripheral vowels occur almost universally. We investigate whether adults’ generalization behavior reveals selective pressure for communication when they learn skewed distributions of speech-like sounds from a continuous signal space. The domain-specific hypothesis predicts that the emergence of sound categories is driven by a cognitive bias to make these categories maximally distinct, resulting in more skewed distributions in participants’ reproductions. However, our participants showed more centered distributions, which goes against this hypothesis, indicating that there are no strong innate linguistic biases that affect learning these speech-like sounds. The centralization behavior can be explained by a lack of communicative pressure to maintain categories.

  9. Sound and sound sources

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Larsen, Ole Næsbye; Wahlberg, Magnus

    2017-01-01

    There is no difference in principle between the infrasonic and ultrasonic sounds, which are inaudible to humans (or other animals) and the sounds that we can hear. In all cases, sound is a wave of pressure and particle oscillations propagating through an elastic medium, such as air. This chapter...... is about the physical laws that govern how animals produce sound signals and how physical principles determine the signals’ frequency content and sound level, the nature of the sound field (sound pressure versus particle vibrations) as well as directional properties of the emitted signal. Many...... of these properties are dictated by simple physical relationships between the size of the sound emitter and the wavelength of emitted sound. The wavelengths of the signals need to be sufficiently short in relation to the size of the emitter to allow for the efficient production of propagating sound pressure waves...

  10. Mouth and Voice: A Relationship between Visual and Auditory Preference in the Human Superior Temporal Sulcus.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhu, Lin L; Beauchamp, Michael S

    2017-03-08

    Cortex in and around the human posterior superior temporal sulcus (pSTS) is known to be critical for speech perception. The pSTS responds to both the visual modality (especially biological motion) and the auditory modality (especially human voices). Using fMRI in single subjects with no spatial smoothing, we show that visual and auditory selectivity are linked. Regions of the pSTS were identified that preferred visually presented moving mouths (presented in isolation or as part of a whole face) or moving eyes. Mouth-preferring regions responded strongly to voices and showed a significant preference for vocal compared with nonvocal sounds. In contrast, eye-preferring regions did not respond to either vocal or nonvocal sounds. The converse was also true: regions of the pSTS that showed a significant response to speech or preferred vocal to nonvocal sounds responded more strongly to visually presented mouths than eyes. These findings can be explained by environmental statistics. In natural environments, humans see visual mouth movements at the same time as they hear voices, while there is no auditory accompaniment to visual eye movements. The strength of a voxel's preference for visual mouth movements was strongly correlated with the magnitude of its auditory speech response and its preference for vocal sounds, suggesting that visual and auditory speech features are coded together in small populations of neurons within the pSTS. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Humans interacting face to face make use of auditory cues from the talker's voice and visual cues from the talker's mouth to understand speech. The human posterior superior temporal sulcus (pSTS), a brain region known to be important for speech perception, is complex, with some regions responding to specific visual stimuli and others to specific auditory stimuli. Using BOLD fMRI, we show that the natural statistics of human speech, in which voices co-occur with mouth movements, are reflected in the neural architecture of

  11. [Courtship behavior, communicative sound production and resistance to stress in Drosophila mutants with defective agnostic gene, coding for LIMK1].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Popov, A V; Kaminskaia, A N; Savvateeva-Popova, E V

    2009-01-01

    To elucidate the role of one of the main elements of signal cascade of actin remodeling--LIM-kinase 1 (LIMK1)--in the control of animal behavior we studied the characteristics of courtship behavior, parameters of acoustic communicative signals and their resistance to heat shock (HS, 37 degrees C, 30 min) in Drosophila melanogaster males from the strain with mutation in locus agnostic (agn(ts3)) containing gene CG1848 for LIMK1. The data obtained was compared with the results of our previous similar investigation on wild type CS males (Popov et al., 2006). Flies were divided into 4 groups. The males of control groups were not subjected to heat shock. The rest of males were subjected to heat shock either at the beginning of larval development when predominantly mushroom body neuroblasts are dividing (groups HS1), or at the prepupal stage when the brain central complex is developing (groups HS2), or at the imago stage one hour before the test (groups HS3). All males were tested at the age of 5 days. Virgin and fertilized CS females were used as courtship objects. Comparison of control groups of the two strains--CS and agnostic--have shown that the mutation agn(ts3) has no influence on the main parameters of courtship behavior of intact (not subjected to HS) males (courtship latency, the rapidity of achieving copulation, courtship efficiency) but leads to lowering of their sexual activity, increase of duration of sound trains in the songs and to slight increase of rate and stability of working of singing pacemakers. Agnostic males in comparison to wild type males are more resistant to HS given 1 hour before the test. After HS their courtship intensity does not decrease and the main parameters of their courtship behavior and communicative sound signals in comparison tu wild type males either do not change, or appear to be even better stabilized. The frequency of distorted sound pulses (an indicator of frequency of impairments in the activity pattern of neuro

  12. Multilingual Aspects of Speech Sound Disorders in Children. Communication Disorders across Languages

    Science.gov (United States)

    McLeod, Sharynne; Goldstein, Brian

    2012-01-01

    Multilingual Aspects of Speech Sound Disorders in Children explores both multilingual and multicultural aspects of children with speech sound disorders. The 30 chapters have been written by 44 authors from 16 different countries about 112 languages and dialects. The book is designed to translate research into clinical practice. It is divided into…

  13. A homology sound-based algorithm for speech signal interference

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jiang, Yi-jiao; Chen, Hou-jin; Li, Ju-peng; Zhang, Zhan-song

    2015-12-01

    Aiming at secure analog speech communication, a homology sound-based algorithm for speech signal interference is proposed in this paper. We first split speech signal into phonetic fragments by a short-term energy method and establish an interference noise cache library with the phonetic fragments. Then we implement the homology sound interference by mixing the randomly selected interferential fragments and the original speech in real time. The computer simulation results indicated that the interference produced by this algorithm has advantages of real time, randomness, and high correlation with the original signal, comparing with the traditional noise interference methods such as white noise interference. After further studies, the proposed algorithm may be readily used in secure speech communication.

  14. Towards the standardisation of lung sound nomenclature

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Pasterkamp, Hans; Brand, Paul L. P.; Everard, Mark; Garcia-Marcos, Luis; Melbye, Hasse; Priftis, Kostas N.

    Auscultation of the lung remains an essential part of physical examination even though its limitations, particularly with regard to communicating subjective findings, are well recognised. The European Respiratory Society (ERS) Task Force on Respiratory Sounds was established to build a reference

  15. Underwater wireless communication system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Goh, J H; Shaw, A; Al-Shamma'a, A I

    2009-01-01

    Underwater communication has a range of applications including remotely operated vehicle (ROV) and autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) communication and docking in the offshore industry. Current underwater transmission techniques is primarily utilise sound waves for large distance at lower frequencies and the velocity of sound in water is approximately 1500m/s the resultant communications have problems with multi-path propagation and low bandwidth problems. The use of electromagnetic (EM) techniques underwater has largely been overlooked because of the attenuation due to the conductivity of seawater. However, for short range applications, the higher frequencies and much higher velocity can prove advantageous. This paper will outline a project which will utilise recent investigations that demonstrate EM wave propagation up to the MHz frequency range is possible in seawater.

  16. Steerable sound transport in a 3D acoustic network

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xia, Bai-Zhan; Jiao, Jun-Rui; Dai, Hong-Qing; Yin, Sheng-Wen; Zheng, Sheng-Jie; Liu, Ting-Ting; Chen, Ning; Yu, De-Jie

    2017-10-01

    Quasi-lossless and asymmetric sound transports, which are exceedingly desirable in various modern physical systems, are almost always based on nonlinear or angular momentum biasing effects with extremely high power levels and complex modulation schemes. A practical route for the steerable sound transport along any arbitrary acoustic pathway, especially in a three-dimensional (3D) acoustic network, can revolutionize the sound power propagation and the sound communication. Here, we design an acoustic device containing a regular-tetrahedral cavity with four cylindrical waveguides. A smaller regular-tetrahedral solid in this cavity is eccentrically emplaced to break spatial symmetry of the acoustic device. The numerical and experimental results show that the sound power flow can unimpededly transport between two waveguides away from the eccentric solid within a wide frequency range. Based on the quasi-lossless and asymmetric transport characteristic of the single acoustic device, we construct a 3D acoustic network, in which the sound power flow can flexibly propagate along arbitrary sound pathways defined by our acoustic devices with eccentrically emplaced regular-tetrahedral solids.

  17. Sound for Health

    CERN Multimedia

    CERN. Geneva

    2016-01-01

    From astronomy to biomedical sciences: music and sound as tools for scientific investigation Music and science are probably two of the most intrinsically linked disciplines in the spectrum of human knowledge. Science and technology have revolutionised the way artists work, interact, and create. The impact of innovative materials, new communication media, more powerful computers, and faster networks on the creative process is evident: we all can become artists in the digital era. What is less known, is that arts, and music in particular, are having a profound impact the way scientists operate, and think. From the early experiments by Kepler to the modern data sonification applications in medicine – sound and music are playing an increasingly crucial role in supporting science and driving innovation. In this talk. Dr. Domenico Vicinanza will be highlighting the complementarity and the natural synergy between music and science, with specific reference to biomedical sciences. Dr. Vicinanza will take t...

  18. Phylogenetic review of tonal sound production in whales in relation to sociality

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Agnarsson Ingi

    2007-08-01

    complex tonal sounds play an important role in social communication. Minimum frequency is higher in species with large groups, and correlates negatively with duration, which may reflect the increased distances over which non-social species communicate. Our findings are generally stable across a range of alternative phylogenies. Our study points to key species where future studies would be particularly valuable for enriching our understanding of the interplay of acoustic communication and sociality.

  19. Sparse representation of Gravitational Sound

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rebollo-Neira, Laura; Plastino, A.

    2018-03-01

    Gravitational Sound clips produced by the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) are considered within the particular context of data reduction. We advance a procedure to this effect and show that these types of signals can be approximated with high quality using significantly fewer elementary components than those required within the standard orthogonal basis framework. Furthermore, a local measure sparsity is shown to render meaningful information about the variation of a signal along time, by generating a set of local sparsity values which is much smaller than the dimension of the signal. This point is further illustrated by recourse to a more complex signal, generated by Milde Science Communication to divulge Gravitational Sound in the form of a ring tone.

  20. Vespertilionid bats control the width of their biosonar sound beam dynamically during prey pursuit

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jakobsen, Lasse; Surlykke, Annemarie

    2010-01-01

    Animals using sound for communication emit directional signals, focusing most acoustic energy in one direction. Echolocating bats are listening for soft echoes from insects. Therefore, a directional biosonar sound beam greatly increases detection probability in the forward direction and decreases...

  1. Influence of computerized sounding out on spelling performance for children who do and do not rely on AAC.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McCarthy, Jillian H; Hogan, Tiffany P; Beukelman, David R; Schwarz, Ilsa E

    2015-05-01

    Spelling is an important skill for individuals who rely on augmentative and alternative communication (AAC). The purpose of this study was to investigate how computerized sounding out influenced spelling accuracy of pseudo-words. Computerized sounding out was defined as a word elongated, thus providing an opportunity for a child to hear all the sounds in the word at a slower rate. Seven children with cerebral palsy, four who use AAC and three who do not, participated in a single subject AB design. The results of the study indicated that the use of computerized sounding out increased the phonologic accuracy of the pseudo-words produced by participants. The study provides preliminary evidence for the use of computerized sounding out during spelling tasks for children with cerebral palsy who do and do not use AAC. Future directions and clinical implications are discussed. We investigated how computerized sounding out influenced spelling accuracy of pseudowords for children with complex communication needs who did and did not use augmentative and alternative communication (AAC). Results indicated that the use of computerized sounding out increased the phonologic accuracy of the pseudo-words by participants, suggesting that computerized sounding out might assist in more accurate spelling for children who use AAC. Future research is needed to determine how language and reading abilities influence the use of computerized sounding out with children who have a range of speech intelligibility abilities and do and do not use AAC.

  2. Foley Sounds vs Real Sounds

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Trento, Stefano; Götzen, Amalia De

    2011-01-01

    This paper is an initial attempt to study the world of sound effects for motion pictures, also known as Foley sounds. Throughout several audio and audio-video tests we have compared both Foley and real sounds originated by an identical action. The main purpose was to evaluate if sound effects...

  3. 78 FR 13869 - Puget Sound Energy, Inc.; Puget Sound Energy, Inc.; Puget Sound Energy, Inc.; Puget Sound Energy...

    Science.gov (United States)

    2013-03-01

    ...-123-LNG; 12-128-NG; 12-148-NG; 12- 158-NG] Puget Sound Energy, Inc.; Puget Sound Energy, Inc.; Puget Sound Energy, Inc.; Puget Sound Energy, Inc.; Puget Sound Energy, Inc.; CE FLNG, LLC; Consolidated...-NG Puget Sound Energy, Inc Order granting long- term authority to import/export natural gas from/to...

  4. Acoustic communication in plant-animal interactions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schöner, Michael G; Simon, Ralph; Schöner, Caroline R

    2016-08-01

    Acoustic communication is widespread and well-studied in animals but has been neglected in other organisms such as plants. However, there is growing evidence for acoustic communication in plant-animal interactions. While knowledge about active acoustic signalling in plants (i.e. active sound production) is still in its infancy, research on passive acoustic signalling (i.e. reflection of animal sounds) revealed that bat-dependent plants have adapted to the bats' echolocation systems by providing acoustic reflectors to attract their animal partners. Understanding the proximate mechanisms and ultimate causes of acoustic communication will shed light on an underestimated dimension of information transfer between plants and animals. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  5. Neural dynamics of learning sound-action associations.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Adam McNamara

    Full Text Available A motor component is pre-requisite to any communicative act as one must inherently move to communicate. To learn to make a communicative act, the brain must be able to dynamically associate arbitrary percepts to the neural substrate underlying the pre-requisite motor activity. We aimed to investigate whether brain regions involved in complex gestures (ventral pre-motor cortex, Brodmann Area 44 were involved in mediating association between novel abstract auditory stimuli and novel gestural movements. In a functional resonance imaging (fMRI study we asked participants to learn associations between previously unrelated novel sounds and meaningless gestures inside the scanner. We use functional connectivity analysis to eliminate the often present confound of 'strategic covert naming' when dealing with BA44 and to rule out effects of non-specific reductions in signal. Brodmann Area 44, a region incorporating Broca's region showed strong, bilateral, negative correlation of BOLD (blood oxygen level dependent response with learning of sound-action associations during data acquisition. Left-inferior-parietal-lobule (l-IPL and bilateral loci in and around visual area V5, right-orbital-frontal-gyrus, right-hippocampus, left-para-hippocampus, right-head-of-caudate, right-insula and left-lingual-gyrus also showed decreases in BOLD response with learning. Concurrent with these decreases in BOLD response, an increasing connectivity between areas of the imaged network as well as the right-middle-frontal-gyrus with rising learning performance was revealed by a psychophysiological interaction (PPI analysis. The increasing connectivity therefore occurs within an increasingly energy efficient network as learning proceeds. Strongest learning related connectivity between regions was found when analysing BA44 and l-IPL seeds. The results clearly show that BA44 and l-IPL is dynamically involved in linking gesture and sound and therefore provides evidence that one of

  6. Influence of Pitch Height on the Perception of Submissiveness and Threat in Musical Passages

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    David Huron

    2006-09-01

    Full Text Available Bolinger, Ohala, Morton and others have established that vocal pitch height is perceived to be associated with social signals of dominance and submissiveness: higher vocal pitch is associated with submissiveness, whereas lower vocal pitch is associated with social dominance. An experiment was carried out to test this relationship in the perception of non-vocal melodies. Results show a parallel situation in music: higher-pitched melodies sound more submissive (less threatening than lower-pitched melodies.

  7. Sound

    CERN Document Server

    Robertson, William C

    2003-01-01

    Muddled about what makes music? Stuck on the study of harmonics? Dumbfounded by how sound gets around? Now you no longer have to struggle to teach concepts you really don t grasp yourself. Sound takes an intentionally light touch to help out all those adults science teachers, parents wanting to help with homework, home-schoolers seeking necessary scientific background to teach middle school physics with confidence. The book introduces sound waves and uses that model to explain sound-related occurrences. Starting with the basics of what causes sound and how it travels, you'll learn how musical instruments work, how sound waves add and subtract, how the human ear works, and even why you can sound like a Munchkin when you inhale helium. Sound is the fourth book in the award-winning Stop Faking It! Series, published by NSTA Press. Like the other popular volumes, it is written by irreverent educator Bill Robertson, who offers this Sound recommendation: One of the coolest activities is whacking a spinning metal rod...

  8. Typewriting: Personal-Use Typewriting--A Sound Foundation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ownby, Arnola; Rhea, Jeanine

    1977-01-01

    Because educators are recognizing the contributions that typewriting can make as a tool of communication, greater numbers of personal-use typewriting courses are being offered in which students will develop an effective skill for personal use, as well as gain a sound foundation for further study in a vocational course. The major issue is one of…

  9. Acoustic communication in plant–animal interactions

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Schöner, M.G.; Simon, R.; Schöner, C.R.

    2016-01-01

    Acoustic communication is widespread and well-studied in animals but has been neglected in other organisms such as plants. However, there is growing evidence for acoustic communication in plant–animal interactions. While knowledge about active acoustic signalling in plants (i.e. active sound

  10. SoundScapes - Beyond Interaction... in search of the ultimate human-centred interface

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Brooks, Tony

    2006-01-01

    that can also benefit communication. To achieve this a new generation of intuitive natural interfaces will be required and SoundScapes (see below) is a step toward this goal to discover the ultimate interface for matching the human experience to technology. Emergent hypothesis that have developed...... as a result of the SoundScapes research will be discussed. Introduction to SoundScapes SoundScapes is a contemporary art concept that has become widely known as an interdisciplinary platform for knowledge exchange, innovative product creation of creative and scientific work that uses non-invasive sensor...... Resonance. The multimedia content is adaptable so that the environment is tailored for each participant according to a user profile. This full body movement or the smallest of gesture results in human data input to SoundScapes. The same technology that enables this empowerment is used for performance art...

  11. Wire communication engineering

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Son, Byeong Tae

    1997-02-01

    This book describes wire telecommunication engineering/ It is divided into eleven chapter, which deal with Introduction with development of telecommunication, voice and sound wave and communication network, Telegraphy with summary of telegraphy, code of telegraphy, communication speed, morse and telex, Telephone on structure, circuit and image telephone, Traffic on telecommunication traffic, transmission of line about theory, cable line and loaded cable, carrier communication with carrier telegraphy and carrier telephone, optical communication with types, structure, specialty, laser and equipment, DATA, Mobile telecommunication on summary, mobile telephone, radio paging and digital mobile telecommunication, ISDN with channel of ISDN, and service of ISDN, and design of telecommunication.

  12. Rainforests as concert halls for birds: Are reverberations improving sound transmission of long song elements?

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Nemeth, Erwin; Dabelsteen, Torben; Pedersen, Simon Boel

    2006-01-01

    that longer sounds are less attenuated. The results indicate that higher sound pressure level is caused by superimposing reflections. It is suggested that this beneficial effect of reverberations explains interspecific birdsong differences in element length. Transmission paths with stronger reverberations......In forests reverberations have probably detrimental and beneficial effects on avian communication. They constrain signal discrimination by masking fast repetitive sounds and they improve signal detection by elongating sounds. This ambivalence of reflections for animal signals in forests is similar...... to the influence of reverberations on speech or music in indoor sound transmission. Since comparisons of sound fields of forests and concert halls have demonstrated that reflections can contribute in both environments a considerable part to the energy of a received sound, it is here assumed that reverberations...

  13. Design of UAV-Embedded Microphone Array System for Sound Source Localization in Outdoor Environments

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kotaro Hoshiba

    2017-11-01

    Full Text Available In search and rescue activities, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV should exploit sound information to compensate for poor visual information. This paper describes the design and implementation of a UAV-embedded microphone array system for sound source localization in outdoor environments. Four critical development problems included water-resistance of the microphone array, efficiency in assembling, reliability of wireless communication, and sufficiency of visualization tools for operators. To solve these problems, we developed a spherical microphone array system (SMAS consisting of a microphone array, a stable wireless network communication system, and intuitive visualization tools. The performance of SMAS was evaluated with simulated data and a demonstration in the field. Results confirmed that the SMAS provides highly accurate localization, water resistance, prompt assembly, stable wireless communication, and intuitive information for observers and operators.

  14. Design of UAV-Embedded Microphone Array System for Sound Source Localization in Outdoor Environments.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hoshiba, Kotaro; Washizaki, Kai; Wakabayashi, Mizuho; Ishiki, Takahiro; Kumon, Makoto; Bando, Yoshiaki; Gabriel, Daniel; Nakadai, Kazuhiro; Okuno, Hiroshi G

    2017-11-03

    In search and rescue activities, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) should exploit sound information to compensate for poor visual information. This paper describes the design and implementation of a UAV-embedded microphone array system for sound source localization in outdoor environments. Four critical development problems included water-resistance of the microphone array, efficiency in assembling, reliability of wireless communication, and sufficiency of visualization tools for operators. To solve these problems, we developed a spherical microphone array system (SMAS) consisting of a microphone array, a stable wireless network communication system, and intuitive visualization tools. The performance of SMAS was evaluated with simulated data and a demonstration in the field. Results confirmed that the SMAS provides highly accurate localization, water resistance, prompt assembly, stable wireless communication, and intuitive information for observers and operators.

  15. Analysis on the Three Elements in Communication

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    李霞

    2014-01-01

    In public communication,people may have no troubles to epress themselves grammatically correctly,but sometimes the sentences just sound not pragmatically proper. Through analyzing and comprehending those Elements in English to avoid the misunderstanding and misusing in the communication is significant.

  16. Analysis on the Three Elements in Communication

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    李霞

    2014-01-01

    In public communication,people may have no troubles to epress themselves grammatically correctly,but sometimes the sentences just sound not pragmatically proper.Through analyzing and comprehending those Elements in English to avoid the misunderstanding and misusing in the communication is significant.

  17. COMIC COMMUNICATION MECHANISM AS AN INTENTIONAL-MOTIVATED CONTAMINATION

    OpenAIRE

    Musiychuk, Maria

    2015-01-01

    A communicative mechanism described as a comic-motivated intentional contamination that means a change as a result of cross-breeding different words or expressions of similar sounding, construction, and meaning. This mechanism is realized through the transfer of communicative intention, i.e. resulting motives and goals of the communication.

  18. Improve your communication skills

    CERN Document Server

    Barker, Alan

    2016-01-01

    Excellent communication skills are vital in today's workplace. Whether keeping the interest of a large audience, impressing a potential employer or simply winning the argument at an important meeting, sounding the part is key. This fourth edition of Improve Your Communication Skills is full of practical advice on all aspects of verbal and non-verbal communication. It gives vital tips on improving conversations and building rapport with colleagues, learning the skills of persuasion, and writing effective emails, letters and reports. This editionincludes new information focusing on communicating across borders and virtual teams and a new chapter on managing difficult conversations."

  19. Emotional sounds modulate early neural processing of emotional pictures

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Antje B M Gerdes

    2013-10-01

    Full Text Available In our natural environment, emotional information is conveyed by converging visual and auditory information; multimodal integration is of utmost importance. In the laboratory, however, emotion researchers have mostly focused on the examination of unimodal stimuli. Few existing studies on multimodal emotion processing have focused on human communication such as the integration of facial and vocal expressions. Extending the concept of multimodality, the current study examines how the neural processing of emotional pictures is influenced by simultaneously presented sounds. Twenty pleasant, unpleasant, and neutral pictures of complex scenes were presented to 22 healthy participants. On the critical trials these pictures were paired with pleasant, unpleasant and neutral sounds. Sound presentation started 500 ms before picture onset and each stimulus presentation lasted for 2s. EEG was recorded from 64 channels and ERP analyses focused on the picture onset. In addition, valence, and arousal ratings were obtained. Previous findings for the neural processing of emotional pictures were replicated. Specifically, unpleasant compared to neutral pictures were associated with an increased parietal P200 and a more pronounced centroparietal late positive potential (LPP, independent of the accompanying sound valence. For audiovisual stimulation, increased parietal P100 and P200 were found in response to all pictures which were accompanied by unpleasant or pleasant sounds compared to pictures with neutral sounds. Most importantly, incongruent audiovisual pairs of unpleasant pictures and pleasant sounds enhanced parietal P100 and P200 compared to pairings with congruent sounds. Taken together, the present findings indicate that emotional sounds modulate early stages of visual processing and, therefore, provide an avenue by which multimodal experience may enhance perception.

  20. Neural Correlates of Phonological Processing in Speech Sound Disorder: A Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Study

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tkach, Jean A.; Chen, Xu; Freebairn, Lisa A.; Schmithorst, Vincent J.; Holland, Scott K.; Lewis, Barbara A.

    2011-01-01

    Speech sound disorders (SSD) are the largest group of communication disorders observed in children. One explanation for these disorders is that children with SSD fail to form stable phonological representations when acquiring the speech sound system of their language due to poor phonological memory (PM). The goal of this study was to examine PM in…

  1. Profile of Australian Preschool Children with Speech Sound Disorders at Risk for Literacy Difficulties

    Science.gov (United States)

    McLeod, Sharynne; Crowe, Kathryn; Masso, Sarah; Baker, Elise; McCormack, Jane; Wren, Yvonne; Roulstone, Susan; Howland, Charlotte

    2017-01-01

    Speech sound disorders are a common communication difficulty in preschool children. Teachers indicate difficulty identifying and supporting these children. The aim of this research was to describe speech and language characteristics of children identified by their parents and/or teachers as having possible communication concerns. 275 Australian 4-…

  2. The influence of underwater data transmission sounds on the displacement behaviour of captive harbour seals (Phoca vitulina)

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Kastelein, R.A.; Heul, S. van der; Verboom, W.C.; Triesscheijn, R.J.V.; Jennings, N.V.

    2006-01-01

    To prevent grounding of ships and collisions between ships in shallow coastal waters, an underwater data collection and communication network (ACME) using underwater sounds to encode and transmit data is currently under development. Marine mammals might be affected by ACME sounds since they may use

  3. JINGLE: THE SOUNDING SYMBOL

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bysko Maxim V.

    2013-12-01

    Full Text Available The article considers the role of jingles in the industrial era, from the occurrence of the regular radio broadcasting, sound films and television up of modern video games, audio and video podcasts, online broadcasts, and mobile communications. Jingles are researched from the point of view of the theory of symbols: the forward motion is detected in the process of development of jingles from the social symbols (radio callsigns to the individual signs-images (ringtones. The role of technical progress in the formation of jingles as important cultural audio elements of modern digital civilization.

  4. Sound algorithms

    OpenAIRE

    De Götzen , Amalia; Mion , Luca; Tache , Olivier

    2007-01-01

    International audience; We call sound algorithms the categories of algorithms that deal with digital sound signal. Sound algorithms appeared in the very infancy of computer. Sound algorithms present strong specificities that are the consequence of two dual considerations: the properties of the digital sound signal itself and its uses, and the properties of auditory perception.

  5. Design of UAV-Embedded Microphone Array System for Sound Source Localization in Outdoor Environments †

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hoshiba, Kotaro; Washizaki, Kai; Wakabayashi, Mizuho; Ishiki, Takahiro; Bando, Yoshiaki; Gabriel, Daniel; Nakadai, Kazuhiro; Okuno, Hiroshi G.

    2017-01-01

    In search and rescue activities, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) should exploit sound information to compensate for poor visual information. This paper describes the design and implementation of a UAV-embedded microphone array system for sound source localization in outdoor environments. Four critical development problems included water-resistance of the microphone array, efficiency in assembling, reliability of wireless communication, and sufficiency of visualization tools for operators. To solve these problems, we developed a spherical microphone array system (SMAS) consisting of a microphone array, a stable wireless network communication system, and intuitive visualization tools. The performance of SMAS was evaluated with simulated data and a demonstration in the field. Results confirmed that the SMAS provides highly accurate localization, water resistance, prompt assembly, stable wireless communication, and intuitive information for observers and operators. PMID:29099790

  6. 46 CFR 7.20 - Nantucket Sound, Vineyard Sound, Buzzards Bay, Narragansett Bay, MA, Block Island Sound and...

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ... 46 Shipping 1 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Nantucket Sound, Vineyard Sound, Buzzards Bay, Narragansett Bay, MA, Block Island Sound and easterly entrance to Long Island Sound, NY. 7.20 Section 7.20... Atlantic Coast § 7.20 Nantucket Sound, Vineyard Sound, Buzzards Bay, Narragansett Bay, MA, Block Island...

  7. ICE on the road to auditory sensitivity reduction and sound localization in the frog.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Narins, Peter M

    2016-10-01

    Frogs and toads are capable of producing calls at potentially damaging levels that exceed 110 dB SPL at 50 cm. Most frog species have internally coupled ears (ICE) in which the tympanic membranes (TyMs) communicate directly via the large, permanently open Eustachian tubes, resulting in an inherently directional asymmetrical pressure-difference receiver. One active mechanism for auditory sensitivity reduction involves the pressure increase during vocalization that distends the TyM, reducing its low-frequency airborne sound sensitivity. Moreover, if sounds generated by the vocal folds arrive at both surfaces of the TyM with nearly equal amplitudes and phases, the net motion of the eardrum would be greatly attenuated. Both of these processes appear to reduce the motion of the frog's TyM during vocalizations. The implications of ICE in amphibians with respect to sound localizations are discussed, and the particularly interesting case of frogs that use ultrasound for communication yet exhibit exquisitely small localization jump errors is brought to light.

  8. The Use of Communication Strategies in the Beginner EFL Classroom

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rodríguez Cervantes, Carmen A.; Roux Rodriguez, Ruth

    2012-01-01

    When language learners do not know how to say a word in English, they can communicate effectively by using their hands, imitating sounds, inventing new words, or describing what they mean. These ways of communicating are communication strategies (CSs). EFL teachers are not always aware of the importance of teaching communication strategies to…

  9. Contributions in Radio Channel Sounding, Modeling, and Estimation

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Pedersen, Troels

    2009-01-01

    This thesis spans over three strongly related topics in wireless communication: channel-sounding, -modeling, and -estimation. Three main problems are addressed: optimization of spatio-temporal apertures for channel sounding; estimation of per-path power spectral densities (psds); and modeling...... relies on a ``propagation graph'' where vertices  represent scatterers and edges represent the wave propagation conditions between scatterers.  The graph has a recursive structure, which permits modeling of the transfer function of the graph. We derive a closed-form expression of the infinite......-bounce impulse response. This expression is used for simulation of the impulse response of randomly generated propagation graphs. The obtained realizations exhibit the well-observed  exponential power decay versus delay and specular-to-diffuse transition....

  10. the mobile film van as a communications medium in environmental

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    eries donated a combi to the Communications Sec- tion of the Pilanesberg ... both the public relations and extension activities ... tal education programme of the Communications. Section. .... Listening to a complexity of different sounds.

  11. Problems in nonlinear acoustics: Scattering of sound by sound, parametric receiving arrays, nonlinear effects in asymmetric sound beams and pulsed finite amplitude sound beams

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hamilton, Mark F.

    1989-08-01

    Four projects are discussed in this annual summary report, all of which involve basic research in nonlinear acoustics: Scattering of Sound by Sound, a theoretical study of two nonconlinear Gaussian beams which interact to produce sum and difference frequency sound; Parametric Receiving Arrays, a theoretical study of parametric reception in a reverberant environment; Nonlinear Effects in Asymmetric Sound Beams, a numerical study of two dimensional finite amplitude sound fields; and Pulsed Finite Amplitude Sound Beams, a numerical time domain solution of the KZK equation.

  12. PREFACE: Aerodynamic sound Aerodynamic sound

    Science.gov (United States)

    Akishita, Sadao

    2010-02-01

    The modern theory of aerodynamic sound originates from Lighthill's two papers in 1952 and 1954, as is well known. I have heard that Lighthill was motivated in writing the papers by the jet-noise emitted by the newly commercialized jet-engined airplanes at that time. The technology of aerodynamic sound is destined for environmental problems. Therefore the theory should always be applied to newly emerged public nuisances. This issue of Fluid Dynamics Research (FDR) reflects problems of environmental sound in present Japanese technology. The Japanese community studying aerodynamic sound has held an annual symposium since 29 years ago when the late Professor S Kotake and Professor S Kaji of Teikyo University organized the symposium. Most of the Japanese authors in this issue are members of the annual symposium. I should note the contribution of the two professors cited above in establishing the Japanese community of aerodynamic sound research. It is my pleasure to present the publication in this issue of ten papers discussed at the annual symposium. I would like to express many thanks to the Editorial Board of FDR for giving us the chance to contribute these papers. We have a review paper by T Suzuki on the study of jet noise, which continues to be important nowadays, and is expected to reform the theoretical model of generating mechanisms. Professor M S Howe and R S McGowan contribute an analytical paper, a valuable study in today's fluid dynamics research. They apply hydrodynamics to solve the compressible flow generated in the vocal cords of the human body. Experimental study continues to be the main methodology in aerodynamic sound, and it is expected to explore new horizons. H Fujita's study on the Aeolian tone provides a new viewpoint on major, longstanding sound problems. The paper by M Nishimura and T Goto on textile fabrics describes new technology for the effective reduction of bluff-body noise. The paper by T Sueki et al also reports new technology for the

  13. Aesthetic Communication

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Thyssen, Ole

    2012-01-01

    Based on Niklas Luhmann's systems theory, aesthetics is defined as a manner of reinforcing the connectivity, or Anschlusswert, of communication. Without changing the content, a message can be made more attractive, strengthening the receiver's willingness to be attentive and accepting. As communic......Based on Niklas Luhmann's systems theory, aesthetics is defined as a manner of reinforcing the connectivity, or Anschlusswert, of communication. Without changing the content, a message can be made more attractive, strengthening the receiver's willingness to be attentive and accepting....... As communication inevitably makes use of a sensuous medium, such as light or sound, all communication has an aesthetic dimension. In the 19th Century, an important distinction was made between pure and applied art, following Immanuel Kant's separation of theory of knowledge, moral theory and aesthetic theory....... Whereas pure art is produced in order to be observed, applied art has to fulfill practical purposes as well. Modern organizations, defined as systems of communication, may use art works to embellish and define themselves. But they inevitably use applied art as a practical tool in their normal...

  14. Sound production in Onuxodon fowleri (Carapidae) and its amplification by the host shell.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kéver, Loïc; Colleye, Orphal; Lugli, Marco; Lecchini, David; Lerouvreur, Franck; Herrel, Anthony; Parmentier, Eric

    2014-12-15

    Onuxodon species are well known for living inside pearl oysters. As in other carapids, their anatomy highlights their ability to make sounds but sound production has never been documented in Onuxodon. This paper describes sound production in Onuxodon fowleri as well as the anatomy of the sound production apparatus. Single-pulsed sounds and multiple-pulsed sounds that sometimes last more than 3 s were recorded in the field and in captivity (Makemo Island, French Polynesia). These pulses are characterized by a broadband frequency spectrum from 100 to 1000 Hz. Onuxodon fowleri is mainly characterized by its ability to modulate the pulse period, meaning that this species can produce pulsed sounds and tonal-like sounds using the same mechanism. In addition, the sound can be remarkably amplified by the shell cavity (peak gain can exceed 10 dB for some frequencies). The sonic apparatus of O. fowleri is characterized by a rocker bone in front of the swimbladder, modified vertebrae and epineurals, and two pairs of sonic muscles, one of which (primary sonic muscle) inserts on the rocker bone. The latter structure, which is absent in other carapid genera, appears to be sexually dimorphic suggesting differences in sound production in males and females. Sound production in O. fowleri could be an example of adaptation where an animal exploits features of its environment to enhance communication. © 2014. Published by The Company of Biologists Ltd.

  15. Brain regions for sound processing and song release in a small grasshopper.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Balvantray Bhavsar, Mit; Stumpner, Andreas; Heinrich, Ralf

    2017-05-01

    We investigated brain regions - mostly neuropils - that process auditory information relevant for the initiation of response songs of female grasshoppers Chorthippus biguttulus during bidirectional intraspecific acoustic communication. Male-female acoustic duets in the species Ch. biguttulus require the perception of sounds, their recognition as a species- and gender-specific signal and the initiation of commands that activate thoracic pattern generating circuits to drive the sound-producing stridulatory movements of the hind legs. To study sensory-to-motor processing during acoustic communication we used multielectrodes that allowed simultaneous recordings of acoustically stimulated electrical activity from several ascending auditory interneurons or local brain neurons and subsequent electrical stimulation of the recording site. Auditory activity was detected in the lateral protocerebrum (where most of the described ascending auditory interneurons terminate), in the superior medial protocerebrum and in the central complex, that has previously been implicated in the control of sound production. Neural responses to behaviorally attractive sound stimuli showed no or only poor correlation with behavioral responses. Current injections into the lateral protocerebrum, the central complex and the deuto-/tritocerebrum (close to the cerebro-cervical fascicles), but not into the superior medial protocerebrum, elicited species-typical stridulation with high success rate. Latencies and numbers of phrases produced by electrical stimulation were different between these brain regions. Our results indicate three brain regions (likely neuropils) where auditory activity can be detected with two of these regions being potentially involved in song initiation. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  16. Communication after laryngectomy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hocevar-Boltezar, I.; Zargi, M.

    2001-01-01

    Background. Laryngectomy is the mode of treatment of the patients with advanced laryngeal and hypopharyngeal cancer. It affects many important functions, including speech. Patients and methods. Various alaryngeal speech modes are available so that no laryngectomee should be left without a means of communication. Results. There is a variety of artificial devices, including electronic ones that produce their own battery driven sound. Alternatively, the patient can learn a new form of voicing using a muscular segment of the upper esophagus as a source of sound (esophageal speech). A puncture can be created surgically through the esophageal wall and a prosthesis placed in it to divert pulmonary air into the esophagus and through the same muscular segment to produce sound. Conclusions. Many factors influence the choice of an alternative to be used with a particular patient. In Slovenia, esophageal speech is the most frequently used alaryngeal speech mode. (author)

  17. Sexual dimorphism of sonic apparatus and extreme intersexual variation of sounds in Ophidion rochei (Ophidiidae: first evidence of a tight relationship between morphology and sound characteristics in Ophidiidae

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kéver Loïc

    2012-12-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Many Ophidiidae are active in dark environments and display complex sonic apparatus morphologies. However, sound recordings are scarce and little is known about acoustic communication in this family. This paper focuses on Ophidion rochei which is known to display an important sexual dimorphism in swimbladder and anterior skeleton. The aims of this study were to compare the sound producing morphology, and the resulting sounds in juveniles, females and males of O. rochei. Results Males, females, and juveniles possessed different morphotypes. Females and juveniles contrasted with males because they possessed dramatic differences in morphology of their sonic muscles, swimbladder, supraoccipital crest, and first vertebrae and associated ribs. Further, they lacked the ‘rocker bone’ typically found in males. Sounds from each morphotype were highly divergent. Males generally produced non harmonic, multiple-pulsed sounds that lasted for several seconds (3.5 ± 1.3 s with a pulse period of ca. 100 ms. Juvenile and female sounds were recorded for the first time in ophidiids. Female sounds were harmonic, had shorter pulse period (±3.7 ms, and never exceeded a few dozen milliseconds (18 ± 11 ms. Moreover, unlike male sounds, female sounds did not have alternating long and short pulse periods. Juvenile sounds were weaker but appear to be similar to female sounds. Conclusions Although it is not possible to distinguish externally male from female in O. rochei, they show a sonic apparatus and sounds that are dramatically different. This difference is likely due to their nocturnal habits that may have favored the evolution of internal secondary sexual characters that help to distinguish males from females and that could facilitate mate choice by females. Moreover, the comparison of different morphotypes in this study shows that these morphological differences result from a peramorphosis that takes place during the development of

  18. Getting the Message Across; Non-Verbal Communication in the Classroom.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Levy, Jack

    This handbook presents selected theories, activities, and resources which can be utilized by educators in the area of non-verbal communication. Particular attention is given to the use of non-verbal communication in a cross-cultural context. Categories of non-verbal communication such as proxemics, haptics, kinesics, smiling, sound, clothing, and…

  19. Communicating Earth Science Through Music: The Use of Environmental Sound in Science Outreach

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brenner, C.

    2017-12-01

    The need for increased public understanding and appreciation of Earth science has taken on growing importance over the last several decades. Human society faces critical environmental challenges, both near-term and future, in areas such as climate change, resource allocation, geohazard threat and the environmental degradation of ecosystems. Science outreach is an essential component to engaging both policymakers and the public in the importance of managing these challenges. However, despite considerable efforts on the part of scientists and outreach experts, many citizens feel that scientific research and methods are both difficult to understand and remote from their everyday experience. As perhaps the most accessible of all art forms, music can provide a pathway through which the public can connect to Earth processes. The Earth is not silent: environmental sound can be sampled and folded into musical compositions, either with or without the additional sounds of conventional or electronic instruments. These compositions can be used in conjunction with other forms of outreach (e.g., as soundtracks for documentary videos or museum installations), or simply stand alone as testament to the beauty of geology and nature. As proof of concept, this presentation will consist of a musical composition that includes sounds from various field recordings of wind, swamps, ice and water (including recordings from the inside of glaciers).

  20. Imagining Sound

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Grimshaw, Mark; Garner, Tom Alexander

    2014-01-01

    We make the case in this essay that sound that is imagined is both a perception and as much a sound as that perceived through external stimulation. To argue this, we look at the evidence from auditory science, neuroscience, and philosophy, briefly present some new conceptual thinking on sound...... that accounts for this view, and then use this to look at what the future might hold in the context of imagining sound and developing technology....

  1. Communicating Science

    Science.gov (United States)

    Holland, G. J.; McCaffrey, M. S.; Kiehl, J. T.; Schmidt, C.

    2010-12-01

    We are in an era of rapidly changing communication media, which is driving a major evolution in the modes of communicating science. In the past, a mainstay of scientific communication in popular media was through science “translators”; science journalists and presenters. These have now nearly disappeared and are being replaced by widespread dissemination through, e.g., the internet, blogs, YouTube and journalists who often have little scientific background and sharp deadlines. Thus, scientists are required to assume increasing responsibility for translating their scientific findings and calibrating their communications to non-technical audiences, a task for which they are often ill prepared, especially when it comes to controversial societal issues such as tobacco, evolution, and most recently climate change (Oreskes and Conway 2010). Such issues have been politicized and hi-jacked by ideological belief systems to such an extent that constructive dialogue is often impossible. Many scientists are excellent communicators, to their peers. But this requires careful attention to detail and logical explanation, open acknowledgement of uncertainties, and dispassionate delivery. These qualities become liabilities when communicating to a non-scientific audience where entertainment, attention grabbing, 15 second sound bites, and self assuredness reign (e.g. Olson 2009). Here we report on a program initiated by NCAR and UCAR to develop new approaches to science communication and to equip present and future scientists with the requisite skills. If we start from a sound scientific finding with general scientific consensus, such as the warming of the planet by greenhouse gases, then the primary emphasis moves from the “science” to the “art” of communication. The art cannot have free reign, however, as there remains a strong requirement for objectivity, honesty, consistency, and above all a resistance to advocating particular policy positions. Targeting audience

  2. Sound production to electric discharge: sonic muscle evolution in progress in Synodontis spp. catfishes (Mochokidae).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Boyle, Kelly S; Colleye, Orphal; Parmentier, Eric

    2014-09-22

    Elucidating the origins of complex biological structures has been one of the major challenges of evolutionary studies. Within vertebrates, the capacity to produce regular coordinated electric organ discharges (EODs) has evolved independently in different fish lineages. Intermediate stages, however, are not known. We show that, within a single catfish genus, some species are able to produce sounds, electric discharges or both signals (though not simultaneously). We highlight that both acoustic and electric communication result from actions of the same muscle. In parallel to their abilities, the studied species show different degrees of myofibril development in the sonic and electric muscle. The lowest myofibril density was observed in Synodontis nigriventris, which produced EODs but no swim bladder sounds, whereas the greatest myofibril density was observed in Synodontis grandiops, the species that produced the longest sound trains but did not emit EODs. Additionally, S. grandiops exhibited the lowest auditory thresholds. Swim bladder sounds were similar among species, while EODs were distinctive at the species level. We hypothesize that communication with conspecifics favoured the development of species-specific EOD signals and suggest an evolutionary explanation for the transition from a fast sonic muscle to electrocytes. © 2014 The Author(s) Published by the Royal Society. All rights reserved.

  3. Body language in health care: a contribution to nursing communication.

    Science.gov (United States)

    de Rezende, Rachel de Carvalho; de Oliveira, Rosane Mara Pontes; de Araújo, Sílvia Teresa Carvalho; Guimarães, Tereza Cristina Felippe; do Espírito Santo, Fátima Helena; Porto, Isaura Setenta

    2015-01-01

    to classify body language used in nursing care, and propose "Body language in nursing care" as an analytical category for nursing communication. quantitative research with the systematic observation of 21:43 care situations, with 21 members representing the nursing teams of two hospitals. Empirical categories: sound, facial, eye and body expressions. sound expressions emphasized laughter. Facial expressions communicated satisfaction and happiness. Eye contact with members stood out in visual expressions. The most frequent body expressions were head movements and indistinct touches. nursing care team members use body language to establish rapport with patients, clarify their needs and plan care. The study classified body language characteristics of humanized care, which involves, in addition to technical, non-technical issues arising from nursing communication.

  4. Ecoacoustic Music for Geoscience: Sonic Physiographies and Sound Casting

    Science.gov (United States)

    Burtner, M.

    2017-12-01

    The author describes specific ecoacoustic applications in his original compositions, Sonic Physiography of a Time-Stretched Glacier (2015), Catalog of Roughness (2017), Sound Cast of Matanuska Glacier (2016) and Ecoacoustic Concerto (Eagle Rock) (2014). Ecoacoustic music uses technology to map systems from nature into music through techniques such as sonification, material amplification, and field recording. The author aspires for this music to be descriptive of the data (as one would expect from a visualization) and also to function as engaging and expressive music/sound art on its own. In this way, ecoacoustic music might provide a fitting accompaniment to a scientific presentation (such as music for a science video) while also offering an exemplary concert hall presentation for a dedicated listening public. The music can at once support the communication of scientific research, and help science make inroads into culture. The author discusses how music created using the data, sounds and methods derived from earth science can recast this research into a sonic art modality. Such music can amplify the communication and dissemination of scientific knowledge by broadening the diversity of methods and formats we use to bring excellent scientific research to the public. Music can also open the public's imagination to science, inspiring curiosity and emotional resonance. Hearing geoscience as music may help a non-scientist access scientific knowledge in new ways, and it can greatly expand the types of venues in which this work can appear. Anywhere music is played - concert halls, festivals, galleries, radio, etc - become a venue for scientific discovery.

  5. Sound radiation contrast in MR phase images. Method for the representation of elasticity, sound damping, and sound impedance changes

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Radicke, Marcus

    2009-01-01

    The method presented in this thesis combines ultrasound techniques with the magnetic-resonance tomography (MRT). An ultrasonic wave generates in absorbing media a static force in sound-propagation direction. The force leads at sound intensities of some W/cm 2 and a sound frequency in the lower MHz range to a tissue shift in the micrometer range. This tissue shift depends on the sound power, the sound frequency, the sound absorption, and the elastic properties of the tissue. A MRT sequence of the Siemens Healthcare AG was modified so that it measures (indirectly) the tissue shift, codes as grey values, and presents as 2D picture. By means of the grey values the sound-beam slope in the tissue can be visualized, and so additionally sound obstacles (changes of the sound impedance) can be detected. By the MRT images token up spatial changes of the tissue parameters sound absorption and elasticity can be detected. In this thesis measurements are presented, which show the feasibility and future chances of this method especially for the mammary-cancer diagnostics. [de

  6. Possible impact of global warming and ocean acidification on underwater sound in northern oceans: another perfect storm

    Science.gov (United States)

    Browning, David

    2011-04-01

    The greatest ocean pH change, which will result in lower low frequency sound attenuation, is predicted for higher latitudes. Here shallow sound channel axies exist, allowing the impact on sound to be seen sooner and also more extensively since the principal propagation paths will be near the surface. However, at the same time, higher wind speeds and greater ice breakup,as well as increased ship traffic, could result in higher noise levels. Marine mammals in this environment may have, on one hand, improving communication conditions but also the possibility of increased background noise.

  7. Social communication in bats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chaverri, Gloriana; Ancillotto, Leonardo; Russo, Danilo

    2018-05-15

    Bats represent one of the most diverse mammalian orders, not only in terms of species numbers, but also in their ecology and life histories. Many species are known to use ephemeral and/or unpredictable resources that require substantial investment to find and defend, and also engage in social interactions, thus requiring significant levels of social coordination. To accomplish these tasks, bats must be able to communicate; there is now substantial evidence that demonstrates the complexity of bat communication and the varied ways in which bats solve some of the problems associated with their unique life histories. However, while the study of communication in bats is rapidly growing, it still lags behind other taxa. Here we provide a comprehensive overview of communication in bats, from the reasons why they communicate to the diversity and application of different signal modalities. The most widespread form of communication is the transmission of a signaller's characteristics, such as species identity, sex, individual identity, group membership, social status and body condition, and because many species of bats can rely little on vision due to their nocturnal lifestyles, it is assumed that sound and olfaction are particularly important signalling modes. For example, research suggests that secretions from specialized glands, often in combination with urine and saliva, are responsible for species recognition in several species. These olfactory signals may also convey information about sex and colony membership. Olfaction may be used in combination with sound, particularly in species that emit constant frequency (CF) echolocation calls, to recognize conspecifics from heterospecifics, yet their simple structure and high frequency do not allow much information of individual identity to be conveyed over long distances. By contrast, social calls may encode a larger number of cues of individual identity, and their lower frequencies increase their range of detection. Social

  8. Living Melodies - Coevolution Of Sonic Communication

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Dahlstedt, Palle; Nordahl, Mats G.

    2001-01-01

    The authors have constructed an artificial world of coevolving communicating agents. The behavior of the agents is described in terms of a simple genetic programming framework, which allows the evolution of foraging behavior and movement in order to reproduce, as well as sonic communication....... The sound of the entire world is used as musical raw material for the work. Musically interesting and useful structures are found to emerge....

  9. Cortical processing of dynamic sound envelope transitions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhou, Yi; Wang, Xiaoqin

    2010-12-08

    Slow envelope fluctuations in the range of 2-20 Hz provide important segmental cues for processing communication sounds. For a successful segmentation, a neural processor must capture envelope features associated with the rise and fall of signal energy, a process that is often challenged by the interference of background noise. This study investigated the neural representations of slowly varying envelopes in quiet and in background noise in the primary auditory cortex (A1) of awake marmoset monkeys. We characterized envelope features based on the local average and rate of change of sound level in envelope waveforms and identified envelope features to which neurons were selective by reverse correlation. Our results showed that envelope feature selectivity of A1 neurons was correlated with the degree of nonmonotonicity in their static rate-level functions. Nonmonotonic neurons exhibited greater feature selectivity than monotonic neurons in quiet and in background noise. The diverse envelope feature selectivity decreased spike-timing correlation among A1 neurons in response to the same envelope waveforms. As a result, the variability, but not the average, of the ensemble responses of A1 neurons represented more faithfully the dynamic transitions in low-frequency sound envelopes both in quiet and in background noise.

  10. Development of Prediction Tool for Sound Absorption and Sound Insulation for Sound Proof Properties

    OpenAIRE

    Yoshio Kurosawa; Takao Yamaguchi

    2015-01-01

    High frequency automotive interior noise above 500 Hz considerably affects automotive passenger comfort. To reduce this noise, sound insulation material is often laminated on body panels or interior trim panels. For a more effective noise reduction, the sound reduction properties of this laminated structure need to be estimated. We have developed a new calculate tool that can roughly calculate the sound absorption and insulation properties of laminate structure and handy ...

  11. Parameterizing Sound: Design Considerations for an Environmental Sound Database

    Science.gov (United States)

    2015-04-01

    associated with, or produced by, a physical event or human activity and 2) sound sources that are common in the environment. Reproductions or sound...Rogers S. Confrontation naming of environmental sounds. Journal of Clinical and Experimental Neuropsychology . 2000;22(6):830–864. 14 VanDerveer NJ

  12. Making fictions sound real - On film sound, perceptual realism and genre

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Birger Langkjær

    2010-05-01

    Full Text Available This article examines the role that sound plays in making fictions perceptually real to film audiences, whether these fictions are realist or non-realist in content and narrative form. I will argue that some aspects of film sound practices and the kind of experiences they trigger are related to basic rules of human perception, whereas others are more properly explained in relation to how aesthetic devices, including sound, are used to characterise the fiction and thereby make it perceptually real to its audience. Finally, I will argue that not all genres can be defined by a simple taxonomy of sounds. Apart from an account of the kinds of sounds that typically appear in a specific genre, a genre analysis of sound may also benefit from a functionalist approach that focuses on how sounds can make both realist and non-realist aspects of genres sound real to audiences.

  13. Making fictions sound real - On film sound, perceptual realism and genre

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Birger Langkjær

    2009-09-01

    Full Text Available This article examines the role that sound plays in making fictions perceptually real to film audiences, whether these fictions are realist or non-realist in content and narrative form. I will argue that some aspects of film sound practices and the kind of experiences they trigger are related to basic rules of human perception, whereas others are more properly explained in relation to how aesthetic devices, including sound, are used to characterise the fiction and thereby make it perceptually real to its audience. Finally, I will argue that not all genres can be defined by a simple taxonomy of sounds. Apart from an account of the kinds of sounds that typically appear in a specific genre, a genre analysis of sound may also benefit from a functionalist approach that focuses on how sounds can make both realist and non-realist aspects of genres sound real to audiences.

  14. Profile of Australian preschool children with speech sound disorders at risk for literacy difficulties

    OpenAIRE

    McLeod, S.; Crowe, K.; Masso, S.; Baker, E.; McCormack, J.; Wren, Y.; Roulstone, S.; Howland, C.

    2017-01-01

    Background: Speech sound disorders are a common communication difficulty in preschool children. Teachers indicate difficulty identifying and supporting these children.\\ud \\ud Aim: To describe speech and language characteristics of children identified by their parents and/or teachers as having possible communication concerns.\\ud \\ud Method: 275 Australian 4- to 5-year-old children from 45 preschools whose parents and teachers were concerned about their talking participated in speech-language p...

  15. Are communication activities shaped by environmental constraints in reverberating and absorbing forest habitats?

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Mathevon, Nicolas; Aubin, Thierry; Dabelsteen, Torben

    2004-01-01

    In the dense vegetation of temperate or tropical forests, communication processes are constrained by propagation-induced modifications of the transmitted sounds. The presence of leaves, trunks and branches induces important sound reverberation and absorption leading to diminution of the signal en...

  16. Universal mechanisms of sound production and control in birds and mammals

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Elemans, Coen; Rasmussen, Jeppe Have; Herbst, Christian T.

    2015-01-01

    As animals vocalize, their vocal organ transforms motor commands into vocalizations for social communication. In birds, the physical mechanisms by which vocalizations are produced and controlled remain unresolved because of the extreme difficulty in obtaining in vivo measurements. Here, we...... learning and is common to MEAD sound production across birds and mammals, including humans....

  17. Sound Absorbers

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fuchs, H. V.; Möser, M.

    Sound absorption indicates the transformation of sound energy into heat. It is, for instance, employed to design the acoustics in rooms. The noise emitted by machinery and plants shall be reduced before arriving at a workplace; auditoria such as lecture rooms or concert halls require a certain reverberation time. Such design goals are realised by installing absorbing components at the walls with well-defined absorption characteristics, which are adjusted for corresponding demands. Sound absorbers also play an important role in acoustic capsules, ducts and screens to avoid sound immission from noise intensive environments into the neighbourhood.

  18. 3-D Sound for Virtual Reality and Multimedia

    Science.gov (United States)

    Begault, Durand R.; Trejo, Leonard J. (Technical Monitor)

    2000-01-01

    Technology and applications for the rendering of virtual acoustic spaces are reviewed. Chapter 1 deals with acoustics and psychoacoustics. Chapters 2 and 3 cover cues to spatial hearing and review psychoacoustic literature. Chapter 4 covers signal processing and systems overviews of 3-D sound systems. Chapter 5 covers applications to computer workstations, communication systems, aeronautics and space, and sonic arts. Chapter 6 lists resources. This TM is a reprint of the 1994 book from Academic Press.

  19. Laminar differences in response to simple and spectro-temporally complex sounds in the primary auditory cortex of ketamine-anesthetized gerbils.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Markus K Schaefer

    Full Text Available In mammals, acoustic communication plays an important role during social behaviors. Despite their ethological relevance, the mechanisms by which the auditory cortex represents different communication call properties remain elusive. Recent studies have pointed out that communication-sound encoding could be based on discharge patterns of neuronal populations. Following this idea, we investigated whether the activity of local neuronal networks, such as those occurring within individual cortical columns, is sufficient for distinguishing between sounds that differed in their spectro-temporal properties. To accomplish this aim, we analyzed simple pure-tone and complex communication call elicited multi-unit activity (MUA as well as local field potentials (LFP, and current source density (CSD waveforms at the single-layer and columnar level from the primary auditory cortex of anesthetized Mongolian gerbils. Multi-dimensional scaling analysis was used to evaluate the degree of "call-specificity" in the evoked activity. The results showed that whole laminar profiles segregated 1.8-2.6 times better across calls than single-layer activity. Also, laminar LFP and CSD profiles segregated better than MUA profiles. Significant differences between CSD profiles evoked by different sounds were more pronounced at mid and late latencies in the granular and infragranular layers and these differences were based on the absence and/or presence of current sinks and on sink timing. The stimulus-specific activity patterns observed within cortical columns suggests that the joint activity of local cortical populations (as local as single columns could indeed be important for encoding sounds that differ in their acoustic attributes.

  20. A secure communication scheme using projective chaos synchronization

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Li Zhigang; Xu Daolin

    2004-01-01

    Most secure communication schemes using chaotic dynamics are based on identical synchronization. In this paper, we show the possibility of secure communication using projective synchronization (PS). The unpredictability of the scaling factor in projective synchronization can additionally enhance the security of communication. It is also showed that the scaling factor can be employed to improve the robustness against noise contamination. The feasibility of the communication scheme in high-dimensional chaotic systems, such as the hyperchaotic Roessler system, is demonstrated. Numerical results show the success in transmitting a sound signal through chaotic systems

  1. Abnormal sound detection device

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yamada, Izumi; Matsui, Yuji.

    1995-01-01

    Only components synchronized with rotation of pumps are sampled from detected acoustic sounds, to judge the presence or absence of abnormality based on the magnitude of the synchronized components. A synchronized component sampling means can remove resonance sounds and other acoustic sounds generated at a synchronously with the rotation based on the knowledge that generated acoustic components in a normal state are a sort of resonance sounds and are not precisely synchronized with the number of rotation. On the other hand, abnormal sounds of a rotating body are often caused by compulsory force accompanying the rotation as a generation source, and the abnormal sounds can be detected by extracting only the rotation-synchronized components. Since components of normal acoustic sounds generated at present are discriminated from the detected sounds, reduction of the abnormal sounds due to a signal processing can be avoided and, as a result, abnormal sound detection sensitivity can be improved. Further, since it is adapted to discriminate the occurrence of the abnormal sound from the actually detected sounds, the other frequency components which are forecast but not generated actually are not removed, so that it is further effective for the improvement of detection sensitivity. (N.H.)

  2. Cellphones and Real-World Communication

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bugeja, Michael

    2004-01-01

    In this article, the author shares his views on cellphones and real-world communication. He claims that the cellphone has changed society more than the home computer, which it has assimilated. Cellphones sound during worship, wakes, births, graduations, hearings, trials, and accreditation meetings--interrupting life-changing spiritual or secular…

  3. On doing two things at once: dolphin brain and nose coordinate sonar clicks, buzzes and emotional squeals with social sounds during fish capture.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ridgway, Sam; Samuelson Dibble, Dianna; Van Alstyne, Kaitlin; Price, DruAnn

    2015-12-01

    Dolphins fishing alone in open waters may whistle without interrupting their sonar clicks as they find and eat or reject fish. Our study is the first to match sound and video from the dolphin with sound and video from near the fish. During search and capture of fish, free-swimming dolphins carried cameras to record video and sound. A hydrophone in the far field near the fish also recorded sound. From these two perspectives, we studied the time course of dolphin sound production during fish capture. Our observations identify the instant of fish capture. There are three consistent acoustic phases: sonar clicks locate the fish; about 0.4 s before capture, the dolphin clicks become more rapid to form a second phase, the terminal buzz; at or just before capture, the buzz turns to an emotional squeal (the victory squeal), which may last 0.2 to 20 s after capture. The squeals are pulse bursts that vary in duration, peak frequency and amplitude. The victory squeal may be a reflection of emotion triggered by brain dopamine release. It may also affect prey to ease capture and/or it may be a way to communicate the presence of food to other dolphins. Dolphins also use whistles as communication or social sounds. Whistling during sonar clicking suggests that dolphins may be adept at doing two things at once. We know that dolphin brain hemispheres may sleep independently. Our results suggest that the two dolphin brain hemispheres may also act independently in communication. © 2015. Published by The Company of Biologists Ltd.

  4. Sound, music and gender in mobile games

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Machin, David; Van Leeuwen, T.

    2016-01-01

    resource, they can communicate very specific meanings and carry ideologies. In this paper, using multimodal critical discourse analysis, we analyse the sounds and music in two proto-games that are played on mobile devices: Genie Palace Divine and Dragon Island Race. While visually the two games are highly...... and impersonal and specific kinds of social relations which, we show, is highly gendered. It can also signal priorities, ideas and values, which in both cases, we show, relate to a world where there is simply no time to stop and think. © 2016, equinox publishing....

  5. Sound Search Engine Concept

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    2006-01-01

    Sound search is provided by the major search engines, however, indexing is text based, not sound based. We will establish a dedicated sound search services with based on sound feature indexing. The current demo shows the concept of the sound search engine. The first engine will be realased June...

  6. The sound manifesto

    Science.gov (United States)

    O'Donnell, Michael J.; Bisnovatyi, Ilia

    2000-11-01

    Computing practice today depends on visual output to drive almost all user interaction. Other senses, such as audition, may be totally neglected, or used tangentially, or used in highly restricted specialized ways. We have excellent audio rendering through D-A conversion, but we lack rich general facilities for modeling and manipulating sound comparable in quality and flexibility to graphics. We need coordinated research in several disciplines to improve the use of sound as an interactive information channel. Incremental and separate improvements in synthesis, analysis, speech processing, audiology, acoustics, music, etc. will not alone produce the radical progress that we seek in sonic practice. We also need to create a new central topic of study in digital audio research. The new topic will assimilate the contributions of different disciplines on a common foundation. The key central concept that we lack is sound as a general-purpose information channel. We must investigate the structure of this information channel, which is driven by the cooperative development of auditory perception and physical sound production. Particular audible encodings, such as speech and music, illuminate sonic information by example, but they are no more sufficient for a characterization than typography is sufficient for characterization of visual information. To develop this new conceptual topic of sonic information structure, we need to integrate insights from a number of different disciplines that deal with sound. In particular, we need to coordinate central and foundational studies of the representational models of sound with specific applications that illuminate the good and bad qualities of these models. Each natural or artificial process that generates informative sound, and each perceptual mechanism that derives information from sound, will teach us something about the right structure to attribute to the sound itself. The new Sound topic will combine the work of computer

  7. Unsound Sound

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Knakkergaard, Martin

    2016-01-01

    This article discusses the change in premise that digitally produced sound brings about and how digital technologies more generally have changed our relationship to the musical artifact, not simply in degree but in kind. It demonstrates how our acoustical conceptions are thoroughly challenged...... by the digital production of sound and, by questioning the ontological basis for digital sound, turns our understanding of the core term substance upside down....

  8. Early Sound Symbolism for Vowel Sounds

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ferrinne Spector

    2013-06-01

    Full Text Available Children and adults consistently match some words (e.g., kiki to jagged shapes and other words (e.g., bouba to rounded shapes, providing evidence for non-arbitrary sound–shape mapping. In this study, we investigated the influence of vowels on sound–shape matching in toddlers, using four contrasting pairs of nonsense words differing in vowel sound (/i/ as in feet vs. /o/ as in boat and four rounded–jagged shape pairs. Crucially, we used reduplicated syllables (e.g., kiki vs. koko rather than confounding vowel sound with consonant context and syllable variability (e.g., kiki vs. bouba. Toddlers consistently matched words with /o/ to rounded shapes and words with /i/ to jagged shapes (p < 0.01. The results suggest that there may be naturally biased correspondences between vowel sound and shape.

  9. Sound Art and Spatial Practices: Situating Sound Installation Art Since 1958

    OpenAIRE

    Ouzounian, Gascia

    2008-01-01

    This dissertation examines the emergence and development ofsound installation art, an under-recognized tradition that hasdeveloped between music, architecture, and media art practicessince the late 1950s. Unlike many musical works, which are concernedwith organizing sounds in time, sound installations organize sounds inspace; they thus necessitate new theoretical and analytical modelsthat take into consideration the spatial situated-ness of sound. Existingdiscourses on “spatial sound” privile...

  10. A new signal development process and sound system for diverting fish from water intakes

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Klinet, D.A.; Loeffelman, P.H.; van Hassel, J.H.

    1992-01-01

    This paper reports that American Electric Power Service Corporation has explored the feasibility of using a patented signal development process and underwater sound system to divert fish away from water intake areas. The effect of water intakes on fish is being closely scrutinized as hydropower projects are re-licensed. The overall goal of this four-year research project was to develop an underwater guidance system which is biologically effective, reliable and cost-effective compared to other proposed methods of diversion, such as physical screens. Because different fish species have various listening ranges, it was essential to the success of this experiment that the sound system have a great amount of flexibility. Assuming a fish's sounds are heard by the same kind of fish, it was necessary to develop a procedure and acquire instrumentation to properly analyze the sounds that the target fish species create to communicate and any artificial signals being generated for diversion

  11. Influence of Computerized Sounding Out on Spelling Performance for Children who do and not rely on AAC

    Science.gov (United States)

    McCarthy, Jillian H.; Hogan, Tiffany P.; Beukelman, David R.; Schwarz, Ilsa E.

    2015-01-01

    Purpose Spelling is an important skill for individuals who rely on augmentative alternative communication (AAC). The purpose of this study was to investigate how computerized sounding out influenced spelling accuracy of pseudo-words. Computerized sounding out was defined as a word elongated, thus providing an opportunity for a child to hear all the sounds in the word at a slower rate. Methods Seven children with cerebral palsy, four who use AAC and three who do not, participated in a single subject AB design. Results The results of the study indicated that the use of computerized sounding out increased the phonologic accuracy of the pseudo-words produced by participants. Conclusion The study provides preliminary evidence for the use of computerized sounding out during spelling tasks for children with cerebral palsy who do and do not use AAC. Future directions and clinical implications are discussed. PMID:24512195

  12. Sound a very short introduction

    CERN Document Server

    Goldsmith, Mike

    2015-01-01

    Sound is integral to how we experience the world, in the form of noise as well as music. But what is sound? What is the physical basis of pitch and harmony? And how are sound waves exploited in musical instruments? Sound: A Very Short Introduction looks at the science of sound and the behaviour of sound waves with their different frequencies. It also explores sound in different contexts, covering the audible and inaudible, sound underground and underwater, acoustic and electronic sound, and hearing in humans and animals. It concludes with the problem of sound out of place—noise and its reduction.

  13. An integrative time-varying frequency detection and channel sounding method for dynamic plasma sheath

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shi, Lei; Yao, Bo; Zhao, Lei; Liu, Xiaotong; Yang, Min; Liu, Yanming

    2018-01-01

    The plasma sheath-surrounded hypersonic vehicle is a dynamic and time-varying medium and it is almost impossible to calculate time-varying physical parameters directly. The in-fight detection of the time-varying degree is important to understand the dynamic nature of the physical parameters and their effect on re-entry communication. In this paper, a constant envelope zero autocorrelation (CAZAC) sequence based on time-varying frequency detection and channel sounding method is proposed to detect the plasma sheath electronic density time-varying property and wireless channel characteristic. The proposed method utilizes the CAZAC sequence, which has excellent autocorrelation and spread gain characteristics, to realize dynamic time-varying detection/channel sounding under low signal-to-noise ratio in the plasma sheath environment. Theoretical simulation under a typical time-varying radio channel shows that the proposed method is capable of detecting time-variation frequency up to 200 kHz and can trace the channel amplitude and phase in the time domain well under -10 dB. Experimental results conducted in the RF modulation discharge plasma device verified the time variation detection ability in practical dynamic plasma sheath. Meanwhile, nonlinear phenomenon of dynamic plasma sheath on communication signal is observed thorough channel sounding result.

  14. Suppression of grasshopper sound production by nitric oxide-releasing neurons of the central complex

    Science.gov (United States)

    Weinrich, Anja; Kunst, Michael; Wirmer, Andrea; Holstein, Gay R.

    2008-01-01

    The central complex of acridid grasshoppers integrates sensory information pertinent to reproduction-related acoustic communication. Activation of nitric oxide (NO)/cyclic GMP-signaling by injection of NO donors into the central complex of restrained Chorthippus biguttulus females suppresses muscarine-stimulated sound production. In contrast, sound production is released by aminoguanidine (AG)-mediated inhibition of nitric oxide synthase (NOS) in the central body, suggesting a basal release of NO that suppresses singing in this situation. Using anti-citrulline immunocytochemistry to detect recent NO production, subtypes of columnar neurons with somata located in the pars intercerebralis and tangential neurons with somata in the ventro-median protocerebrum were distinctly labeled. Their arborizations in the central body upper division overlap with expression patterns for NOS and with the site of injection where NO donors suppress sound production. Systemic application of AG increases the responsiveness of unrestrained females to male calling songs. Identical treatment with the NOS inhibitor that increased male song-stimulated sound production in females induced a marked reduction of citrulline accumulation in central complex columnar and tangential neurons. We conclude that behavioral situations that are unfavorable for sound production (like being restrained) activate NOS-expressing central body neurons to release NO and elevate the behavioral threshold for sound production in female grasshoppers. PMID:18574586

  15. Food approach conditioning and discrimination learning using sound cues in benthic sharks.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vila Pouca, Catarina; Brown, Culum

    2018-07-01

    The marine environment is filled with biotic and abiotic sounds. Some of these sounds predict important events that influence fitness while others are unimportant. Individuals can learn specific sound cues and 'soundscapes' and use them for vital activities such as foraging, predator avoidance, communication and orientation. Most research with sounds in elasmobranchs has focused on hearing thresholds and attractiveness to sound sources, but very little is known about their abilities to learn about sounds, especially in benthic species. Here we investigated if juvenile Port Jackson sharks could learn to associate a musical stimulus with a food reward, discriminate between two distinct musical stimuli, and whether individual personality traits were linked to cognitive performance. Five out of eight sharks were successfully conditioned to associate a jazz song with a food reward delivered in a specific corner of the tank. We observed repeatable individual differences in activity and boldness in all eight sharks, but these personality traits were not linked to the learning performance assays we examined. These sharks were later trained in a discrimination task, where they had to distinguish between the same jazz and a novel classical music song, and swim to opposite corners of the tank according to the stimulus played. The sharks' performance to the jazz stimulus declined to chance levels in the discrimination task. Interestingly, some sharks developed a strong side bias to the right, which in some cases was not the correct side for the jazz stimulus.

  16. Conducting Expressively: Navigating Seven Misconceptions That Inhibit Meaningful Connection to Ensemble and Sound

    Science.gov (United States)

    Snyder, Courtney

    2016-01-01

    When expressivity (ignited by imagination) is incorporated into the learning process for both the conductor (teacher) and player (student), the qualities of movement, communication, instruction, and ensemble sound all change for the better, often with less work. Expressive conducting allows the conductor to feel more connected to the music and the…

  17. Broadcast sound technology

    CERN Document Server

    Talbot-Smith, Michael

    1990-01-01

    Broadcast Sound Technology provides an explanation of the underlying principles of modern audio technology. Organized into 21 chapters, the book first describes the basic sound; behavior of sound waves; aspects of hearing, harming, and charming the ear; room acoustics; reverberation; microphones; phantom power; loudspeakers; basic stereo; and monitoring of audio signal. Subsequent chapters explore the processing of audio signal, sockets, sound desks, and digital audio. Analogue and digital tape recording and reproduction, as well as noise reduction, are also explained.

  18. Making fictions sound real

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Langkjær, Birger

    2010-01-01

    This article examines the role that sound plays in making fictions perceptually real to film audiences, whether these fictions are realist or non-realist in content and narrative form. I will argue that some aspects of film sound practices and the kind of experiences they trigger are related...... to basic rules of human perception, whereas others are more properly explained in relation to how aesthetic devices, including sound, are used to characterise the fiction and thereby make it perceptually real to its audience. Finally, I will argue that not all genres can be defined by a simple taxonomy...... of sounds. Apart from an account of the kinds of sounds that typically appear in a specific genre, a genre analysis of sound may also benefit from a functionalist approach that focuses on how sounds can make both realist and non-realist aspects of genres sound real to audiences....

  19. Sound sensitivity of neurons in rat hippocampus during performance of a sound-guided task

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vinnik, Ekaterina; Honey, Christian; Schnupp, Jan; Diamond, Mathew E.

    2012-01-01

    To investigate how hippocampal neurons encode sound stimuli, and the conjunction of sound stimuli with the animal's position in space, we recorded from neurons in the CA1 region of hippocampus in rats while they performed a sound discrimination task. Four different sounds were used, two associated with water reward on the right side of the animal and the other two with water reward on the left side. This allowed us to separate neuronal activity related to sound identity from activity related to response direction. To test the effect of spatial context on sound coding, we trained rats to carry out the task on two identical testing platforms at different locations in the same room. Twenty-one percent of the recorded neurons exhibited sensitivity to sound identity, as quantified by the difference in firing rate for the two sounds associated with the same response direction. Sensitivity to sound identity was often observed on only one of the two testing platforms, indicating an effect of spatial context on sensory responses. Forty-three percent of the neurons were sensitive to response direction, and the probability that any one neuron was sensitive to response direction was statistically independent from its sensitivity to sound identity. There was no significant coding for sound identity when the rats heard the same sounds outside the behavioral task. These results suggest that CA1 neurons encode sound stimuli, but only when those sounds are associated with actions. PMID:22219030

  20. More than communication skills: experiences of communication conflict in nursing home nurses.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tsai, Hsiu-Hsin; Tsai, Yun-Fang; Weng, Li-Chueh; Chou, Hsueh-Fen

    2013-10-01

    Communication conflicts are inevitable in nursing homes. Understanding communication conflicts experienced by practising nurses could provide insights to guide the development of sound communication education programmes. The purpose of this study was to explore the experiences of nurses in nursing homes of communication conflict in encounters with nursing home residents and their families in Taiwan. Data were collected from April 2010 to December 2011 through audiotaped, individual, in-depth interviews with 26 nurses at five nursing homes in Taiwan. Data were analysed according to van Manen's interpretive phenomenological method. Data analysis revealed that nurses' experiences of communication conflicts during encounters with nursing home residents and their families could be categorised under three themes: differences in perspectives of nursing home services; differences in views of nurturing health, and mediation between family members and others. The findings of this study can be considered by clinical educators and policymakers when designing communication education programmes for nurses and other clinicians. These programmes should include ways to increase nurses' independent thinking in settings in which power differences exist, as well as their cultural sensitivity as embodied in Leininger's culture care theory. These programmes should also include education in telephone communication and alternative methods of communication (e.g. videoconferencing). © 2013 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  1. Memory for product sounds: the effect of sound and label type.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ozcan, Elif; van Egmond, René

    2007-11-01

    The (mnemonic) interactions between auditory, visual, and the semantic systems have been investigated using structurally complex auditory stimuli (i.e., product sounds). Six types of product sounds (air, alarm, cyclic, impact, liquid, mechanical) that vary in spectral-temporal structure were presented in four label type conditions: self-generated text, text, image, and pictogram. A memory paradigm that incorporated free recall, recognition, and matching tasks was employed. The results for the sound type suggest that the amount of spectral-temporal structure in a sound can be indicative for memory performance. Findings related to label type suggest that 'self' creates a strong bias for the retrieval and the recognition of sounds that were self-labeled; the density and the complexity of the visual information (i.e., pictograms) hinders the memory performance ('visual' overshadowing effect); and image labeling has an additive effect on the recall and matching tasks (dual coding). Thus, the findings suggest that the memory performances for product sounds are task-dependent.

  2. 33 CFR 167.1702 - In Prince William Sound: Prince William Sound Traffic Separation Scheme.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... 33 Navigation and Navigable Waters 2 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false In Prince William Sound: Prince William Sound Traffic Separation Scheme. 167.1702 Section 167.1702 Navigation and Navigable Waters COAST....1702 In Prince William Sound: Prince William Sound Traffic Separation Scheme. The Prince William Sound...

  3. Sounds Exaggerate Visual Shape

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sweeny, Timothy D.; Guzman-Martinez, Emmanuel; Ortega, Laura; Grabowecky, Marcia; Suzuki, Satoru

    2012-01-01

    While perceiving speech, people see mouth shapes that are systematically associated with sounds. In particular, a vertically stretched mouth produces a /woo/ sound, whereas a horizontally stretched mouth produces a /wee/ sound. We demonstrate that hearing these speech sounds alters how we see aspect ratio, a basic visual feature that contributes…

  4. Sound Zones

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Møller, Martin Bo; Olsen, Martin

    2017-01-01

    Sound zones, i.e. spatially confined regions of individual audio content, can be created by appropriate filtering of the desired audio signals reproduced by an array of loudspeakers. The challenge of designing filters for sound zones is twofold: First, the filtered responses should generate...... an acoustic separation between the control regions. Secondly, the pre- and post-ringing as well as spectral deterioration introduced by the filters should be minimized. The tradeoff between acoustic separation and filter ringing is the focus of this paper. A weighted L2-norm penalty is introduced in the sound...

  5. Can road traffic mask sound from wind turbines? Response to wind turbine sound at different levels of road traffic sound

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Pedersen, Eja; Berg, Frits van den; Bakker, Roel; Bouma, Jelte

    2010-01-01

    Wind turbines are favoured in the switch-over to renewable energy. Suitable sites for further developments could be difficult to find as the sound emitted from the rotor blades calls for a sufficient distance to residents to avoid negative effects. The aim of this study was to explore if road traffic sound could mask wind turbine sound or, in contrast, increases annoyance due to wind turbine noise. Annoyance of road traffic and wind turbine noise was measured in the WINDFARMperception survey in the Netherlands in 2007 (n=725) and related to calculated levels of sound. The presence of road traffic sound did not in general decrease annoyance with wind turbine noise, except when levels of wind turbine sound were moderate (35-40 dB(A) Lden) and road traffic sound level exceeded that level with at least 20 dB(A). Annoyance with both noises was intercorrelated but this correlation was probably due to the influence of individual factors. Furthermore, visibility and attitude towards wind turbines were significantly related to noise annoyance of modern wind turbines. The results can be used for the selection of suitable sites, possibly favouring already noise exposed areas if wind turbine sound levels are sufficiently low.

  6. Disjunctive Information Flow for Communicating Processes

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Li, Ximeng; Nielson, Flemming; Nielson, Hanne Riis

    2016-01-01

    The security validation of practical computer systems calls for the ability to specify and verify information flow policies that are dependent on data content. Such policies play an important role in concurrent, communicating systems: consider a scenario where messages are sent to different...... processes according to their tagging. We devise a security type system that enforces content-dependent information flow policies in the presence of communication and concurrency. The type system soundly guarantees a compositional noninterference property. All theoretical results have been formally proved...

  7. Structure-borne sound structural vibrations and sound radiation at audio frequencies

    CERN Document Server

    Cremer, L; Petersson, Björn AT

    2005-01-01

    Structure-Borne Sound"" is a thorough introduction to structural vibrations with emphasis on audio frequencies and the associated radiation of sound. The book presents in-depth discussions of fundamental principles and basic problems, in order to enable the reader to understand and solve his own problems. It includes chapters dealing with measurement and generation of vibrations and sound, various types of structural wave motion, structural damping and its effects, impedances and vibration responses of the important types of structures, as well as with attenuation of vibrations, and sound radi

  8. Numerical design and testing of a sound source for secondary calibration of microphones using the Boundary Element Method

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Cutanda Henriquez, Vicente; Juhl, Peter Møller; Barrera Figueroa, Salvador

    2009-01-01

    Secondary calibration of microphones in free field is performed by placing the microphone under calibration in an anechoic chamber with a sound source, and exposing it to a controlled sound field. A calibrated microphone is also measured as a reference. While the two measurements are usually made...... apart to avoid acoustic interaction. As a part of the project Euromet-792, aiming to investigate and improve methods for secondary free-field calibration of microphones, a sound source suitable for simultaneous secondary free-field calibration has been designed using the Boundary Element Method...... of the Danish Fundamental Metrology Institute (DFM). The design and verification of the source are presented in this communication....

  9. InfoSound

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Sonnenwald, Diane H.; Gopinath, B.; Haberman, Gary O.

    1990-01-01

    The authors explore ways to enhance users' comprehension of complex applications using music and sound effects to present application-program events that are difficult to detect visually. A prototype system, Infosound, allows developers to create and store musical sequences and sound effects with...

  10. The Sound of Science

    Science.gov (United States)

    Merwade, Venkatesh; Eichinger, David; Harriger, Bradley; Doherty, Erin; Habben, Ryan

    2014-01-01

    While the science of sound can be taught by explaining the concept of sound waves and vibrations, the authors of this article focused their efforts on creating a more engaging way to teach the science of sound--through engineering design. In this article they share the experience of teaching sound to third graders through an engineering challenge…

  11. THEATRE PERFORMANCE COMMUNICATION FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF THEATRE SEMIOTICS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nur Sahid

    2013-02-01

    Full Text Available This article investigates the processes of communicating performance elements including word sign systems, facial expressions, tones, gestures, motions, make-up, hair styles, costumes, props, settings, lighting, music, voice or sound effects from the performers to the audience. The success of a theatrical performance actually depends on the successful communication of these elements by the performers. This study adopts the perspective of theater semiotics. Hopefully this article can benefit theater creators in communicating performance codes and messages to the audience. Thus, a theatrical performance can be a productive communication between them and the audience.

  12. The impact of e-mail in acquiring and retaining whole-blood donors: a comparative analysis of the Puget Sound Blood Center donor e-mail communication program.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Geyer, Maria Elena

    2005-12-01

    With the emergence of e-mail as a common form of communication, it is important to understand the role and impact e-mail can have on acquiring and retaining whole-blood donors. Whole-blood donors who opted in to receive e-mail communications (n = 43,232) from the Puget Sound Blood Center (PSBC) and as a result participated in one or more of five e-mail marketing campaigns between July 2002 and March 2003 were studied. New donors with e-mail addresses grew by 74 percent over the measurement period compared with 2 percent growth of those without e-mail addresses. Nearly 15,000 prospective donors were reached as a result of donors passing along e-mails they received from PSBC to friends and family. Nearly 5 percent of PSBC e-mail campaign recipients registered to donate online. PSBC e-mail campaigns have outperformed e-mail marketing industry mean open rates by 44 percent and click-through rates by 36 percent. E-mail is now a mainstream communication medium. It has proven to be an effective method of reaching new donors and generating new donation registrations. Donors respond more favorably to e-mail communications from PSBC compared with e-mail they receive from other organizations. Deeper understanding of how different segments of blood donors use e-mail may help blood centers adjust their donor acquisition and retention programs. New recruitment methods are needed to grow the overall donor base, and e-mail appears to have the potential to make a significant contribution to meeting this objective.

  13. Effects of noise and task loading on a communication task loading on a communication task

    Science.gov (United States)

    Orrell, Dean H., II

    Previous research had shown the effect of noise on a single communication task. This research has been criticized as not being representative of a real world situation since subjects allocated all of their attention to only one task. In the present study, the effect of adding a loading task to a standard noise-communication paradigm was investigated. Subjects performed both a communication task (Modified Rhyme Test; House et al. 1965) and a short term memory task (Sternberg, 1969) in simulated levels of aircraft noise (95, 105 and 115 dB overall sound pressure level (OASPL)). Task loading was varied with Sternberg's task by requiring subjects to memorize one, four, or six alphanumeric characters. Simulated aircraft noise was varied between levels of 95, 105 and 115 dB OASPL using a pink noise source. Results show that the addition of Sternberg's task and little effect on the intelligibility of the communication task while response time for the communication task increased.

  14. Feedback Loops in Communication and Human Computing

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    op den Akker, Hendrikus J.A.; Heylen, Dirk K.J.; Pantic, Maja; Pentland, Alex; Nijholt, Antinus; Huang, Thomas S.

    Building systems that are able to analyse communicative behaviours or take part in conversations requires a sound methodology in which the complex organisation of conversations is understood and tested on real-life samples. The data-driven approaches to human computing not only have a value for the

  15. 34 CFR 106.34 - Access to classes and schools.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... coeducational elementary or secondary school may provide nonvocational single-sex classes or extracurricular... of the excluded sex, a substantially equal coeducational class or extracurricular activity in the... school or coeducational school. (2) Exception. A nonvocational public charter school that is a single...

  16. Light and Sound

    CERN Document Server

    Karam, P Andrew

    2010-01-01

    Our world is largely defined by what we see and hear-but our uses for light and sound go far beyond simply seeing a photo or hearing a song. A concentrated beam of light, lasers are powerful tools used in industry, research, and medicine, as well as in everyday electronics like DVD and CD players. Ultrasound, sound emitted at a high frequency, helps create images of a developing baby, cleans teeth, and much more. Light and Sound teaches how light and sound work, how they are used in our day-to-day lives, and how they can be used to learn about the universe at large.

  17. The Textile Form of Sound

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bendixen, Cecilie

    Sound is a part of architecture, and sound is complex. Upon this, sound is invisible. How is it then possible to design visual objects that interact with the sound? This paper addresses the problem of how to get access to the complexity of sound and how to make textile material revealing the form...... goemetry by analysing the sound pattern at a specific spot. This analysis is done theoretically with algorithmic systems and practical with waves in water. The paper describes the experiments and the findings, and explains how an analysis of sound can be catched in a textile form....

  18. Strategic Silence as a Tool of Political Communication: A Reflection ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Politics is said to be a game of intrigues and part of that is the use of silence as a means of communication. This may sound strange as communication itself connotes the art of expression. However in politics, a political actor may chose to remain silent as a means of passing a message across to the public in a trouble ...

  19. Reduction of heart sound interference from lung sound signals using empirical mode decomposition technique.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mondal, Ashok; Bhattacharya, P S; Saha, Goutam

    2011-01-01

    During the recording time of lung sound (LS) signals from the chest wall of a subject, there is always heart sound (HS) signal interfering with it. This obscures the features of lung sound signals and creates confusion on pathological states, if any, of the lungs. A novel method based on empirical mode decomposition (EMD) technique is proposed in this paper for reducing the undesired heart sound interference from the desired lung sound signals. In this, the mixed signal is split into several components. Some of these components contain larger proportions of interfering signals like heart sound, environmental noise etc. and are filtered out. Experiments have been conducted on simulated and real-time recorded mixed signals of heart sound and lung sound. The proposed method is found to be superior in terms of time domain, frequency domain, and time-frequency domain representations and also in listening test performed by pulmonologist.

  20. Sound generator

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Berkhoff, Arthur P.

    2008-01-01

    A sound generator, particularly a loudspeaker, configured to emit sound, comprising a rigid element (2) enclosing a plurality of air compartments (3), wherein the rigid element (2) has a back side (B) comprising apertures (4), and a front side (F) that is closed, wherein the generator is provided

  1. Sound generator

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Berkhoff, Arthur P.

    2010-01-01

    A sound generator, particularly a loudspeaker, configured to emit sound, comprising a rigid element (2) enclosing a plurality of air compartments (3), wherein the rigid element (2) has a back side (B) comprising apertures (4), and a front side (F) that is closed, wherein the generator is provided

  2. Sound generator

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Berkhoff, Arthur P.

    2007-01-01

    A sound generator, particularly a loudspeaker, configured to emit sound, comprising a rigid element (2) enclosing a plurality of air compartments (3), wherein the rigid element (2) has a back side (B) comprising apertures (4), and a front side (F) that is closed, wherein the generator is provided

  3. NASA Space Sounds API

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Aeronautics and Space Administration — NASA has released a series of space sounds via sound cloud. We have abstracted away some of the hassle in accessing these sounds, so that developers can play with...

  4. Calibration aspects of binaural sound reproduction over insert earphones

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hoffmann, Pablo F.; Markovic, Milos; Olesen, Søren Krarup

    2012-01-01

    Earphones are nowadays widely adopted for the reproduction of audio material in mobile multimedia and communication platforms, e.g. smartphones. Reproduction of high-quality spatial sound on such platforms can dramatically improve their applicability, and since two channels are always available...... in earphone-based reproduction, binaural reproduction can be applied directly. This paper is concerned with the theoretical and practical aspects relevant to the correct reproduction of binaural signals over insert earphones. To this purpose, a theoretical model originally developed to explain the acoustic...

  5. The Development of a Finite Volume Method for Modeling Sound in Coastal Ocean Environment

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Long, Wen; Yang, Zhaoqing; Copping, Andrea E.; Jung, Ki Won; Deng, Zhiqun

    2015-10-28

    : As the rapid growth of marine renewable energy and off-shore wind energy, there have been concerns that the noises generated from construction and operation of the devices may interfere marine animals’ communication. In this research, a underwater sound model is developed to simulate sound prorogation generated by marine-hydrokinetic energy (MHK) devices or offshore wind (OSW) energy platforms. Finite volume and finite difference methods are developed to solve the 3D Helmholtz equation of sound propagation in the coastal environment. For finite volume method, the grid system consists of triangular grids in horizontal plane and sigma-layers in vertical dimension. A 3D sparse matrix solver with complex coefficients is formed for solving the resulting acoustic pressure field. The Complex Shifted Laplacian Preconditioner (CSLP) method is applied to efficiently solve the matrix system iteratively with MPI parallelization using a high performance cluster. The sound model is then coupled with the Finite Volume Community Ocean Model (FVCOM) for simulating sound propagation generated by human activities in a range-dependent setting, such as offshore wind energy platform constructions and tidal stream turbines. As a proof of concept, initial validation of the finite difference solver is presented for two coastal wedge problems. Validation of finite volume method will be reported separately.

  6. Development of Sound Localization Strategies in Children with Bilateral Cochlear Implants.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yi Zheng

    Full Text Available Localizing sounds in our environment is one of the fundamental perceptual abilities that enable humans to communicate, and to remain safe. Because the acoustic cues necessary for computing source locations consist of differences between the two ears in signal intensity and arrival time, sound localization is fairly poor when a single ear is available. In adults who become deaf and are fitted with cochlear implants (CIs sound localization is known to improve when bilateral CIs (BiCIs are used compared to when a single CI is used. The aim of the present study was to investigate the emergence of spatial hearing sensitivity in children who use BiCIs, with a particular focus on the development of behavioral localization patterns when stimuli are presented in free-field horizontal acoustic space. A new analysis was implemented to quantify patterns observed in children for mapping acoustic space to a spatially relevant perceptual representation. Children with normal hearing were found to distribute their responses in a manner that demonstrated high spatial sensitivity. In contrast, children with BiCIs tended to classify sound source locations to the left and right; with increased bilateral hearing experience, they developed a perceptual map of space that was better aligned with the acoustic space. The results indicate experience-dependent refinement of spatial hearing skills in children with CIs. Localization strategies appear to undergo transitions from sound source categorization strategies to more fine-grained location identification strategies. This may provide evidence for neural plasticity, with implications for training of spatial hearing ability in CI users.

  7. Sound Insulation between Dwellings

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Rasmussen, Birgit

    2011-01-01

    Regulatory sound insulation requirements for dwellings exist in more than 30 countries in Europe. In some countries, requirements have existed since the 1950s. Findings from comparative studies show that sound insulation descriptors and requirements represent a high degree of diversity...... and initiate – where needed – improvement of sound insulation of new and existing dwellings in Europe to the benefit of the inhabitants and the society. A European COST Action TU0901 "Integrating and Harmonizing Sound Insulation Aspects in Sustainable Urban Housing Constructions", has been established and runs...... 2009-2013. The main objectives of TU0901 are to prepare proposals for harmonized sound insulation descriptors and for a European sound classification scheme with a number of quality classes for dwellings. Findings from the studies provide input for the discussions in COST TU0901. Data collected from 24...

  8. Agent Communication for Dynamic Belief Update

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kobayashi, Mikito; Tojo, Satoshi

    Thus far, various formalizations of rational / logical agent model have been proposed. In this paper, we include the notion of communication channel and belief modality into update logic, and introduce Belief Update Logic (BUL). First, we discuss that how we can reformalize the inform action of FIPA-ACL into communication channel, which represents a connection between agents. Thus, our agents can send a message only when they believe, and also there actually is, a channel between him / her and a receiver. Then, we present a static belief logic (BL) and show its soundness and completeness. Next, we develop the logic to BUL, which can update Kripke model by the inform action; in which we show that in the updated model the belief operator also satisfies K45. Thereafter, we show that every sentence in BUL can be translated into BL; thus, we can contend that BUL is also sound and complete. Furthermore, we discuss the features of CUL, including the case of inconsistent information, as well as channel transmission. Finally, we summarize our contribution and discuss some future issues.

  9. Remembering that big things sound big: Sound symbolism and associative memory.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Preziosi, Melissa A; Coane, Jennifer H

    2017-01-01

    According to sound symbolism theory, individual sounds or clusters of sounds can convey meaning. To examine the role of sound symbolic effects on processing and memory for nonwords, we developed a novel set of 100 nonwords to convey largeness (nonwords containing plosive consonants and back vowels) and smallness (nonwords containing fricative consonants and front vowels). In Experiments 1A and 1B, participants rated the size of the 100 nonwords and provided definitions to them as if they were products. Nonwords composed of fricative/front vowels were rated as smaller than those composed of plosive/back vowels. In Experiment 2, participants studied sound symbolic congruent and incongruent nonword and participant-generated definition pairings. Definitions paired with nonwords that matched the size and participant-generated meanings were recalled better than those that did not match. When the participant-generated definitions were re-paired with other nonwords, this mnemonic advantage was reduced, although still reliable. In a final free association study, the possibility that plosive/back vowel and fricative/front vowel nonwords elicit sound symbolic size effects due to mediation from word neighbors was ruled out. Together, these results suggest that definitions that are sound symbolically congruent with a nonword are more memorable than incongruent definition-nonword pairings. This work has implications for the creation of brand names and how to create brand names that not only convey desired product characteristics, but also are memorable for consumers.

  10. An Antropologist of Sound

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Groth, Sanne Krogh

    2015-01-01

    PROFESSOR PORTRAIT: Sanne Krogh Groth met Holger Schulze, newly appointed professor in Musicology at the Department for Arts and Cultural Studies, University of Copenhagen, to a talk about anthropology of sound, sound studies, musical canons and ideology.......PROFESSOR PORTRAIT: Sanne Krogh Groth met Holger Schulze, newly appointed professor in Musicology at the Department for Arts and Cultural Studies, University of Copenhagen, to a talk about anthropology of sound, sound studies, musical canons and ideology....

  11. Effects of a Classroom-Based Pre-Literacy Intervention for Preschoolers with Communication Disorders

    Science.gov (United States)

    Currier, Alyssa R.

    2013-01-01

    Children with communication disorders are often at risk of literacy difficulties, especially students that present with autism and/or speech sound disorders. This quasi-experimental study was designed to examine the effects of a 10-week "hybrid" intervention for preschool students with and without communication disorders in an integrated…

  12. An experimental study on the aeroacoustics of wall-bounded flows : Sound emission from a wall-mounted cavity, coupling of time-resolved PIV and acoustic analogies

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Koschatzky, V.

    2011-01-01

    This thesis deals with the problem of noise. Sound is a constant presence in our lives. Most of the times it is something wanted and it serves a purpose, such as communication through speech or entertainment by listening to music. On the other hand, quite often sound is an annoying and unwanted

  13. A simple frequency-scaling rule for animal communication

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fletcher, Neville H.

    2004-05-01

    Different animals use widely different frequencies for sound communication, and it is reasonable to assume that evolution has adapted these frequencies to give greatest conspecific communication distance for a given vocal effort. Acoustic analysis shows that the optimal communication frequency is inversely proportional to about the 0.4 power of the animal's body mass. Comparison with observational data indicates that this prediction is well supported in practice. For animals of a given class, for example mammals, the maximum communication distance varies about as the 0.6 power of the animal's mass. There is, however, a wide spread of observed results because of the different emphasis placed upon vocal effort in the evolution of different animal species.

  14. Teaching Children with Autism to Respond to Conversation Partners' Interest

    Science.gov (United States)

    Peters, Lindsay C.; Thompson, Rachel H.

    2015-01-01

    Successful conversation requires that the speaker's behavior is sensitive to nonvocal listener responses. We observed children with autism spectrum disorder during conversation probes in which a listener periodically displayed nonvocal cues that she was uninterested in the conversation. We used behavioral skills training to teach conversation…

  15. Sound specificity effects in spoken word recognition: The effect of integrality between words and sounds

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Strori, Dorina; Zaar, Johannes; Cooke, Martin

    2017-01-01

    Recent evidence has shown that nonlinguistic sounds co-occurring with spoken words may be retained in memory and affect later retrieval of the words. This sound-specificity effect shares many characteristics with the classic voice-specificity effect. In this study, we argue that the sound......-specificity effect is conditional upon the context in which the word and sound coexist. Specifically, we argue that, besides co-occurrence, integrality between words and sounds is a crucial factor in the emergence of the effect. In two recognition-memory experiments, we compared the emergence of voice and sound...... from a mere co-occurrence context effect by removing the intensity modulation. The absence of integrality led to the disappearance of the sound-specificity effect. Taken together, the results suggest that the assimilation of background sounds into memory cannot be reduced to a simple context effect...

  16. Active sound reduction system and method

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    2016-01-01

    The present invention refers to an active sound reduction system and method for attenuation of sound emitted by a primary sound source, especially for attenuation of snoring sounds emitted by a human being. This system comprises a primary sound source, at least one speaker as a secondary sound

  17. Sound Symbolism in Basic Vocabulary

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Søren Wichmann

    2010-04-01

    Full Text Available The relationship between meanings of words and their sound shapes is to a large extent arbitrary, but it is well known that languages exhibit sound symbolism effects violating arbitrariness. Evidence for sound symbolism is typically anecdotal, however. Here we present a systematic approach. Using a selection of basic vocabulary in nearly one half of the world’s languages we find commonalities among sound shapes for words referring to same concepts. These are interpreted as due to sound symbolism. Studying the effects of sound symbolism cross-linguistically is of key importance for the understanding of language evolution.

  18. PARTICULARITIES OF COMMUNICATION IN RURAL TOURISM

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Svetlana SASU

    2014-06-01

    Full Text Available The social aspect of rural tourism enhances its value as a communicative process because Tourism is an industry with a difference. There is an undeniable exchange between places and people. This exchange is what is meant bycommunication. Communication happens at many levels (even for one single action, in many different ways, andfor most beings, as well as certain machines. Communication requires a sender, a message, and an intendedrecipient, although the receiver need not be present or aware of the sender's intent to communicate at the time ofcommunication; thus communication can occur across vast distances in time and space. Communication requiresthat the communicating parties share an area of communicative commonality. The communication process iscomplete once the receiver has understood the sender. Thus, communication is a two- way process. The interactionof the tourist with the places he visits and the people he meets is therefore, a form of communication in which boththe visitor and the visited form a communication cycle. A considerable amount of weight age is given to the power ofimpressions on the mind of a person living in the twenty-first century. One of the most important aspects of ruraltourism is the communication of the impressions created in the minds of tourists. These include non-verbal aspects -- sights and sounds communicate a general impression-- and the verbal aspect of communication-- language playsan important role in creating impressions.

  19. Sounding the Alarm: An Introduction to Ecological Sound Art

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jonathan Gilmurray

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available In recent years, a number of sound artists have begun engaging with ecological issues through their work, forming a growing movement of ˝ecological sound art˝. This paper traces its development, examines its influences, and provides examples of the artists whose work is currently defining this important and timely new field.

  20. Sound Stuff? Naïve materialism in middle-school students' conceptions of sound

    Science.gov (United States)

    Eshach, Haim; Schwartz, Judah L.

    2006-06-01

    Few studies have dealt with students’ preconceptions of sounds. The current research employs Reiner et al. (2000) substance schema to reveal new insights about students’ difficulties in understanding this fundamental topic. It aims not only to detect whether the substance schema is present in middle school students’ thinking, but also examines how students use the schema’s properties. It asks, moreover, whether the substance schema properties are used as islands of local consistency or whether one can identify more global coherent consistencies among the properties that the students use to explain the sound phenomena. In-depth standardized open-ended interviews were conducted with ten middle school students. Consistent with the substance schema, sound was perceived by our participants as being pushable, frictional, containable, or transitional. However, sound was also viewed as a substance different from the ordinary with respect to its stability, corpuscular nature, additive properties, and inertial characteristics. In other words, students’ conceptions of sound do not seem to fit Reiner et al.’s schema in all respects. Our results also indicate that students’ conceptualization of sound lack internal consistency. Analyzing our results with respect to local and global coherence, we found students’ conception of sound is close to diSessa’s “loosely connected, fragmented collection of ideas.” The notion that sound is perceived only as a “sort of a material,” we believe, requires some revision of the substance schema as it applies to sound. The article closes with a discussion concerning the implications of the results for instruction.

  1. Sound symbolism: the role of word sound in meaning.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Svantesson, Jan-Olof

    2017-09-01

    The question whether there is a natural connection between sound and meaning or if they are related only by convention has been debated since antiquity. In linguistics, it is usually taken for granted that 'the linguistic sign is arbitrary,' and exceptions like onomatopoeia have been regarded as marginal phenomena. However, it is becoming more and more clear that motivated relations between sound and meaning are more common and important than has been thought. There is now a large and rapidly growing literature on subjects as ideophones (or expressives), words that describe how a speaker perceives a situation with the senses, and phonaesthemes, units like English gl-, which occur in many words that share a meaning component (in this case 'light': gleam, glitter, etc.). Furthermore, psychological experiments have shown that sound symbolism in one language can be understood by speakers of other languages, suggesting that some kinds of sound symbolism are universal. WIREs Cogn Sci 2017, 8:e1441. doi: 10.1002/wcs.1441 For further resources related to this article, please visit the WIREs website. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  2. Sound-by-sound thalamic stimulation modulates midbrain auditory excitability and relative binaural sensitivity in frogs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ponnath, Abhilash; Farris, Hamilton E

    2014-01-01

    Descending circuitry can modulate auditory processing, biasing sensitivity to particular stimulus parameters and locations. Using awake in vivo single unit recordings, this study tested whether electrical stimulation of the thalamus modulates auditory excitability and relative binaural sensitivity in neurons of the amphibian midbrain. In addition, by using electrical stimuli that were either longer than the acoustic stimuli (i.e., seconds) or presented on a sound-by-sound basis (ms), experiments addressed whether the form of modulation depended on the temporal structure of the electrical stimulus. Following long duration electrical stimulation (3-10 s of 20 Hz square pulses), excitability (spikes/acoustic stimulus) to free-field noise stimuli decreased by 32%, but returned over 600 s. In contrast, sound-by-sound electrical stimulation using a single 2 ms duration electrical pulse 25 ms before each noise stimulus caused faster and varied forms of modulation: modulation lasted sound-by-sound electrical stimulation varied between different acoustic stimuli, including for different male calls, suggesting modulation is specific to certain stimulus attributes. For binaural units, modulation depended on the ear of input, as sound-by-sound electrical stimulation preceding dichotic acoustic stimulation caused asymmetric modulatory effects: sensitivity shifted for sounds at only one ear, or by different relative amounts for both ears. This caused a change in the relative difference in binaural sensitivity. Thus, sound-by-sound electrical stimulation revealed fast and ear-specific (i.e., lateralized) auditory modulation that is potentially suited to shifts in auditory attention during sound segregation in the auditory scene.

  3. Sound specificity effects in spoken word recognition: The effect of integrality between words and sounds.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Strori, Dorina; Zaar, Johannes; Cooke, Martin; Mattys, Sven L

    2018-01-01

    Recent evidence has shown that nonlinguistic sounds co-occurring with spoken words may be retained in memory and affect later retrieval of the words. This sound-specificity effect shares many characteristics with the classic voice-specificity effect. In this study, we argue that the sound-specificity effect is conditional upon the context in which the word and sound coexist. Specifically, we argue that, besides co-occurrence, integrality between words and sounds is a crucial factor in the emergence of the effect. In two recognition-memory experiments, we compared the emergence of voice and sound specificity effects. In Experiment 1 , we examined two conditions where integrality is high. Namely, the classic voice-specificity effect (Exp. 1a) was compared with a condition in which the intensity envelope of a background sound was modulated along the intensity envelope of the accompanying spoken word (Exp. 1b). Results revealed a robust voice-specificity effect and, critically, a comparable sound-specificity effect: A change in the paired sound from exposure to test led to a decrease in word-recognition performance. In the second experiment, we sought to disentangle the contribution of integrality from a mere co-occurrence context effect by removing the intensity modulation. The absence of integrality led to the disappearance of the sound-specificity effect. Taken together, the results suggest that the assimilation of background sounds into memory cannot be reduced to a simple context effect. Rather, it is conditioned by the extent to which words and sounds are perceived as integral as opposed to distinct auditory objects.

  4. Performance of South African Children on the Communication and Symbolic Behavior Scales--Developmental Profile (CSBS DP)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chambers, Nola; Stronach, Sheri T.; Wetherby, Amy M.

    2016-01-01

    Background: Substantial development in social communication skills occurs in the first two years of life. Growth should be evident in sharing emotion and eye gaze; rate of communication, communicating for a variety of functions; using gestures, sounds and words; understanding language, and using functional and pretend actions with objects in play.…

  5. Analysis, Synthesis, and Perception of Musical Sounds The Sound of Music

    CERN Document Server

    Beauchamp, James W

    2007-01-01

    Analysis, Synthesis, and Perception of Musical Sounds contains a detailed treatment of basic methods for analysis and synthesis of musical sounds, including the phase vocoder method, the McAulay-Quatieri frequency-tracking method, the constant-Q transform, and methods for pitch tracking with several examples shown. Various aspects of musical sound spectra such as spectral envelope, spectral centroid, spectral flux, and spectral irregularity are defined and discussed. One chapter is devoted to the control and synthesis of spectral envelopes. Two advanced methods of analysis/synthesis are given: "Sines Plus Transients Plus Noise" and "Spectrotemporal Reassignment" are covered. Methods for timbre morphing are given. The last two chapters discuss the perception of musical sounds based on discrimination and multidimensional scaling timbre models.

  6. Michael Jackson's Sound Stages

    OpenAIRE

    Morten Michelsen

    2012-01-01

    In order to discuss analytically spatial aspects of recorded sound William Moylan’s concept of ‘sound stage’ is developed within a musicological framework as part of a sound paradigm which includes timbre, texture and sound stage. Two Michael Jackson songs (‘The Lady in My Life’ from 1982 and ‘Scream’ from 1995) are used to: a) demonstrate the value of such a conceptualisation, and b) demonstrate that the model has its limits, as record producers in the 1990s began ignoring the conventions of...

  7. Communication networks for medical image transmission

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lemke, H.U.

    1993-01-01

    Digital communication networks are of increasing importance for data exchange in health care environments. They may be used to transmit multi-media data, such as text, images, graphics, signals and sound. The essential characteristics of modern network technologies are summarized in this article and are seen in the context of local, metropolitan and wide area networks. Standardized technologies discussed are Ethernet, token oriented systems, FDDI, DQDB and ATM. Off-line communication media based on magnetic optical disk, such as ISandC, are briefly introduced. The conclusion reached is that therapy planning for radiation therapy or hyperthermia can make use of communication technologies, for example, to transmit patient images, modelling data and results of distribution calculations of physical phenomena. (orig.) [de

  8. Hearing with an atympanic ear: good vibration and poor sound-pressure detection in the royal python, Python regius.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Christensen, Christian Bech; Christensen-Dalsgaard, Jakob; Brandt, Christian; Madsen, Peter Teglberg

    2012-01-15

    Snakes lack both an outer ear and a tympanic middle ear, which in most tetrapods provide impedance matching between the air and inner ear fluids and hence improve pressure hearing in air. Snakes would therefore be expected to have very poor pressure hearing and generally be insensitive to airborne sound, whereas the connection of the middle ear bone to the jaw bones in snakes should confer acute sensitivity to substrate vibrations. Some studies have nevertheless claimed that snakes are quite sensitive to both vibration and sound pressure. Here we test the two hypotheses that: (1) snakes are sensitive to sound pressure and (2) snakes are sensitive to vibrations, but cannot hear the sound pressure per se. Vibration and sound-pressure sensitivities were quantified by measuring brainstem evoked potentials in 11 royal pythons, Python regius. Vibrograms and audiograms showed greatest sensitivity at low frequencies of 80-160 Hz, with sensitivities of -54 dB re. 1 m s(-2) and 78 dB re. 20 μPa, respectively. To investigate whether pythons detect sound pressure or sound-induced head vibrations, we measured the sound-induced head vibrations in three dimensions when snakes were exposed to sound pressure at threshold levels. In general, head vibrations induced by threshold-level sound pressure were equal to or greater than those induced by threshold-level vibrations, and therefore sound-pressure sensitivity can be explained by sound-induced head vibration. From this we conclude that pythons, and possibly all snakes, lost effective pressure hearing with the complete reduction of a functional outer and middle ear, but have an acute vibration sensitivity that may be used for communication and detection of predators and prey.

  9. Effects of instructed timing and tempo on snare drum sound in drum kit performance.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Danielsen, Anne; Waadeland, Carl Haakon; Sundt, Henrik G; Witek, Maria A G

    2015-10-01

    This paper reports on an experiment investigating the expressive means with which performers of groove-based musics signal the intended timing of a rhythmic event. Ten expert drummers were instructed to perform a rock pattern in three different tempi and three different timing styles: "laid-back," "on-the-beat," and "pushed." The results show that there were systematic differences in the intensity and timbre (i.e., sound-pressure level, temporal centroid, and spectral centroid) of series of snare strokes played with these different timing styles at the individual level. A common pattern was found across subjects concerning the effect of instructed timing on sound-pressure level: a majority of the drummers played laid-back strokes louder than on-the-beat strokes. Furthermore, when the tempo increased, there was a general increase in sound-pressure level and a decrease in spectral centroid across subjects. The results show that both temporal and sound-related features are important in order to indicate that a rhythmic event has been played intentionally early, late, or on-the-beat, and provide insight into the ways in which musicians communicate at the microrhythmic level in groove-based musics.

  10. 40 CFR 63.645 - Test methods and procedures for miscellaneous process vents.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... analysis based on accepted chemical engineering principles, measurable process parameters, or physical or... for a new source, Method 18 may be used to determine any non-VOC hydrocarbons that may be deducted to calculate the TOC (minus non-VOC hydrocarbons) concentration and mass flow rate. The following procedures...

  11. ABOUT SOUNDS IN VIDEO GAMES

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Denikin Anton A.

    2012-12-01

    Full Text Available The article considers the aesthetical and practical possibilities for sounds (sound design in video games and interactive applications. Outlines the key features of the game sound, such as simulation, representativeness, interactivity, immersion, randomization, and audio-visuality. The author defines the basic terminology in study of game audio, as well as identifies significant aesthetic differences between film sounds and sounds in video game projects. It is an attempt to determine the techniques of art analysis for the approaches in study of video games including aesthetics of their sounds. The article offers a range of research methods, considering the video game scoring as a contemporary creative practice.

  12. Sound [signal] noise

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bjørnsten, Thomas

    2012-01-01

    The article discusses the intricate relationship between sound and signification through notions of noise. The emergence of new fields of sonic artistic practices has generated several questions of how to approach sound as aesthetic form and material. During the past decade an increased attention...... has been paid to, for instance, a category such as ‘sound art’ together with an equally strengthened interest in phenomena and concepts that fall outside the accepted aesthetic procedures and constructions of what we traditionally would term as musical sound – a recurring example being ‘noise’....

  13. Beneath sci-fi sound: primer, science fiction sound design, and American independent cinema

    OpenAIRE

    Johnston, Nessa

    2012-01-01

    Primer is a very low budget science-fiction film that deals with the subject of time travel; however, it looks and sounds quite distinctively different from other films associated with the genre. While Hollywood blockbuster sci-fi relies on “sound spectacle” as a key attraction, in contrast Primer sounds “lo-fi” and screen-centred, mixed to two channel stereo rather than the now industry-standard 5.1 surround sound. Although this is partly a consequence of the economics of its production, the...

  14. Sound classification of dwellings

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Rasmussen, Birgit

    2012-01-01

    National schemes for sound classification of dwellings exist in more than ten countries in Europe, typically published as national standards. The schemes define quality classes reflecting different levels of acoustical comfort. Main criteria concern airborne and impact sound insulation between...... dwellings, facade sound insulation and installation noise. The schemes have been developed, implemented and revised gradually since the early 1990s. However, due to lack of coordination between countries, there are significant discrepancies, and new standards and revisions continue to increase the diversity...... is needed, and a European COST Action TU0901 "Integrating and Harmonizing Sound Insulation Aspects in Sustainable Urban Housing Constructions", has been established and runs 2009-2013, one of the main objectives being to prepare a proposal for a European sound classification scheme with a number of quality...

  15. Experiments on the quick-relief medical communications via the Japan's domestic communication satellite CS-2 for the case of disasters and emergencies.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Otsu, Y; Choh, T; Yamazaki, I; Kosaka, K; Iguchi, M; Nakajima, I

    1986-01-01

    Experiments on the quick-relief medical communications via the CS-2 satellite were carried out by using two types of 30/20 GHz small transportable earth stations whose antenna diameters are 1 and 2 m. As the terminal equipments, FM-SCPC systems with a one-telephone-equivalent channel were prepared for the transmission of voice, color freezed picture (9.6 kbps), supersonic echo signal and heart sound from a electrocardiograph. Signals from various medical equipments were transmitted by an FM-SCPC system from Simizu harbour (1 m station) to Tokyo transportable station (2 m), assuming that a person was injured in the ship and the ship came alongside the pier. Transmitted materials are mainly various kinds of pictures of affected parts, X-ray films and electrocardiograph with breathing sounds. It was found possible to send various medical information mentioned above via CS-2 by the 30/20 GHz simple communication systems with one-telephone-equivalent channel. Doctors suggested it would be possible to judge very well about the patients' emergency conditions and to give quick consult with inevitable treatment procedures for them. However, a few problems were found in the Hi-Fi reproduction of original colors and in the transmission of heart sounds in the very low frequency band less than 300 Hz.

  16. Sound Art Situations

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Krogh Groth, Sanne; Samson, Kristine

    2017-01-01

    and combine theories from several fields. Aspects of sound art studies, performance studies and contemporary art studies are presented in order to theoretically explore the very diverse dimensions of the two sound art pieces: Visual, auditory, performative, social, spatial and durational dimensions become......This article is an analysis of two sound art performances that took place June 2015 in outdoor public spaces in the social housing area Urbanplanen in Copenhagen, Denmark. The two performances were On the production of a poor acoustics by Brandon LaBelle and Green Interactive Biofeedback...... Environments (GIBE) by Jeremy Woodruff. In order to investigate the complex situation that arises when sound art is staged in such contexts, the authors of this article suggest exploring the events through approaching them as ‘situations’ (Doherty 2009). With this approach it becomes possible to engage...

  17. Characteristic sounds facilitate visual search.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Iordanescu, Lucica; Guzman-Martinez, Emmanuel; Grabowecky, Marcia; Suzuki, Satoru

    2008-06-01

    In a natural environment, objects that we look for often make characteristic sounds. A hiding cat may meow, or the keys in the cluttered drawer may jingle when moved. Using a visual search paradigm, we demonstrated that characteristic sounds facilitated visual localization of objects, even when the sounds carried no location information. For example, finding a cat was faster when participants heard a meow sound. In contrast, sounds had no effect when participants searched for names rather than pictures of objects. For example, hearing "meow" did not facilitate localization of the word cat. These results suggest that characteristic sounds cross-modally enhance visual (rather than conceptual) processing of the corresponding objects. Our behavioral demonstration of object-based cross-modal enhancement complements the extensive literature on space-based cross-modal interactions. When looking for your keys next time, you might want to play jingling sounds.

  18. Determining the speed of sound in the air by sound wave interference

    Science.gov (United States)

    Silva, Abel A.

    2017-07-01

    Mechanical waves propagate through material media. Sound is an example of a mechanical wave. In fluids like air, sound waves propagate through successive longitudinal perturbations of compression and decompression. Audible sound frequencies for human ears range from 20 to 20 000 Hz. In this study, the speed of sound v in the air is determined using the identification of maxima of interference from two synchronous waves at frequency f. The values of v were correct to 0 °C. The experimental average value of {\\bar{ν }}\\exp =336 +/- 4 {{m}} {{{s}}}-1 was found. It is 1.5% larger than the reference value. The standard deviation of 4 m s-1 (1.2% of {\\bar{ν }}\\exp ) is an improved value by the use of the concept of the central limit theorem. The proposed procedure to determine the speed of sound in the air aims to be an academic activity for physics classes of scientific and technological courses in college.

  19. Fluid Sounds

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Explorations and analysis of soundscapes have, since Canadian R. Murray Schafer's work during the early 1970's, developed into various established research - and artistic disciplines. The interest in sonic environments is today present within a broad range of contemporary art projects and in arch......Explorations and analysis of soundscapes have, since Canadian R. Murray Schafer's work during the early 1970's, developed into various established research - and artistic disciplines. The interest in sonic environments is today present within a broad range of contemporary art projects...... and in architectural design. Aesthetics, psychoacoustics, perception, and cognition are all present in this expanding field embracing such categories as soundscape composition, sound art, sonic art, sound design, sound studies and auditory culture. Of greatest significance to the overall field is the investigation...

  20. The influence of environmental sound training on the perception of spectrally degraded speech and environmental sounds.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shafiro, Valeriy; Sheft, Stanley; Gygi, Brian; Ho, Kim Thien N

    2012-06-01

    Perceptual training with spectrally degraded environmental sounds results in improved environmental sound identification, with benefits shown to extend to untrained speech perception as well. The present study extended those findings to examine longer-term training effects as well as effects of mere repeated exposure to sounds over time. Participants received two pretests (1 week apart) prior to a week-long environmental sound training regimen, which was followed by two posttest sessions, separated by another week without training. Spectrally degraded stimuli, processed with a four-channel vocoder, consisted of a 160-item environmental sound test, word and sentence tests, and a battery of basic auditory abilities and cognitive tests. Results indicated significant improvements in all speech and environmental sound scores between the initial pretest and the last posttest with performance increments following both exposure and training. For environmental sounds (the stimulus class that was trained), the magnitude of positive change that accompanied training was much greater than that due to exposure alone, with improvement for untrained sounds roughly comparable to the speech benefit from exposure. Additional tests of auditory and cognitive abilities showed that speech and environmental sound performance were differentially correlated with tests of spectral and temporal-fine-structure processing, whereas working memory and executive function were correlated with speech, but not environmental sound perception. These findings indicate generalizability of environmental sound training and provide a basis for implementing environmental sound training programs for cochlear implant (CI) patients.

  1. Sound Surfing Network (SSN): Mobile Phone-based Sound Spatialization with Audience Collaboration

    OpenAIRE

    Park, Saebyul; Ban, Seonghoon; Hong, Dae Ryong; Yeo, Woon Seung

    2013-01-01

    SSN (Sound Surfing Network) is a performance system that provides a new musicalexperience by incorporating mobile phone-based spatial sound control tocollaborative music performance. SSN enables both the performer and theaudience to manipulate the spatial distribution of sound using the smartphonesof the audience as distributed speaker system. Proposing a new perspective tothe social aspect music appreciation, SSN will provide a new possibility tomobile music performances in the context of in...

  2. Sound Exposure of Symphony Orchestra Musicians

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Schmidt, Jesper Hvass; Pedersen, Ellen Raben; Juhl, Peter Møller

    2011-01-01

    dBA and their left ear was exposed 4.6 dB more than the right ear. Percussionists were exposed to high sound peaks >115 dBC but less continuous sound exposure was observed in this group. Musicians were exposed up to LAeq8h of 92 dB and a majority of musicians were exposed to sound levels exceeding......Background: Assessment of sound exposure by noise dosimetry can be challenging especially when measuring the exposure of classical orchestra musicians where sound originate from many different instruments. A new measurement method of bilateral sound exposure of classical musicians was developed...... and used to characterize sound exposure of the left and right ear simultaneously in two different symphony orchestras.Objectives: To measure binaural sound exposure of professional classical musicians and to identify possible exposure risk factors of specific musicians.Methods: Sound exposure was measured...

  3. Letter-Sound Reading: Teaching Preschool Children Print-to-Sound Processing

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wolf, Gail Marie

    2016-01-01

    This intervention study investigated the growth of letter sound reading and growth of consonant-vowel-consonant (CVC) word decoding abilities for a representative sample of 41 US children in preschool settings. Specifically, the study evaluated the effectiveness of a 3-step letter-sound teaching intervention in teaching preschool children to…

  4. Emphasis of spatial cues in the temporal fine structure during the rising segments of amplitude-modulated sounds

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dietz, Mathias; Marquardt, Torsten; Salminen, Nelli H.; McAlpine, David

    2013-01-01

    The ability to locate the direction of a target sound in a background of competing sources is critical to the survival of many species and important for human communication. Nevertheless, brain mechanisms that provide for such accurate localization abilities remain poorly understood. In particular, it remains unclear how the auditory brain is able to extract reliable spatial information directly from the source when competing sounds and reflections dominate all but the earliest moments of the sound wave reaching each ear. We developed a stimulus mimicking the mutual relationship of sound amplitude and binaural cues, characteristic to reverberant speech. This stimulus, named amplitude modulated binaural beat, allows for a parametric and isolated change of modulation frequency and phase relations. Employing magnetoencephalography and psychoacoustics it is demonstrated that the auditory brain uses binaural information in the stimulus fine structure only during the rising portion of each modulation cycle, rendering spatial information recoverable in an otherwise unlocalizable sound. The data suggest that amplitude modulation provides a means of “glimpsing” low-frequency spatial cues in a manner that benefits listening in noisy or reverberant environments. PMID:23980161

  5. Modelling Hyperboloid Sound Scattering

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Burry, Jane; Davis, Daniel; Peters, Brady

    2011-01-01

    The Responsive Acoustic Surfaces workshop project described here sought new understandings about the interaction between geometry and sound in the arena of sound scattering. This paper reports on the challenges associated with modelling, simulating, fabricating and measuring this phenomenon using...... both physical and digital models at three distinct scales. The results suggest hyperboloid geometry, while difficult to fabricate, facilitates sound scattering....

  6. The influence of ski helmets on sound perception and sound localisation on the ski slope

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lana Ružić

    2015-04-01

    Full Text Available Objectives: The aim of the study was to investigate whether a ski helmet interferes with the sound localization and the time of sound perception in the frontal plane. Material and Methods: Twenty-three participants (age 30.7±10.2 were tested on the slope in 2 conditions, with and without wearing the ski helmet, by 6 different spatially distributed sound stimuli per each condition. Each of the subjects had to react when hearing the sound as soon as possible and to signalize the correct side of the sound arrival. Results: The results showed a significant difference in the ability to localize the specific ski sounds; 72.5±15.6% of correct answers without a helmet vs. 61.3±16.2% with a helmet (p < 0.01. However, the performance on this test did not depend on whether they were used to wearing a helmet (p = 0.89. In identifying the timing, at which the sound was firstly perceived, the results were also in favor of the subjects not wearing a helmet. The subjects reported hearing the ski sound clues at 73.4±5.56 m without a helmet vs. 60.29±6.34 m with a helmet (p < 0.001. In that case the results did depend on previously used helmets (p < 0.05, meaning that that regular usage of helmets might help to diminish the attenuation of the sound identification that occurs because of the helmets. Conclusions: Ski helmets might limit the ability of a skier to localize the direction of the sounds of danger and might interfere with the moment, in which the sound is firstly heard.

  7. BRAND NAMING: SOUND SYMBOLISM, BRAND PREFERENCE AND BRAND PERFORMANCE

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Alina Catalina Duduciuc

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available The aim of this study is to highlight the importance of sound symbolism for Romanian marketing and advertising applied research. Previous research showed that the phonetic structure of brand name communicates its characteristics, i.e. it drives consumers to assess certain features and performance of the product. We assumed that when consumers encounter an unknown brand name, they automatically infer characteristics from the meaning conveyed by the sounds (e.g. phonemes. Therefore, we supposed that a brand name for a shampoo (artificially created on experimental purpose containing back vowels is evaluated better by consumers when they compare it to another brand name with front vowels. Furthermore, we tested the influence of the stops and fricatives consonants in inferring certain attributes of product. To this end, fifty nine students (N=59 participated in a research based on questionnaire. The results revealed that subjects evaluated better the brand names containing back vowels than brand names with front vowel. No effect was obtained regarding the presence of stops and fricatives consonants in assessing the brand performance.

  8. 77 FR 37318 - Eighth Coast Guard District Annual Safety Zones; Sound of Independence; Santa Rosa Sound; Fort...

    Science.gov (United States)

    2012-06-21

    ...-AA00 Eighth Coast Guard District Annual Safety Zones; Sound of Independence; Santa Rosa Sound; Fort... Coast Guard will enforce a Safety Zone for the Sound of Independence event in the Santa Rosa Sound, Fort... during the Sound of Independence. During the enforcement period, entry into, transiting or anchoring in...

  9. Material sound source localization through headphones

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dunai, Larisa; Peris-Fajarnes, Guillermo; Lengua, Ismael Lengua; Montaña, Ignacio Tortajada

    2012-09-01

    In the present paper a study of sound localization is carried out, considering two different sounds emitted from different hit materials (wood and bongo) as well as a Delta sound. The motivation of this research is to study how humans localize sounds coming from different materials, with the purpose of a future implementation of the acoustic sounds with better localization features in navigation aid systems or training audio-games suited for blind people. Wood and bongo sounds are recorded after hitting two objects made of these materials. Afterwards, they are analysed and processed. On the other hand, the Delta sound (click) is generated by using the Adobe Audition software, considering a frequency of 44.1 kHz. All sounds are analysed and convolved with previously measured non-individual Head-Related Transfer Functions both for an anechoic environment and for an environment with reverberation. The First Choice method is used in this experiment. Subjects are asked to localize the source position of the sound listened through the headphones, by using a graphic user interface. The analyses of the recorded data reveal that no significant differences are obtained either when considering the nature of the sounds (wood, bongo, Delta) or their environmental context (with or without reverberation). The localization accuracies for the anechoic sounds are: wood 90.19%, bongo 92.96% and Delta sound 89.59%, whereas for the sounds with reverberation the results are: wood 90.59%, bongo 92.63% and Delta sound 90.91%. According to these data, we can conclude that even when considering the reverberation effect, the localization accuracy does not significantly increase.

  10. The technoperception of electronic sound in cyberculture

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Begoña Abad Miguélez

    2003-11-01

    Full Text Available One characteristic of new information and communications technologies is that they make possible new technical uses at an instrumental level and new technological practices that affect intersubjective relationships, behaviours and models... Computer culture, or cyberculture, is no exception. With the original device that has given rise to it, now widespread and improved, we have the socially generated conditions for a radical change in even the most stable practices, concepts and cultural foundations. Most authors that have looked at the cultural sensorium have tended to look at the speed and acceleration of images and text, ignoring the role of sound and silence, in other words, of music, electronically generated. However, in the "digital" era in which computers govern our daily lives, it would be an unpardonable sin not to consider electronic, digitalised music as the most appropriate soundtrack for this new context. For these reasons, in this paper we will look at some of the cultural changes that characterise cyberculture and attempt to establish connections between the image revolution and the revolution in electronically generated music. The ultimate objective of our incursion into this field is to examine how technoperception of electronic sound affects the senses in the "the era of the intelligent machine".

  11. Waveform analysis of sound

    CERN Document Server

    Tohyama, Mikio

    2015-01-01

    What is this sound? What does that sound indicate? These are two questions frequently heard in daily conversation. Sound results from the vibrations of elastic media and in daily life provides informative signals of events happening in the surrounding environment. In interpreting auditory sensations, the human ear seems particularly good at extracting the signal signatures from sound waves. Although exploring auditory processing schemes may be beyond our capabilities, source signature analysis is a very attractive area in which signal-processing schemes can be developed using mathematical expressions. This book is inspired by such processing schemes and is oriented to signature analysis of waveforms. Most of the examples in the book are taken from data of sound and vibrations; however, the methods and theories are mostly formulated using mathematical expressions rather than by acoustical interpretation. This book might therefore be attractive and informative for scientists, engineers, researchers, and graduat...

  12. Content Analysis as a Foundation for Programmatic Research in Communication

    OpenAIRE

    Slater, Michael D.

    2013-01-01

    Previous arguments that content analyses provide the descriptive foundation for media effects research (McLeod & Reeves, 1980) are extended to include that content analyses can provide a sound and useful foundation for programmatic research by individual communication scientists. I discuss examples from my own work and from that of colleagues in communication and related disciplines. Use of messages sampled and coded in a content analysis in combination with survey data sets or as stimuli in ...

  13. Spectral summation and facilitation in on- and off-responses for optimized representation of communication calls in mouse inferior colliculus.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Akimov, Alexander G; Egorova, Marina A; Ehret, Günter

    2017-02-01

    Selectivity for processing of species-specific vocalizations and communication sounds has often been associated with the auditory cortex. The midbrain inferior colliculus, however, is the first center in the auditory pathways of mammals integrating acoustic information processed in separate nuclei and channels in the brainstem and, therefore, could significantly contribute to enhance the perception of species' communication sounds. Here, we used natural wriggling calls of mouse pups, which communicate need for maternal care to adult females, and further 15 synthesized sounds to test the hypothesis that neurons in the central nucleus of the inferior colliculus of adult females optimize their response rates for reproduction of the three main harmonics (formants) of wriggling calls. The results confirmed the hypothesis showing that average response rates, as recorded extracellularly from single units, were highest and spectral facilitation most effective for both onset and offset responses to the call and call models with three resolved frequencies according to critical bands in perception. In addition, the general on- and/or off-response enhancement in almost half the investigated 122 neurons favors not only perception of single calls but also of vocalization rhythm. In summary, our study provides strong evidence that critical-band resolved frequency components within a communication sound increase the probability of its perception by boosting the signal-to-noise ratio of neural response rates within the inferior colliculus for at least 20% (our criterion for facilitation). These mechanisms, including enhancement of rhythm coding, are generally favorable to processing of other animal and human vocalizations, including formants of speech sounds. © 2016 Federation of European Neuroscience Societies and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  14. Sound Settlements

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Mortensen, Peder Duelund; Hornyanszky, Elisabeth Dalholm; Larsen, Jacob Norvig

    2013-01-01

    Præsentation af projektresultater fra Interreg forskningen Sound Settlements om udvikling af bæredygtighed i det almene boligbyggerier i København, Malmø, Helsingborg og Lund samt europæiske eksempler på best practice......Præsentation af projektresultater fra Interreg forskningen Sound Settlements om udvikling af bæredygtighed i det almene boligbyggerier i København, Malmø, Helsingborg og Lund samt europæiske eksempler på best practice...

  15. Sounds of silence: How to animate virtual worlds with sound

    Science.gov (United States)

    Astheimer, Peter

    1993-01-01

    Sounds are an integral and sometimes annoying part of our daily life. Virtual worlds which imitate natural environments gain a lot of authenticity from fast, high quality visualization combined with sound effects. Sounds help to increase the degree of immersion for human dwellers in imaginary worlds significantly. The virtual reality toolkit of IGD (Institute for Computer Graphics) features a broad range of standard visual and advanced real-time audio components which interpret an object-oriented definition of the scene. The virtual reality system 'Virtual Design' realized with the toolkit enables the designer of virtual worlds to create a true audiovisual environment. Several examples on video demonstrate the usage of the audio features in Virtual Design.

  16. How Pleasant Sounds Promote and Annoying Sounds Impede Health: A Cognitive Approach

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tjeerd C. Andringa

    2013-04-01

    Full Text Available This theoretical paper addresses the cognitive functions via which quiet and in general pleasurable sounds promote and annoying sounds impede health. The article comprises a literature analysis and an interpretation of how the bidirectional influence of appraising the environment and the feelings of the perceiver can be understood in terms of core affect and motivation. This conceptual basis allows the formulation of a detailed cognitive model describing how sonic content, related to indicators of safety and danger, either allows full freedom over mind-states or forces the activation of a vigilance function with associated arousal. The model leads to a number of detailed predictions that can be used to provide existing soundscape approaches with a solid cognitive science foundation that may lead to novel approaches to soundscape design. These will take into account that louder sounds typically contribute to distal situational awareness while subtle environmental sounds provide proximal situational awareness. The role of safety indicators, mediated by proximal situational awareness and subtle sounds, should become more important in future soundscape research.

  17. Sound synthesis and evaluation of interactive footsteps and environmental sounds rendering for virtual reality applications.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nordahl, Rolf; Turchet, Luca; Serafin, Stefania

    2011-09-01

    We propose a system that affords real-time sound synthesis of footsteps on different materials. The system is based on microphones, which detect real footstep sounds from subjects, from which the ground reaction force (GRF) is estimated. Such GRF is used to control a sound synthesis engine based on physical models. Two experiments were conducted. In the first experiment, the ability of subjects to recognize the surface they were exposed to was assessed. In the second experiment, the sound synthesis engine was enhanced with environmental sounds. Results show that, in some conditions, adding a soundscape significantly improves the recognition of the simulated environment.

  18. It sounds good!

    CERN Multimedia

    CERN Bulletin

    2010-01-01

    Both the atmosphere and we ourselves are hit by hundreds of particles every second and yet nobody has ever heard a sound coming from these processes. Like cosmic rays, particles interacting inside the detectors at the LHC do not make any noise…unless you've decided to use the ‘sonification’ technique, in which case you might even hear the Higgs boson sound like music. Screenshot of the first page of the "LHC sound" site. A group of particle physicists, composers, software developers and artists recently got involved in the ‘LHC sound’ project to make the particles at the LHC produce music. Yes…music! The ‘sonification’ technique converts data into sound. “In this way, if you implement the right software you can get really nice music out of the particle tracks”, says Lily Asquith, a member of the ATLAS collaboration and one of the initiators of the project. The ‘LHC...

  19. Musical Sound, Instruments, and Equipment

    Science.gov (United States)

    Photinos, Panos

    2017-12-01

    'Musical Sound, Instruments, and Equipment' offers a basic understanding of sound, musical instruments and music equipment, geared towards a general audience and non-science majors. The book begins with an introduction of the fundamental properties of sound waves, and the perception of the characteristics of sound. The relation between intensity and loudness, and the relation between frequency and pitch are discussed. The basics of propagation of sound waves, and the interaction of sound waves with objects and structures of various sizes are introduced. Standing waves, harmonics and resonance are explained in simple terms, using graphics that provide a visual understanding. The development is focused on musical instruments and acoustics. The construction of musical scales and the frequency relations are reviewed and applied in the description of musical instruments. The frequency spectrum of selected instruments is explored using freely available sound analysis software. Sound amplification and sound recording, including analog and digital approaches, are discussed in two separate chapters. The book concludes with a chapter on acoustics, the physical factors that affect the quality of the music experience, and practical ways to improve the acoustics at home or small recording studios. A brief technical section is provided at the end of each chapter, where the interested reader can find the relevant physics and sample calculations. These quantitative sections can be skipped without affecting the comprehension of the basic material. Questions are provided to test the reader's understanding of the material. Answers are given in the appendix.

  20. A Lightweight Loudspeaker for Aircraft Communications and Active Noise Control

    Science.gov (United States)

    Warnaka, Glenn E.; Kleinle, Mark; Tsangaris, Parry; Oslac, Michael J.; Moskow, Harry J.

    1992-01-01

    A series of new, lightweight loudspeakers for use on commercial aircraft has been developed. The loudspeakers use NdFeB magnets and aluminum alloy frames to reduce the weight. The NdFeB magnet is virtually encapsulated by steel in the new speaker designs. Active noise reduction using internal loudspeakers was demonstrated to be effective in 1983. A weight, space, and cost efficient method for creating the active sound attenuating fields is to use the existing cabin loudspeakers for both communication and sound attenuation. This will require some additional loudspeaker design considerations.

  1. Sound Velocity in Soap Foams

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wu Gong-Tao; Lü Yong-Jun; Liu Peng-Fei; Li Yi-Ning; Shi Qing-Fan

    2012-01-01

    The velocity of sound in soap foams at high gas volume fractions is experimentally studied by using the time difference method. It is found that the sound velocities increase with increasing bubble diameter, and asymptotically approach to the value in air when the diameter is larger than 12.5 mm. We propose a simple theoretical model for the sound propagation in a disordered foam. In this model, the attenuation of a sound wave due to the scattering of the bubble wall is equivalently described as the effect of an additional length. This simplicity reasonably reproduces the sound velocity in foams and the predicted results are in good agreement with the experiments. Further measurements indicate that the increase of frequency markedly slows down the sound velocity, whereas the latter does not display a strong dependence on the solution concentration

  2. Reproduction-Related Sound Production of Grasshoppers Regulated by Internal State and Actual Sensory Environment

    Science.gov (United States)

    Heinrich, Ralf; Kunst, Michael; Wirmer, Andrea

    2012-01-01

    The interplay of neural and hormonal mechanisms activated by entero- and extero-receptors biases the selection of actions by decision making neuronal circuits. The reproductive behavior of acoustically communicating grasshoppers, which is regulated by short-term neural and longer-term hormonal mechanisms, has frequently been used to study the cellular and physiological processes that select particular actions from the species-specific repertoire of behaviors. Various grasshoppers communicate with species- and situation-specific songs in order to attract and court mating partners, to signal reproductive readiness, or to fend off competitors. Selection and coordination of type, intensity, and timing of sound signals is mediated by the central complex, a highly structured brain neuropil known to integrate multimodal pre-processed sensory information by a large number of chemical messengers. In addition, reproductive activity including sound production critically depends on maturation, previous mating experience, and oviposition cycles. In this regard, juvenile hormone released from the corpora allata has been identified as a decisive hormonal signal necessary to establish reproductive motivation in grasshopper females. Both regulatory systems, the central complex mediating short-term regulation and the corpora allata mediating longer-term regulation of reproduction-related sound production mutually influence each other’s activity in order to generate a coherent state of excitation that promotes or suppresses reproductive behavior in respective appropriate or inappropriate situations. This review summarizes our current knowledge about extrinsic and intrinsic factors that influence grasshopper reproductive motivation, their representation in the nervous system and their integrative processing that mediates the initiation or suppression of reproductive behaviors. PMID:22737107

  3. Reproduction-related sound production of grasshoppers regulated by internal state and actual sensory environment

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ralf eHeinrich

    2012-06-01

    Full Text Available The interplay of neural and hormonal mechanisms activated by entero- and exteroreceptors biases the selection of actions by decision making neuronal circuits. The reproductive behaviour of acoustically communicating grasshoppers, which is regulated by short-term neural and longer-term hormonal mechanisms, has frequently been used to study the cellular and physiological processes that select particular actions from the species-specific repertoire of behaviours. Various grasshoppers communicate with species- and situation-specific songs in order to attract and court mating partners, to signal reproductive readiness or to fend off competitors. Selection and coordination of type, intensity and timing of sound signals is mediated by the central complex, a highly structured brain neuropil known to integrate multimodal pre-processed sensory information by a large number of chemical messengers. In addition, reproductive activity including sound production critically depends on maturation, previous mating experience and oviposition cycles. In this regard, juvenile hormone released from the corpora allata has been identified as a decisive hormonal signal necessary to establish reproductive motivation in grasshopper females. Both regulatory systems, the central complex mediating short-term regulation and the corpora allata mediating longer-term regulation of reproduction related sound production mutually influence each other’s activity in order to generate a coherent state of excitation that promotes or suppresses reproductive behaviour in respective appropriate or inappropriate situations.This review summarizes our current knowledge about extrinsic and intrinsic factors that influence grasshopper reproductive motivation, their representation in the nervous system and their integrative processing that mediates the initiation or suppression of reproductive behaviors.

  4. The velocity of sound

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Beyer, R.T.

    1985-01-01

    The paper reviews the work carried out on the velocity of sound in liquid alkali metals. The experimental methods to determine the velocity measurements are described. Tables are presented of reported data on the velocity of sound in lithium, sodium, potassium, rubidium and caesium. A formula is given for alkali metals, in which the sound velocity is a function of shear viscosity, atomic mass and atomic volume. (U.K.)

  5. Product sounds : Fundamentals and application

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Ozcan-Vieira, E.

    2008-01-01

    Products are ubiquitous, so are the sounds emitted by products. Product sounds influence our reasoning, emotional state, purchase decisions, preference, and expectations regarding the product and the product's performance. Thus, auditory experience elicited by product sounds may not be just about

  6. Sound of mind : electrophysiological and behavioural evidence for the role of context, variation and informativity in human speech processing

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Nixon, Jessie Sophia

    2014-01-01

    Spoken communication involves transmission of a message which takes physical form in acoustic waves. Within any given language, acoustic cues pattern in language-specific ways along language-specific acoustic dimensions to create speech sound contrasts. These cues are utilized by listeners to

  7. The production and perception of emotionally expressive walking sounds: similarities between musical performance and everyday motor activity.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bruno L Giordano

    Full Text Available Several studies have investigated the encoding and perception of emotional expressivity in music performance. A relevant question concerns how the ability to communicate emotions in music performance is acquired. In accordance with recent theories on the embodiment of emotion, we suggest here that both the expression and recognition of emotion in music might at least in part rely on knowledge about the sounds of expressive body movements. We test this hypothesis by drawing parallels between musical expression of emotions and expression of emotions in sounds associated with a non-musical motor activity: walking. In a combined production-perception design, two experiments were conducted, and expressive acoustical features were compared across modalities. An initial performance experiment tested for similar feature use in walking sounds and music performance, and revealed that strong similarities exist. Features related to sound intensity, tempo and tempo regularity were identified as been used similarly in both domains. Participants in a subsequent perception experiment were able to recognize both non-emotional and emotional properties of the sound-generating walkers. An analysis of the acoustical correlates of behavioral data revealed that variations in sound intensity, tempo, and tempo regularity were likely used to recognize expressed emotions. Taken together, these results lend support the motor origin hypothesis for the musical expression of emotions.

  8. 33 CFR 334.410 - Albemarle Sound, Pamlico Sound, and adjacent waters, NC; danger zones for naval aircraft operations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... 33 Navigation and Navigable Waters 3 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Albemarle Sound, Pamlico Sound... AND RESTRICTED AREA REGULATIONS § 334.410 Albemarle Sound, Pamlico Sound, and adjacent waters, NC; danger zones for naval aircraft operations. (a) Target areas—(1) North Landing River (Currituck Sound...

  9. Simulation of Sound Waves Using the Lattice Boltzmann Method for Fluid Flow: Benchmark Cases for Outdoor Sound Propagation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Salomons, Erik M; Lohman, Walter J A; Zhou, Han

    2016-01-01

    Propagation of sound waves in air can be considered as a special case of fluid dynamics. Consequently, the lattice Boltzmann method (LBM) for fluid flow can be used for simulating sound propagation. In this article application of the LBM to sound propagation is illustrated for various cases: free-field propagation, propagation over porous and non-porous ground, propagation over a noise barrier, and propagation in an atmosphere with wind. LBM results are compared with solutions of the equations of acoustics. It is found that the LBM works well for sound waves, but dissipation of sound waves with the LBM is generally much larger than real dissipation of sound waves in air. To circumvent this problem it is proposed here to use the LBM for assessing the excess sound level, i.e. the difference between the sound level and the free-field sound level. The effect of dissipation on the excess sound level is much smaller than the effect on the sound level, so the LBM can be used to estimate the excess sound level for a non-dissipative atmosphere, which is a useful quantity in atmospheric acoustics. To reduce dissipation in an LBM simulation two approaches are considered: i) reduction of the kinematic viscosity and ii) reduction of the lattice spacing.

  10. Acoustical communications by means of small explosive charges

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Edrington, T.S.

    1984-03-01

    An acoustical communication system that conveys information by modulating the time intervals between detonations of small (subgram) explosive charges has been designed and field-tested. In addition to an information capacity of about 20 bits per charge, the system provides a means for making inferences about sound speed and attenuation in the propagation medium

  11. Sounding out the logo shot

    OpenAIRE

    Nicolai Jørgensgaard Graakjær

    2013-01-01

    This article focuses on how sound in combination with visuals (i.e. ‘branding by’) may possibly affect the signifying potentials (i.e. ‘branding effect’) of products and corporate brands (i.e. ‘branding of’) during logo shots in television commercials (i.e. ‘branding through’). This particular focus adds both to the understanding of sound in television commercials and to the understanding of sound brands. The article firstly presents a typology of sounds. Secondly, this typology is applied...

  12. Sound intensity

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Crocker, Malcolm J.; Jacobsen, Finn

    1998-01-01

    This chapter is an overview, intended for readers with no special knowledge about this particular topic. The chapter deals with all aspects of sound intensity and its measurement from the fundamental theoretical background to practical applications of the measurement technique.......This chapter is an overview, intended for readers with no special knowledge about this particular topic. The chapter deals with all aspects of sound intensity and its measurement from the fundamental theoretical background to practical applications of the measurement technique....

  13. Sound Intensity

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Crocker, M.J.; Jacobsen, Finn

    1997-01-01

    This chapter is an overview, intended for readers with no special knowledge about this particular topic. The chapter deals with all aspects of sound intensity and its measurement from the fundamental theoretical background to practical applications of the measurement technique.......This chapter is an overview, intended for readers with no special knowledge about this particular topic. The chapter deals with all aspects of sound intensity and its measurement from the fundamental theoretical background to practical applications of the measurement technique....

  14. SoleSound

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Zanotto, Damiano; Turchet, Luca; Boggs, Emily Marie

    2014-01-01

    This paper introduces the design of SoleSound, a wearable system designed to deliver ecological, audio-tactile, underfoot feedback. The device, which primarily targets clinical applications, uses an audio-tactile footstep synthesis engine informed by the readings of pressure and inertial sensors...... embedded in the footwear to integrate enhanced feedback modalities into the authors' previously developed instrumented footwear. The synthesis models currently implemented in the SoleSound simulate different ground surface interactions. Unlike similar devices, the system presented here is fully portable...

  15. Sound engineering for diesel engines; Sound Engineering an Dieselmotoren

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Enderich, A.; Fischer, R. [MAHLE Filtersysteme GmbH, Stuttgart (Germany)

    2006-07-01

    The strong acceptance for vehicles powered by turbo-charged diesel engines encourages several manufacturers to think about sportive diesel concepts. The approach of suppressing unpleasant noise by the application of distinctive insulation steps is not adequate to satisfy sportive needs. The acoustics cannot follow the engine's performance. This report documents, that it is possible to give diesel-powered vehicles a sportive sound characteristic by using an advanced MAHLE motor-sound-system with a pressure-resistant membrane and an integrated load controlled flap. With this the specific acoustic disadvantages of the diesel engine, like the ''diesel knock'' or a rough engine running can be masked. However, by the application of a motor-sound-system you must not negate the original character of the diesel engine concept, but accentuate its strong torque characteristic in the middle engine speed range. (orig.)

  16. Sonic mediations: body, sound, technology

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Birdsall, C.; Enns, A.

    2008-01-01

    Sonic Mediations: Body, Sound, Technology is a collection of original essays that represents an invaluable contribution to the burgeoning field of sound studies. While sound is often posited as having a bridging function, as a passive in-between, this volume invites readers to rethink the concept of

  17. System for actively reducing sound

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Berkhoff, Arthur P.

    2005-01-01

    A system for actively reducing sound from a primary noise source, such as traffic noise, comprising: a loudspeaker connector for connecting to at least one loudspeaker for generating anti-sound for reducing said noisy sound; a microphone connector for connecting to at least a first microphone placed

  18. Affordable Laser Communication in the Classroom

    Science.gov (United States)

    Walker, Constance E.; Sparks, R.; Pompea, S.

    2006-12-01

    Several companies sell systems that illustrate laser communication such as Arbor Scientific1. These systems can be too expensive for classroom use. We will demonstrate a technique to modulate a standard diode laser using a microphone or other sound source that is capable of transmitting voice and music. This affordable system can transmit over 350 feet using simple, inexpensive parts readily available at your local electronics store. We will provide a list of parts necessary for assembly, detailed assembly instructions, as well as some suggested investigations using the laser communication system. This system can be used in the classroom either as a demonstration or hands-on activity to explore the physics and technology involved, citing more sophisticated laser communication systems on board spacecraft such as the Mercury Messenger Mission and the Mars Telecommunications Orbiter. 1http://www.arborsci.com

  19. Measuring the 'complexity'of sound

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    Sounds in the natural environment form an important class of biologically relevant nonstationary signals. We propose a dynamic spectral measure to characterize the spectral dynamics of such non-stationary sound signals and classify them based on rate of change of spectral dynamics. We categorize sounds with slowly ...

  20. Controlling sound with acoustic metamaterials

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Cummer, Steven A. ; Christensen, Johan; Alù, Andrea

    2016-01-01

    Acoustic metamaterials can manipulate and control sound waves in ways that are not possible in conventional materials. Metamaterials with zero, or even negative, refractive index for sound offer new possibilities for acoustic imaging and for the control of sound at subwavelength scales....... The combination of transformation acoustics theory and highly anisotropic acoustic metamaterials enables precise control over the deformation of sound fields, which can be used, for example, to hide or cloak objects from incident acoustic energy. Active acoustic metamaterials use external control to create......-scale metamaterial structures and converting laboratory experiments into useful devices. In this Review, we outline the designs and properties of materials with unusual acoustic parameters (for example, negative refractive index), discuss examples of extreme manipulation of sound and, finally, provide an overview...

  1. Effects of temperature on sound production and auditory abilities in the Striped Raphael catfish Platydoras armatulus (Family Doradidae.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sandra Papes

    Full Text Available Sound production and hearing sensitivity of ectothermic animals are affected by the ambient temperature. This is the first study investigating the influence of temperature on both sound production and on hearing abilities in a fish species, namely the neotropical Striped Raphael catfish Platydoras armatulus.Doradid catfishes produce stridulation sounds by rubbing the pectoral spines in the shoulder girdle and drumming sounds by an elastic spring mechanism which vibrates the swimbladder. Eight fish were acclimated for at least three weeks to 22°, then to 30° and again to 22°C. Sounds were recorded in distress situations when fish were hand-held. The stridulation sounds became shorter at the higher temperature, whereas pulse number, maximum pulse period and sound pressure level did not change with temperature. The dominant frequency increased when the temperature was raised to 30°C and the minimum pulse period became longer when the temperature decreased again. The fundamental frequency of drumming sounds increased at the higher temperature. Using the auditory evoked potential (AEP recording technique, the hearing thresholds were tested at six different frequencies from 0.1 to 4 kHz. The temporal resolution was determined by analyzing the minimum resolvable click period (0.3-5 ms. The hearing sensitivity was higher at the higher temperature and differences were more pronounced at higher frequencies. In general, latencies of AEPs in response to single clicks became shorter at the higher temperature, whereas temporal resolution in response to double-clicks did not change.These data indicate that sound characteristics as well as hearing abilities are affected by temperatures in fishes. Constraints imposed on hearing sensitivity at different temperatures cannot be compensated even by longer acclimation periods. These changes in sound production and detection suggest that acoustic orientation and communication are affected by temperature changes in

  2. Sound intensity as a function of sound insulation partition

    OpenAIRE

    Cvetkovic , S.; Prascevic , R.

    1994-01-01

    In the modern engineering practice, the sound insulation of the partitions is the synthesis of the theory and of the experience acquired in the procedure of the field and of the laboratory measurement. The science and research public treat the sound insulation in the context of the emission and propagation of the acoustic energy in the media with the different acoustics impedance. In this paper, starting from the essence of physical concept of the intensity as the energy vector, the authors g...

  3. Heart Sound Localization and Reduction in Tracheal Sounds by Gabor Time-Frequency Masking

    OpenAIRE

    SAATCI, Esra; Akan, Aydın

    2018-01-01

    Background and aim: Respiratorysounds, i.e. tracheal and lung sounds, have been of great interest due to theirdiagnostic values as well as the potential of their use in the estimation ofthe respiratory dynamics (mainly airflow). Thus the aim of the study is topresent a new method to filter the heart sound interference from the trachealsounds. Materials and methods: Trachealsounds and airflow signals were collected by using an accelerometer from 10 healthysubjects. Tracheal sounds were then pr...

  4. Interactive physically-based sound simulation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Raghuvanshi, Nikunj

    The realization of interactive, immersive virtual worlds requires the ability to present a realistic audio experience that convincingly compliments their visual rendering. Physical simulation is a natural way to achieve such realism, enabling deeply immersive virtual worlds. However, physically-based sound simulation is very computationally expensive owing to the high-frequency, transient oscillations underlying audible sounds. The increasing computational power of desktop computers has served to reduce the gap between required and available computation, and it has become possible to bridge this gap further by using a combination of algorithmic improvements that exploit the physical, as well as perceptual properties of audible sounds. My thesis is a step in this direction. My dissertation concentrates on developing real-time techniques for both sub-problems of sound simulation: synthesis and propagation. Sound synthesis is concerned with generating the sounds produced by objects due to elastic surface vibrations upon interaction with the environment, such as collisions. I present novel techniques that exploit human auditory perception to simulate scenes with hundreds of sounding objects undergoing impact and rolling in real time. Sound propagation is the complementary problem of modeling the high-order scattering and diffraction of sound in an environment as it travels from source to listener. I discuss my work on a novel numerical acoustic simulator (ARD) that is hundred times faster and consumes ten times less memory than a high-accuracy finite-difference technique, allowing acoustic simulations on previously-intractable spaces, such as a cathedral, on a desktop computer. Lastly, I present my work on interactive sound propagation that leverages my ARD simulator to render the acoustics of arbitrary static scenes for multiple moving sources and listener in real time, while accounting for scene-dependent effects such as low-pass filtering and smooth attenuation

  5. 27 CFR 9.151 - Puget Sound.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 27 Alcohol, Tobacco Products and Firearms 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Puget Sound. 9.151 Section... Sound. (a) Name. The name of the viticultural area described in this section is “Puget Sound.” (b) Approved maps. The appropriate maps for determining the boundary of the Puget Sound viticultural area are...

  6. Social and Economic Considerations for Coastal and Watershed Restoration in the Puget Sound, Washington: A Literature Review

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stinchfield, Holly M.; Koontz, Lynne; Sexton, Natalie R.

    2009-01-01

    This literature review summarizes and synthesizes the available information regarding the impacts of socioeconomic factors on coastal and watershed restoration in the Puget Sound, Wash. Major topic areas which are explored include: institutions and restoration; beliefs, behaviors, and knowledge about restoration and the environment; stakeholder involvement in restoration, communication of restoration issues, and economic issues in restoration. The review revealed that socioeconomic factors play an important role in determining the designation, process, and success of restoration projects. Socioeconomic factors can facilitate or obstruct restoration, but few large-scale restoration projects emphasize them in either prioritization or monitoring procedures. Additionally, there are substantial gaps in the literature regarding restoration in the Puget Sound across all of the topics addressed in this review. The lack of research makes it difficult to provide a holistic view of the social and economic dimensions of restoration in the Sound but provides opportunity for future research.

  7. How Pleasant Sounds Promote and Annoying Sounds Impede Health : A Cognitive Approach

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Andringa, Tjeerd C.; Lanser, J. Jolie L.

    2013-01-01

    This theoretical paper addresses the cognitive functions via which quiet and in general pleasurable sounds promote and annoying sounds impede health. The article comprises a literature analysis and an interpretation of how the bidirectional influence of appraising the environment and the feelings of

  8. Of Sound Mind: Mental Distress and Sound in Twentieth-Century Media Culture

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Birdsall, C.; Siewert, S.

    2013-01-01

    This article seeks to specify the representation of mental disturbance in sound media during the twentieth century. It engages perspectives on societal and technological change across the twentieth century as crucial for aesthetic strategies developed in radio and sound film production. The analysis

  9. Sounds scary? Lack of habituation following the presentation of novel sounds.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tine A Biedenweg

    Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Animals typically show less habituation to biologically meaningful sounds than to novel signals. We might therefore expect that acoustic deterrents should be based on natural sounds. METHODOLOGY: We investigated responses by western grey kangaroos (Macropus fulignosus towards playback of natural sounds (alarm foot stomps and Australian raven (Corvus coronoides calls and artificial sounds (faux snake hiss and bull whip crack. We then increased rate of presentation to examine whether animals would habituate. Finally, we varied frequency of playback to investigate optimal rates of delivery. PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Nine behaviors clustered into five Principal Components. PC factors 1 and 2 (animals alert or looking, or hopping and moving out of area accounted for 36% of variance. PC factor 3 (eating cessation, taking flight, movement out of area accounted for 13% of variance. Factors 4 and 5 (relaxing, grooming and walking; 12 and 11% of variation, respectively discontinued upon playback. The whip crack was most evocative; eating was reduced from 75% of time spent prior to playback to 6% following playback (post alarm stomp: 32%, raven call: 49%, hiss: 75%. Additionally, 24% of individuals took flight and moved out of area (50 m radius in response to the whip crack (foot stomp: 0%, raven call: 8% and 4%, hiss: 6%. Increasing rate of presentation (12x/min ×2 min caused 71% of animals to move out of the area. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: The bull whip crack, an artificial sound, was as effective as the alarm stomp at eliciting aversive behaviors. Kangaroos did not fully habituate despite hearing the signal up to 20x/min. Highest rates of playback did not elicit the greatest responses, suggesting that 'more is not always better'. Ultimately, by utilizing both artificial and biological sounds, predictability may be masked or offset, so that habituation is delayed and more effective deterrents may be produced.

  10. Sound localization and occupational noise

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Pedro de Lemos Menezes

    2014-02-01

    Full Text Available OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to determine the effects of occupational noise on sound localization in different spatial planes and frequencies among normal hearing firefighters. METHOD: A total of 29 adults with pure-tone hearing thresholds below 25 dB took part in the study. The participants were divided into a group of 19 firefighters exposed to occupational noise and a control group of 10 adults who were not exposed to such noise. All subjects were assigned a sound localization task involving 117 stimuli from 13 sound sources that were spatially distributed in horizontal, vertical, midsagittal and transverse planes. The three stimuli, which were square waves with fundamental frequencies of 500, 2,000 and 4,000 Hz, were presented at a sound level of 70 dB and were randomly repeated three times from each sound source. The angle between the speaker's axis in the same plane was 45°, and the distance to the subject was 1 m. RESULT: The results demonstrate that the sound localization ability of the firefighters was significantly lower (p<0.01 than that of the control group. CONCLUSION: Exposure to occupational noise, even when not resulting in hearing loss, may lead to a diminished ability to locate a sound source.

  11. Increasingly artful. Applying commercial marketing communication techniques to family planning communication.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Williams, J R

    1992-08-01

    Family planning (FP) and social marketing messages must utilize the rules concerning artfulness developed in the private sector for effective communication in the mass media around the world. They have to compete for the attention of television program viewers accustomed to receiving hundreds of 30-second messages. There are some rules essential to any effective communication program: 1) Command attention. In the US over 1350 different mass media messages vie for attention every single day. FP messages are sensitive, but dullness and passivity is not a requisite. 2) Clarify the message, and keep it simple and direct. Mixed messages equal less effective communication. 3) Communicate a benefit. Consumers do not only buy products, they buy expectations of benefits. 4) Consistency counts. The central message should remain consistent to allow the evaluation of its effectiveness, but execution should vary from time to time and medium to medium. 5) Cater to the heart and the head. Effective communication offers real emotional values. 6) Create trust. Words, graphics, sounds, and casting in the campaign should support 1 central key promise to a single prime prospect. 7) Call for action. Both commercial and social marketing campaigns can calculate results by quantifiable measurement of sales (of condoms) transactions (the number of IUD insertions), floor traffic (clinic visits), attitude shifts, and behavior change. The PRO-PATER Vasectomy Campaign of 1988 in Sao Paulo, Brazil successfully used the above rules for effective communication. During the 1st 2 months of the campaign, phone calls increased by over 300%, new clients by 97%, and actual vasectomies performed by 79%.

  12. Sound production in Japanese medaka (Oryzias latipes) and its alteration by exposure to aldicarb and copper sulfate.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kang, Ik Joon; Qiu, Xuchun; Moroishi, Junya; Oshima, Yuji

    2017-08-01

    This study is the first to report sound production in Japanese medaka (Oryzias latipes). Sound production was affected by exposure to the carbamate insecticide (aldicarb) and heavy-metal compound (copper sulfate). Medaka were exposed at four concentrations (aldicarb: 0, 0.25, 0.5, and 1 mg L -1 ; copper sulfate: 0, 0.5, 1, and 2 mg L -1 ), and sound characteristics were monitored for 5 h after exposure. We observed constant average interpulse intervals (approx 0.2 s) in all test groups before exposure, and in the control groups throughout the experiment. The average interpulse interval became significantly longer during the recording periods after 50 min of exposure to aldicarb, and reached a length of more than 0.3 s during the recording periods after 120 min exposure. Most medaka fish stopped to produce sound after 50 min of exposure to copper sulfate at 1 and 2 mg L -1 , resulting in significantly declined number of sound pulses and pulse groups. Relative shortened interpulse intervals of sound were occasionally observed in medaka fish exposed to 0.5 mg L -1 copper sulfate. These alternations in sound characteristics due to toxicants exposure suggested that they might impair acoustic communication of medaka fish, which may be important for their reproduction and survival. Our results suggested that using acoustic changes of medaka has potential to monitor precipitate water pollutions, such as intentional poisoning or accidental leakage of industrial waste. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  13. The effect of sound speed profile on shallow water shipping sound maps

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Sertlek, H.Ö.; Binnerts, B.; Ainslie, M.A.

    2016-01-01

    Sound mapping over large areas can be computationally expensive because of the large number of sources and large source-receiver separations involved. In order to facilitate computation, a simplifying assumption sometimes made is to neglect the sound speed gradient in shallow water. The accuracy of

  14. Sound wave transmission (image)

    Science.gov (United States)

    When sounds waves reach the ear, they are translated into nerve impulses. These impulses then travel to the brain where they are interpreted by the brain as sound. The hearing mechanisms within the inner ear, can ...

  15. Sound & The Society

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Schulze, Holger

    2014-01-01

    How are those sounds you hear right now socially constructed and evaluated, how are they architecturally conceptualized and how dependant on urban planning, industrial developments and political decisions are they really? How is your ability to hear intertwined with social interactions and their ...... and their professional design? And how is listening and sounding a deeply social activity – constructing our way of living together in cities as well as in apartment houses? A radio feature with Nina Backmann, Jochen Bonz, Stefan Krebs, Esther Schelander & Holger Schulze......How are those sounds you hear right now socially constructed and evaluated, how are they architecturally conceptualized and how dependant on urban planning, industrial developments and political decisions are they really? How is your ability to hear intertwined with social interactions...

  16. Predicting outdoor sound

    CERN Document Server

    Attenborough, Keith; Horoshenkov, Kirill

    2014-01-01

    1. Introduction  2. The Propagation of Sound Near Ground Surfaces in a Homogeneous Medium  3. Predicting the Acoustical Properties of Outdoor Ground Surfaces  4. Measurements of the Acoustical Properties of Ground Surfaces and Comparisons with Models  5. Predicting Effects of Source Characteristics on Outdoor Sound  6. Predictions, Approximations and Empirical Results for Ground Effect Excluding Meteorological Effects  7. Influence of Source Motion on Ground Effect and Diffraction  8. Predicting Effects of Mixed Impedance Ground  9. Predicting the Performance of Outdoor Noise Barriers  10. Predicting Effects of Vegetation, Trees and Turbulence  11. Analytical Approximations including Ground Effect, Refraction and Turbulence  12. Prediction Schemes  13. Predicting Sound in an Urban Environment.

  17. Training and Generalization of Peer-Directed Mands with Non-Vocal Children with Autism

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kodak, Tiffany; Paden, Amber; Dickes, Nitasha

    2012-01-01

    The current investigation evaluated the effects of extinction and prompts on training and generalization of peer-directed mands for preferred items using a picture exchange communication system with 2 children diagnosed with autism. Results showed that independent mands with a peer increased during treatment for both participants, generalized to a…

  18. The Aesthetic Experience of Sound

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Breinbjerg, Morten

    2005-01-01

    to react on. In an ecological understanding of hearing our detection of audible information affords us ways of responding to our environment. In my paper I will address both these ways of using sound in relation to computer games. Since a game player is responsible for the unfolding of the game, his......The use of sound in (3D) computer games basically falls in two. Sound is used as an element in the design of the set and as a narrative. As set design sound stages the nature of the environment, it brings it to life. As a narrative it brings us information that we can choose to or perhaps need...... exploration of the virtual space laid out before him is pertinent. In this mood of exploration sound is important and heavily contributing to the aesthetic of the experience....

  19. Principles of underwater sound

    National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

    Urick, Robert J

    1983-01-01

    ... the immediately useful help they need for sonar problem solving. Its coverage is broad-ranging from the basic concepts of sound in the sea to making performance predictions in such applications as depth sounding, fish finding, and submarine detection...

  20. Sounding the field: recent works in sound studies.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Boon, Tim

    2015-09-01

    For sound studies, the publication of a 593-page handbook, not to mention the establishment of at least one society - the European Sound Studies Association - might seem to signify the emergence of a new academic discipline. Certainly, the books under consideration here, alongside many others, testify to an intensification of concern with the aural dimensions of culture. Some of this work comes from HPS and STS, some from musicology and cultural studies. But all of it should concern members of our disciplines, as it represents a long-overdue foregrounding of the aural in how we think about the intersections of science, technology and culture.

  1. Sound Clocks and Sonic Relativity

    Science.gov (United States)

    Todd, Scott L.; Menicucci, Nicolas C.

    2017-10-01

    Sound propagation within certain non-relativistic condensed matter models obeys a relativistic wave equation despite such systems admitting entirely non-relativistic descriptions. A natural question that arises upon consideration of this is, "do devices exist that will experience the relativity in these systems?" We describe a thought experiment in which `acoustic observers' possess devices called sound clocks that can be connected to form chains. Careful investigation shows that appropriately constructed chains of stationary and moving sound clocks are perceived by observers on the other chain as undergoing the relativistic phenomena of length contraction and time dilation by the Lorentz factor, γ , with c the speed of sound. Sound clocks within moving chains actually tick less frequently than stationary ones and must be separated by a shorter distance than when stationary to satisfy simultaneity conditions. Stationary sound clocks appear to be length contracted and time dilated to moving observers due to their misunderstanding of their own state of motion with respect to the laboratory. Observers restricted to using sound clocks describe a universe kinematically consistent with the theory of special relativity, despite the preferred frame of their universe in the laboratory. Such devices show promise in further probing analogue relativity models, for example in investigating phenomena that require careful consideration of the proper time elapsed for observers.

  2. Non-Wovens as Sound Reducers

    Science.gov (United States)

    Belakova, D.; Seile, A.; Kukle, S.; Plamus, T.

    2018-04-01

    Within the present study, the effect of hemp (40 wt%) and polyactide (60 wt%), non-woven surface density, thickness and number of fibre web layers on the sound absorption coefficient and the sound transmission loss in the frequency range from 50 to 5000 Hz is analysed. The sound insulation properties of the experimental samples have been determined, compared to the ones in practical use, and the possible use of material has been defined. Non-woven materials are ideally suited for use in acoustic insulation products because the arrangement of fibres produces a porous material structure, which leads to a greater interaction between sound waves and fibre structure. Of all the tested samples (A, B and D), the non-woven variant B exceeded the surface density of sample A by 1.22 times and 1.15 times that of sample D. By placing non-wovens one above the other in 2 layers, it is possible to increase the absorption coefficient of the material, which depending on the frequency corresponds to C, D, and E sound absorption classes. Sample A demonstrates the best sound absorption of all the three samples in the frequency range from 250 to 2000 Hz. In the test frequency range from 50 to 5000 Hz, the sound transmission loss varies from 0.76 (Sample D at 63 Hz) to 3.90 (Sample B at 5000 Hz).

  3. Sounds of Space

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gurnett, D. A.

    2005-12-01

    Starting in the early 1960s, spacecraft-borne plasma wave instruments revealed that space is filled with an astonishing variety of radio and plasma wave sounds, which have come to be called "sounds of space." For over forty years these sounds have been collected and played to a wide variety of audiences, often as the result of press conferences or press releases involving various NASA projects for which the University of Iowa has provided plasma wave instruments. This activity has led to many interviews on local and national radio programs, and occasionally on programs haviang world-wide coverage, such as the BBC. As a result of this media coverage, we have been approached many times by composers requesting copies of our space sounds for use in their various projects, many of which involve electronic synthesis of music. One of these collaborations led to "Sun Rings," which is a musical event produced by the Kronos Quartet that has played to large audiences all over the world. With the availability of modern computer graphic techniques we have recently been attempting to integrate some of these sound of space into an educational audio/video web site that illustrates the scientific principles involved in the origin of space plasma waves. Typically I try to emphasize that a substantial gas pressure exists everywhere in space in the form of an ionized gas called a plasma, and that this plasma can lead to a wide variety of wave phenomenon. Examples of some of this audio/video material will be presented.

  4. Sound Synthesis and Evaluation of Interactive Footsteps and Environmental Sounds Rendering for Virtual Reality Applications

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Nordahl, Rolf; Turchet, Luca; Serafin, Stefania

    2011-01-01

    We propose a system that affords real-time sound synthesis of footsteps on different materials. The system is based on microphones, which detect real footstep sounds from subjects, from which the ground reaction force (GRF) is estimated. Such GRF is used to control a sound synthesis engine based ...... a soundscape significantly improves the recognition of the simulated environment....

  5. Short distance line of sight laser communication

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mudassar, A.A.; Hussain, H.; Jamil-ur-Rehman

    1998-01-01

    Communication methods based on lasers as carrier are well known. In our work we have made a two way laser based communication system for short range (<2 Km) line of sight communication. A small piece of plane mirror (100% reflector) was mounted on the centre of a speaker cone. The speaker was positioned close to the opening of laser such that He-Ne laser beam (10 mW) after reflection from the mirror is directed towards the receiver. There is a pre-amplifier and an amplifier between a microphone and the speaker. When the diagram of the speaker vibrates, it positionally modulates the laser beam. On the receiving end, there is a photo diode, a pre-amplifier, an amplifier and a head phone. So the man on the receiving end can decode the sound signal. On each stage there is a transmitter and a receiver assembled close to each other. So the two way communication is possible in the range 20 to 20 Khz. (author)

  6. The role of music and song in human communication.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ujfalussy, J

    1993-01-01

    It is only on the higher level of abstraction and generalization that the two human branches of acoustic communication, speech and music are separated from each other. Speech is primarily adjusted to the conceptual-verbal symbols and representation of an objectified, static world. In the linguistic communication the main role is played by the elements of noise, the consonants. It has never been doubted that music is a kind of communication, the mediator of human relationships, but it has been a question what music wants to express. Since the Pythagoreans, some believe to find the key to interpreting its message in the commun quantifiable nature of the musical medium and the cosmos. Another historical tradition considered music as the direct expression of human emotions. Representants of the doctrine of imitation derived music from the intonation of speech and the text seems for many to be a support to "understand" music. Music separated from the primary source of sound phenomena and their direct sensual effect constructed a specific communication system. It possesses an inestimable potential richness of discrete pitches and times, colours and sound intensity. The infinite potentials of successive and simultaneous combinations are suitable for erecting the audible, dynamic models of human relations and types of behaviour, internal events and interactions, different situations. European polyphony established a strictly regulated, closed syntax of musical communication which comes close to conceptual precision. Its logic is based upon the natural potentials of the kinship of pitches and the human organ of hearing. The live, mobile network of the relations thus created is regulated by a further developed quasi-binary logic.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

  7. INTERPERSONAL COMMUNICATION: PSYCHOLINGUISTIC ASPECT

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mitrofanova, I.I.

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available The article considers language as the organization of the speech of any person in any situation, without which it is impossible to characterize the internal structure of the speech stream. Language is exactly a system of guidelines necessary for the activity in the social world. Communication is primarily nothing but as a way of making one or another correction in the image of the interlocutor’s world. In order for a language to serve as a means of communication, it must have a single or a similar understanding of reality behind it. Conversely, the unity of understanding the reality and the unity of coherence presuppose the possibility of adequate communication. A mandatory component of communication is the communicative act, that is, the act of sharing information between people. The speech, i.e. the natural sound language is an important means of conveying information that defines this aspect of the communication process as verbal communication. The idea of dialogue as the space, in which the exchange of information takes place, is defined as initial. Essentially, it is the dialogue that in this case acts as the backbone principle in dealing with problems of language. It is here that the essence of social and psychological transition to the analysis of communication is most visibly concentrated. An individual essentially "lives" in the world of Another person’s worlds, and studying the words of this person, he or she studies the "world" of Another person. Thus, the dialogue is not merely the interaction (verbal with another person, but, ultimately, the interaction with the world of culture.

  8. Using therapeutic sound with progressive audiologic tinnitus management.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Henry, James A; Zaugg, Tara L; Myers, Paula J; Schechter, Martin A

    2008-09-01

    Management of tinnitus generally involves educational counseling, stress reduction, and/or the use of therapeutic sound. This article focuses on therapeutic sound, which can involve three objectives: (a) producing a sense of relief from tinnitus-associated stress (using soothing sound); (b) passively diverting attention away from tinnitus by reducing contrast between tinnitus and the acoustic environment (using background sound); and (c) actively diverting attention away from tinnitus (using interesting sound). Each of these goals can be accomplished using three different types of sound-broadly categorized as environmental sound, music, and speech-resulting in nine combinations of uses of sound and types of sound to manage tinnitus. The authors explain the uses and types of sound, how they can be combined, and how the different combinations are used with Progressive Audiologic Tinnitus Management. They also describe how sound is used with other sound-based methods of tinnitus management (Tinnitus Masking, Tinnitus Retraining Therapy, and Neuromonics).

  9. Letter-Sound Knowledge: Exploring Gender Differences in Children When They Start School Regarding Knowledge of Large Letters, Small Letters, Sound Large Letters, and Sound Small Letters

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hermundur Sigmundsson

    2017-09-01

    Full Text Available This study explored whether there is a gender difference in letter-sound knowledge when children start at school. 485 children aged 5–6 years completed assessment of letter-sound knowledge, i.e., large letters; sound of large letters; small letters; sound of small letters. The findings indicate a significant difference between girls and boys in all four factors tested in this study in favor of the girls. There are still no clear explanations to the basis of a presumed gender difference in letter-sound knowledge. That the findings have origin in neuro-biological factors cannot be excluded, however, the fact that girls probably have been exposed to more language experience/stimulation compared to boys, lends support to explanations derived from environmental aspects.

  10. By the sound of it. An ERP investigation of human action sound processing in 7-month-old infants

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Elena Geangu

    2015-04-01

    Full Text Available Recent evidence suggests that human adults perceive human action sounds as a distinct category from human vocalizations, environmental, and mechanical sounds, activating different neural networks (Engel et al., 2009; Lewis et al., 2011. Yet, little is known about the development of such specialization. Using event-related potentials (ERP, this study investigated neural correlates of 7-month-olds’ processing of human action (HA sounds in comparison to human vocalizations (HV, environmental (ENV, and mechanical (MEC sounds. Relative to the other categories, HA sounds led to increased positive amplitudes between 470 and 570 ms post-stimulus onset at left anterior temporal locations, while HV led to increased negative amplitudes at the more posterior temporal locations in both hemispheres. Collectively, human produced sounds (HA + HV led to significantly different response profiles compared to non-living sound sources (ENV + MEC at parietal and frontal locations in both hemispheres. Overall, by 7 months of age human action sounds are being differentially processed in the brain, consistent with a dichotomy for processing living versus non-living things. This provides novel evidence regarding the typical categorical processing of socially relevant sounds.

  11. Sound as Popular Culture

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    The wide-ranging texts in this book take as their premise the idea that sound is a subject through which popular culture can be analyzed in an innovative way. From an infant’s gurgles over a baby monitor to the roar of the crowd in a stadium to the sub-bass frequencies produced by sound systems...... in the disco era, sound—not necessarily aestheticized as music—is inextricably part of the many domains of popular culture. Expanding the view taken by many scholars of cultural studies, the contributors consider cultural practices concerning sound not merely as semiotic or signifying processes but as material......, physical, perceptual, and sensory processes that integrate a multitude of cultural traditions and forms of knowledge. The chapters discuss conceptual issues as well as terminologies and research methods; analyze historical and contemporary case studies of listening in various sound cultures; and consider...

  12. Fourth sound in relativistic superfluidity theory

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Vil'chinskij, S.I.; Fomin, P.I.

    1995-01-01

    The Lorentz-covariant equations describing propagation of the fourth sound in the relativistic theory of superfluidity are derived. The expressions for the velocity of the fourth sound are obtained. The character of oscillation in sound is determined

  13. Study on post-earthquake plant evaluation and communication (Annual safety research report, JFY 2010)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Iijima, Toru; Taoka, Hideto; Yamada, Hiroyuki; Sano, Kyoko

    2011-01-01

    The aims of this study are to establish a post-earthquake plant evaluation method and to develop a communication system for the improving seismic safety regulations as well as encouraging public communication. The Miyagiken-oki earthquake in 2005, Onagawa Nuclear Power Plant shut down automatically. Subsequently, JNES started development of post-earthquake plant evaluation and communication system based on the experience of the cross-check analysis for Onagawa Nuclear Power Plant. The Niigata-ken Chuetsu-oki Earthquake in 2007, the plant situation was not transmitted promptly. The loss of information sharing between local community and related organizations caused the public anxiety. The importance of plant information transmission as well as seismic information gathering were recognized. The proposal for the solution of the information issues were performed by government committee. In this study, the evaluation method for soundness of the main structure and equipment after earthquake event were updated. Moreover, procedure of the post-earthquake plant soundness evaluation and multi-functional seismic information system were developed. In addition, the implementation strategy of the easy-to -understand information dissemination to the public and transparent communication methodology was examined by the Industry-Academia-Government cooperation in the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa region. (author)

  14. The science of sound recording

    CERN Document Server

    Kadis, Jay

    2012-01-01

    The Science of Sound Recording will provide you with more than just an introduction to sound and recording, it will allow you to dive right into some of the technical areas that often appear overwhelming to anyone without an electrical engineering or physics background.  The Science of Sound Recording helps you build a basic foundation of scientific principles, explaining how recording really works. Packed with valuable must know information, illustrations and examples of 'worked through' equations this book introduces the theory behind sound recording practices in a logical and prac

  15. Introduction to the physics properties of the waves trough the sound and acoustic didactics

    OpenAIRE

    Bernad Martínez, Jordi

    2017-01-01

    The project makes a journey through sound and acoustics to introduce abstract concepts related with the properties of waves, its processing and acquisition, digitization and compression. Develop a portfolio of basic theory adapted to students, which provides support for practices in order to consolidate and assimilate concepts related to the world of waves and communication. The project aims to link the content with situations or activities related to daily experiences of young students. Curr...

  16. Nuclear sound

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wambach, J.

    1991-01-01

    Nuclei, like more familiar mechanical systems, undergo simple vibrational motion. Among these vibrations, sound modes are of particular interest since they reveal important information on the effective interactions among the constituents and, through extrapolation, on the bulk behaviour of nuclear and neutron matter. Sound wave propagation in nuclei shows strong quantum effects familiar from other quantum systems. Microscopic theory suggests that the restoring forces are caused by the complex structure of the many-Fermion wavefunction and, in some cases, have no classical analogue. The damping of the vibrational amplitude is strongly influenced by phase coherence among the particles participating in the motion. (author)

  17. Interactive Sonification of Spontaneous Movement of Children - Cross-modal Mapping and the Perception of Body Movement Qualities through Sound

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Emma Frid

    2016-11-01

    -modal mapping of body motion qualitiesfrom bodily movement to sounds. Sound can be translated and understood from bodily motion,conveyed through sound visualizations in the shape of drawings and translated back from sound visualizations to audio. The work underlines the potential of using interactive sonification to communicate high-level features of human movement data.

  18. Students' Learning of a Generalized Theory of Sound Transmission from a Teaching-Learning Sequence about Sound, Hearing and Health

    Science.gov (United States)

    West, Eva; Wallin, Anita

    2013-04-01

    Learning abstract concepts such as sound often involves an ontological shift because to conceptualize sound transmission as a process of motion demands abandoning sound transmission as a transfer of matter. Thus, for students to be able to grasp and use a generalized model of sound transmission poses great challenges for them. This study involved 199 students aged 10-14. Their views about sound transmission were investigated before and after teaching by comparing their written answers about sound transfer in different media. The teaching was built on a research-based teaching-learning sequence (TLS), which was developed within a framework of design research. The analysis involved interpreting students' underlying theories of sound transmission, including the different conceptual categories that were found in their answers. The results indicated a shift in students' understandings from the use of a theory of matter before the intervention to embracing a theory of process afterwards. The described pattern was found in all groups of students irrespective of age. Thus, teaching about sound and sound transmission is fruitful already at the ages of 10-11. However, the older the students, the more advanced is their understanding of the process of motion. In conclusion, the use of a TLS about sound, hearing and auditory health promotes students' conceptualization of sound transmission as a process in all grades. The results also imply some crucial points in teaching and learning about the scientific content of sound.

  19. Knee-clicks and visual traits indicate fighting ability in eland antelopes: multiple messages and back-up signals

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dabelsteen Torben

    2008-11-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Given the costs of signalling, why do males often advertise their fighting ability to rivals using several signals rather than just one? Multiple signalling theories have developed largely in studies of sexual signals, and less is known about their applicability to intra-sexual communication. We here investigate the evolutionary basis for the intricate agonistic signalling system in eland antelopes, paying particular attention to the evolutionary phenomenon of loud knee-clicking. Results A principal components analysis separated seven male traits into three groups. The dominant frequency of the knee-clicking sound honestly indicated body size, a main determinant of fighting ability. In contrast, the dewlap size increased with estimated age rather than body size, suggesting that, by magnifying the silhouette of older bulls disproportionately, the dewlap acts as an indicator of age-related traits such as fighting experience. Facemask darkness, frontal hairbrush size and body greyness aligned with a third underlying variable, presumed to be androgen-related aggression. A longitudinal study provided independent support of these findings. Conclusion The results show that the multiple agonistic signals in eland reflect three separate components of fighting ability: (1 body size, (2 age and (3 presumably androgen-related aggression, which is reflected in three backup signals. The study highlights how complex agonistic signalling systems can evolve through the simultaneous action of several selective forces, each of which favours multiple signals. Specifically, loud knee-clicking is discovered to be an honest signal of body size, providing an exceptional example of the potential for non-vocal acoustic communication in mammals.

  20. Digitizing a sound archive

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Cone, Louise

    2017-01-01

    Danish and international artists. His methodology left us with a large collection of unique and inspirational time-based media sound artworks that have, until very recently, been inaccessible. Existing on an array of different media formats, such as open reel tapes, 8-track and 4 track cassettes, VHS......In 1990 an artist by the name of William Louis Sørensen was hired by the National Gallery of Denmark to collect important works of art – made from sound. His job was to acquire sound art, but also recordings that captured rare artistic occurrences, music, performances and happenings from both...

  1. Parallel-plate third sound waveguides with fixed and variable plate spacings for the study of fifth sound in superfluid helium

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jelatis, G.J.

    1983-01-01

    Third sound in superfluid helium four films has been investigated using two parallel-plate waveguides. These investigations led to the observation of fifth sound, a new mode of sound propagation. Both waveguides consisted of two parallel pieces of vitreous quartz. The sound speed was obtained by measuring the time-of-flight of pulsed third sound over a known distance. Investigations from 1.0-1.7K were possible with the use of superconducting bolometers, which measure the temperature component of the third sound wave. Observations were initially made with a waveguide having a plate separation fixed at five microns. Adiabatic third sound was measured in the geometry. Isothermal third sound was also observed, using the usual, single-substrate technique. Fifth sound speeds, calculated from the two-fluid theory of helium and the speeds of the two forms of third sound, agreed in size and temperature dependence with theoretical predictions. Nevertheless, only equivocal observations of fifth sound were made. As a result, the film-substrate interaction was examined, and estimates of the Kapitza conductance were made. Assuming the dominance of the effects of this conductance over those due to the ECEs led to a new expression for fifth sound. A reanalysis of the initial data was made, which contained no adjustable parameters. The observation of fifth sound was seen to be consistent with the existence of an anomalously low boundary conductance

  2. P1-18: The Effect of Background Music on Working Memory

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ding-Hao Liu

    2012-10-01

    Full Text Available Many studies do visual working memory research under sundry sound conditions (Alley & Greene, 2008 Current Psychology 27 277–289; Iwanaga & Ito, 2002 Perceptual Motor Skills 94 1251–1258; Pring & Walker, 1994 Current Psychology 13 165–171. In order to understand more about background music, we modified previous studies to examine how the performance of working memory is affected by four different music conditions. Participants were randomly assigned into two groups to listen to two different pop songs to see if they have the similar effect on the performance of working memory. They were required to do six trials of digit span tasks under each music condition (silence, classical music, non-vocal music, vocal music. After being shown ten digits, each for 800 ms, participants were asked to recall and write down the digits in the correct order within 20 s. The results showed that there was no significant difference between two pop songs. Therefore, data were pooled for further analysis and indicated that there are significant differences and correlations in working memory among the four music conditions. The finding that the effect of non-vocal music affects working memory is greater in this study than in that of western films (Alley & Greene, 2008; Pring & Walker, 1994, which is consistent with the previous study in Japan (Iwanaga & Ito, 2002. The application of this study will be discussed in detail.

  3. CNTNAP2 Is Significantly Associated With Speech Sound Disorder in the Chinese Han Population.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhao, Yun-Jing; Wang, Yue-Ping; Yang, Wen-Zhu; Sun, Hong-Wei; Ma, Hong-Wei; Zhao, Ya-Ru

    2015-11-01

    Speech sound disorder is the most common communication disorder. Some investigations support the possibility that the CNTNAP2 gene might be involved in the pathogenesis of speech-related diseases. To investigate single-nucleotide polymorphisms in the CNTNAP2 gene, 300 unrelated speech sound disorder patients and 200 normal controls were included in the study. Five single-nucleotide polymorphisms were amplified and directly sequenced. Significant differences were found in the genotype (P = .0003) and allele (P = .0056) frequencies of rs2538976 between patients and controls. The excess frequency of the A allele in the patient group remained significant after Bonferroni correction (P = .0280). A significant haplotype association with rs2710102T/+rs17236239A/+2538976A/+2710117A (P = 4.10e-006) was identified. A neighboring single-nucleotide polymorphism, rs10608123, was found in complete linkage disequilibrium with rs2538976, and the genotypes exactly corresponded to each other. The authors propose that these CNTNAP2 variants increase the susceptibility to speech sound disorder. The single-nucleotide polymorphisms rs10608123 and rs2538976 may merge into one single-nucleotide polymorphism. © The Author(s) 2015.

  4. Sound propagation in cities

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Salomons, E.; Polinder, H.; Lohman, W.; Zhou, H.; Borst, H.

    2009-01-01

    A new engineering model for sound propagation in cities is presented. The model is based on numerical and experimental studies of sound propagation between street canyons. Multiple reflections in the source canyon and the receiver canyon are taken into account in an efficient way, while weak

  5. Hamiltonian Algorithm Sound Synthesis

    OpenAIRE

    大矢, 健一

    2013-01-01

    Hamiltonian Algorithm (HA) is an algorithm for searching solutions is optimization problems. This paper introduces a sound synthesis technique using Hamiltonian Algorithm and shows a simple example. "Hamiltonian Algorithm Sound Synthesis" uses phase transition effect in HA. Because of this transition effect, totally new waveforms are produced.

  6. Exploring Noise: Sound Pollution.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rillo, Thomas J.

    1979-01-01

    Part one of a three-part series about noise pollution and its effects on humans. This section presents the background information for teachers who are preparing a unit on sound. The next issues will offer learning activities for measuring the effects of sound and some references. (SA)

  7. Photoacoustic Sounds from Meteors.

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Spalding, Richard E. [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States); Tencer, John [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States); Sweatt, William C. [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States); Hogan, Roy E. [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States); Boslough, Mark B. [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States); Spurny, Pavel [Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic (ASCR), Prague (Czech Republic)

    2015-03-01

    High-speed photometric observations of meteor fireballs have shown that they often produce high-amplitude light oscillations with frequency components in the kHz range, and in some cases exhibit strong millisecond flares. We built a light source with similar characteristics and illuminated various materials in the laboratory, generating audible sounds. Models suggest that light oscillations and pulses can radiatively heat dielectric materials, which in turn conductively heats the surrounding air on millisecond timescales. The sound waves can be heard if the illuminated material is sufficiently close to the observer’s ears. The mechanism described herein may explain many reports of meteors that appear to be audible while they are concurrently visible in the sky and too far away for sound to have propagated to the observer. This photoacoustic (PA) explanation provides an alternative to electrophonic (EP) sounds hypothesized to arise from electromagnetic coupling of plasma oscillation in the meteor wake to natural antennas in the vicinity of an observer.

  8. Urban Sound Interfaces

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Breinbjerg, Morten

    2012-01-01

    This paper draws on the theories of Michel de Certeau and Gaston Bachelard to discuss how media architecture, in the form of urban sound interfaces, can help us perceive the complexity of the spaces we inhabit, by exploring the history and the narratives of the places in which we live. In this pa......This paper draws on the theories of Michel de Certeau and Gaston Bachelard to discuss how media architecture, in the form of urban sound interfaces, can help us perceive the complexity of the spaces we inhabit, by exploring the history and the narratives of the places in which we live....... In this paper, three sound works are discussed in relation to the iPod, which is considered as a more private way to explore urban environments, and as a way to control the individual perception of urban spaces....

  9. A phonology-free mobile communication app.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kondapalli, Ananya; Zhang, Lee R; Patel, Shreya; Han, Xiao; Kim, Hee Jin; Li, Xintong; Altschuler, Eric L

    2016-11-01

    Aphasia - loss of comprehension or expression of language - is a devastating functional sequela of stroke. There are as yet no effective methods for rehabilitation of aphasia. An assistive device that allows aphasia patients to communicate and interact at speeds approaching real time is urgently needed. Behavioral and linguistic studies of aphasia patients show that they retain normal thinking processes and most aspects of language. They lack only phonology: the ability to translate (input) and/or output sounds (or written words) such as "ta-ble" into the image of a four-legged object with a top at which one works or eats. We have made a phonology-free communication mobile app that may be useful for patients with aphasia and other communication disorders. Particular innovations of our app include calling Google Images as a "subroutine" to allow a near-infinite number of choices (e.g. food or clothing items) for patients without having to make countless images, and by the use of animation for words, phrases or concepts that cannot be represented by a single image. We have tested our app successfully in one patient. The app may be of great benefit to patients with aphasia and other communication disorders. Implications for Rehabilitation We have made a phonology-free mobile communication app. This app may facilitate communication for patients with aphasia and other communication disorders.

  10. Sound field separation with sound pressure and particle velocity measurements

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Fernandez Grande, Efren; Jacobsen, Finn; Leclère, Quentin

    2012-01-01

    separation techniques make it possible to distinguish between outgoing and incoming waves from the two sides, and thus NAH can be applied. In this paper, a separation method based on the measurement of the particle velocity in two layers and another method based on the measurement of the pressure...... and the velocity in a single layer are proposed. The two methods use an equivalent source formulation with separate transfer matrices for the outgoing and incoming waves, so that the sound from the two sides of the array can be modeled independently. A weighting scheme is proposed to account for the distance......In conventional near-field acoustic holography (NAH) it is not possible to distinguish between sound from the two sides of the array, thus, it is a requirement that all the sources are confined to only one side and radiate into a free field. When this requirement cannot be fulfilled, sound field...

  11. Electromagnetic sounding of the Earth's interior

    CERN Document Server

    Spichak, Viacheslav V

    2015-01-01

    Electromagnetic Sounding of the Earth's Interior 2nd edition provides a comprehensive up-to-date collection of contributions, covering methodological, computational and practical aspects of Electromagnetic sounding of the Earth by different techniques at global, regional and local scales. Moreover, it contains new developments such as the concept of self-consistent tasks of geophysics and , 3-D interpretation of the TEM sounding which, so far, have not all been covered by one book. Electromagnetic Sounding of the Earth's Interior 2nd edition consists of three parts: I- EM sounding methods, II- Forward modelling and inversion techniques, and III - Data processing, analysis, modelling and interpretation. The new edition includes brand new chapters on Pulse and frequency electromagnetic sounding for hydrocarbon offshore exploration. Additionally all other chapters have been extensively updated to include new developments. Presents recently developed methodological findings of the earth's study, including seism...

  12. 21 CFR 876.4590 - Interlocking urethral sound.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 21 Food and Drugs 8 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Interlocking urethral sound. 876.4590 Section 876...) MEDICAL DEVICES GASTROENTEROLOGY-UROLOGY DEVICES Surgical Devices § 876.4590 Interlocking urethral sound. (a) Identification. An interlocking urethral sound is a device that consists of two metal sounds...

  13. Poetry Pages. Sound Effects.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fina, Allan de

    1992-01-01

    Explains how elementary teachers can help students understand onomatopoeia, suggesting that they define onomatopoeia, share examples of it, read poems and have students discuss onomatopoeic words, act out common household sounds, write about sound effects, and create choral readings of onomatopoeic poems. Two appropriate poems are included. (SM)

  14. Mobile sound: media art in hybrid spaces

    OpenAIRE

    Behrendt, Frauke

    2010-01-01

    The thesis explores the relationships between sound and mobility through an examination\\ud of sound art. The research engages with the intersection of sound, mobility and\\ud art through original empirical work and theoretically through a critical engagement with\\ud sound studies. In dialogue with the work of De Certeau, Lefebvre, Huhtamo and Habermas\\ud in terms of the poetics of walking, rhythms, media archeology and questions of\\ud publicness, I understand sound art as an experimental mobil...

  15. Sound source measurement by using a passive sound insulation and a statistical approach

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dragonetti, Raffaele; Di Filippo, Sabato; Mercogliano, Francesco; Romano, Rosario A.

    2015-10-01

    This paper describes a measurement technique developed by the authors that allows carrying out acoustic measurements inside noisy environments reducing background noise effects. The proposed method is based on the integration of a traditional passive noise insulation system with a statistical approach. The latter is applied to signals picked up by usual sensors (microphones and accelerometers) equipping the passive sound insulation system. The statistical approach allows improving of the sound insulation given only by the passive sound insulation system at low frequency. The developed measurement technique has been validated by means of numerical simulations and measurements carried out inside a real noisy environment. For the case-studies here reported, an average improvement of about 10 dB has been obtained in a frequency range up to about 250 Hz. Considerations on the lower sound pressure level that can be measured by applying the proposed method and the measurement error related to its application are reported as well.

  16. Film sound in preservation and presentation

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Campanini, S.

    2014-01-01

    What is the nature of film sound? How does it change through time? How can film sound be conceptually defined? To address these issues, this work assumes the perspective of film preservation and presentation practices, describing the preservation of early sound systems, as well as the presentation

  17. The application of visual communication design in display design

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    仪晓华

    2015-01-01

    Visual communication design is a kind of visual language and the art of communication behavior, it condenses complex and chaos and obscure information can in the shortest possible time to be understanding of the functional information, at the same time, make the design work itself sound art, philosophy and culture, cause the audience’s perception experience and emotional resonance, and eventually approved. Display of visual communication don’t like people use language to convey, but in all kinds of display environment by graphics, text, color elements such as passing information to people, visual communication design as a medium between designer and audience, communicate through planar graphic elements, format design, the combination of the text elements, color elements make exhibition has rhythm beauty so as to build a display space, the space information accurate, vivid and clear function division, comfortable, and the outline of rich imagination space to the person and strong visual impression.

  18. Analyzing the Pattern of L1 Sounds on L2 Sounds Produced by Javanese Students of Stkip PGRI Jombang

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Daning Hentasmaka

    2015-07-01

    Full Text Available The studyconcerns on an analysis on the tendency of first language (L1 sound patterning on second language (L2 sounds done by Javanese students.Focusing on the consonant sounds, the data were collected by recording students’ pronunciationof English words during the pronunciation test. The data then analysed through three activities: data reduction, data display, and conclusion drawing/ verification. Theresult showedthatthe patterning of L1 sounds happened on L2 sounds especially on eleven consonant sounds: the fricatives [v, θ, ð, ʃ, ʒ], the voiceless stops [p, t, k], and the voiced stops [b, d, g].Thosepatterning case emergedmostlyduetothe difference in the existence of consonant sounds and rules of consonant distribution. Besides, one of the cases was caused by the difference in consonant clusters between L1 and L2

  19. ANALYZING THE PATTERN OF L1 SOUNDS ON L2 SOUNDS PRODUCED BY JAVANESE STUDENTS OF STKIP PGRI JOMBANG

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Daning Hentasmaka

    2015-07-01

    Full Text Available The studyconcerns on an analysis on the tendency of first language (L1 sound patterning on second language (L2 sounds done by Javanese students.Focusing on the consonant sounds, the data were collected by recording students’ pronunciationof English words during the pronunciation test. The data then analysed through three activities: data reduction, data display, and conclusion drawing/ verification. Theresult showedthatthe patterning of L1 sounds happened on L2 sounds especially on eleven consonant sounds: the fricatives [v, θ, ð, ʃ, ʒ], the voiceless stops [p, t, k], and the voiced stops [b, d, g].Thosepatterning case emergedmostlyduetothe difference in the existence of consonant sounds and rules of consonant distribution. Besides, one of the cases was caused by the difference in consonant clusters between L1 and L2.

  20. Opponent Coding of Sound Location (Azimuth) in Planum Temporale is Robust to Sound-Level Variations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Derey, Kiki; Valente, Giancarlo; de Gelder, Beatrice; Formisano, Elia

    2016-01-01

    Coding of sound location in auditory cortex (AC) is only partially understood. Recent electrophysiological research suggests that neurons in mammalian auditory cortex are characterized by broad spatial tuning and a preference for the contralateral hemifield, that is, a nonuniform sampling of sound azimuth. Additionally, spatial selectivity decreases with increasing sound intensity. To accommodate these findings, it has been proposed that sound location is encoded by the integrated activity of neuronal populations with opposite hemifield tuning ("opponent channel model"). In this study, we investigated the validity of such a model in human AC with functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and a phase-encoding paradigm employing binaural stimuli recorded individually for each participant. In all subjects, we observed preferential fMRI responses to contralateral azimuth positions. Additionally, in most AC locations, spatial tuning was broad and not level invariant. We derived an opponent channel model of the fMRI responses by subtracting the activity of contralaterally tuned regions in bilateral planum temporale. This resulted in accurate decoding of sound azimuth location, which was unaffected by changes in sound level. Our data thus support opponent channel coding as a neural mechanism for representing acoustic azimuth in human AC. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press.

  1. Understanding speech when wearing communication headsets and hearing protectors with subband processing.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brammer, Anthony J; Yu, Gongqiang; Bernstein, Eric R; Cherniack, Martin G; Peterson, Donald R; Tufts, Jennifer B

    2014-08-01

    An adaptive, delayless, subband feed-forward control structure is employed to improve the speech signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) in the communication channel of a circumaural headset/hearing protector (HPD) from 90 Hz to 11.3 kHz, and to provide active noise control (ANC) from 50 to 800 Hz to complement the passive attenuation of the HPD. The task involves optimizing the speech SNR for each communication channel subband, subject to limiting the maximum sound level at the ear, maintaining a speech SNR preferred by users, and reducing large inter-band gain differences to improve speech quality. The performance of a proof-of-concept device has been evaluated in a pseudo-diffuse sound field when worn by human subjects under conditions of environmental noise and speech that do not pose a risk to hearing, and by simulation for other conditions. For the environmental noises employed in this study, subband speech SNR control combined with subband ANC produced greater improvement in word scores than subband ANC alone, and improved the consistency of word scores across subjects. The simulation employed a subject-specific linear model, and predicted that word scores are maintained in excess of 90% for sound levels outside the HPD of up to ∼115 dBA.

  2. Short communication. Platform for bee-hives monitoring based on sound analysis. A perpetual warehouse for swarms daily activity

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Atauri Mezquida, D.; Llorente Martinez, J.

    2009-07-01

    Bees and beekeeping are suffering a global crisis. Constant information on swarms conditions would be a key to study new diseases like colony collapse disorder and to develop new beekeeping tools to improve the hive management and make it more efficient. A platform for beehives monitoring is presented. It is based on the analysis of the colonies buzz which is registered by a bunch of sensors sending the data to a common database. Data obtained through sound processing shows plenty of patterns and tendency lines related to colonies activities and their conditions. It shows the potential of the sound as a swarm activity gauge. The goal of the platform is the possibility to store information about the swarms activity. The objective is to build a global net of monitored hives covering apiaries with different climates, razes and managements. (Author) 21 refs.

  3. Breaking the Sound Barrier

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brown, Tom; Boehringer, Kim

    2007-01-01

    Students in a fourth-grade class participated in a series of dynamic sound learning centers followed by a dramatic capstone event--an exploration of the amazing Trashcan Whoosh Waves. It's a notoriously difficult subject to teach, but this hands-on, exploratory approach ignited student interest in sound, promoted language acquisition, and built…

  4. Sound therapies for tinnitus management.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jastreboff, Margaret M

    2007-01-01

    Many people with bothersome (suffering) tinnitus notice that their tinnitus changes in different acoustical surroundings, it is more intrusive in silence and less profound in the sound enriched environments. This observation led to the development of treatment methods for tinnitus utilizing sound. Many of these methods are still under investigation in respect to their specific protocol and effectiveness and only some have been objectively evaluated in clinical trials. This chapter will review therapies for tinnitus using sound stimulation.

  5. Numerical Model on Sound-Solid Coupling in Human Ear and Study on Sound Pressure of Tympanic Membrane

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yao Wen-juan

    2011-01-01

    Full Text Available Establishment of three-dimensional finite-element model of the whole auditory system includes external ear, middle ear, and inner ear. The sound-solid-liquid coupling frequency response analysis of the model was carried out. The correctness of the FE model was verified by comparing the vibration modes of tympanic membrane and stapes footplate with the experimental data. According to calculation results of the model, we make use of the least squares method to fit out the distribution of sound pressure of external auditory canal and obtain the sound pressure function on the tympanic membrane which varies with frequency. Using the sound pressure function, the pressure distribution on the tympanic membrane can be directly derived from the sound pressure at the external auditory canal opening. The sound pressure function can make the boundary conditions of the middle ear structure more accurate in the mechanical research and improve the previous boundary treatment which only applied uniform pressure acting to the tympanic membrane.

  6. Sounds in one-dimensional superfluid helium

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Um, C.I.; Kahng, W.H.; Whang, E.H.; Hong, S.K.; Oh, H.G.; George, T.F.

    1989-01-01

    The temperature variations of first-, second-, and third-sound velocity and attenuation coefficients in one-dimensional superfluid helium are evaluated explicitly for very low temperatures and frequencies (ω/sub s/tau 2 , and the ratio of second sound to first sound becomes unity as the temperature decreases to absolute zero

  7. Conditioned sounds enhance visual processing.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Fabrizio Leo

    Full Text Available This psychophysics study investigated whether prior auditory conditioning influences how a sound interacts with visual perception. In the conditioning phase, subjects were presented with three pure tones ( =  conditioned stimuli, CS that were paired with positive, negative or neutral unconditioned stimuli. As unconditioned reinforcers we employed pictures (highly pleasant, unpleasant and neutral or monetary outcomes (+50 euro cents, -50 cents, 0 cents. In the subsequent visual selective attention paradigm, subjects were presented with near-threshold Gabors displayed in their left or right hemifield. Critically, the Gabors were presented in synchrony with one of the conditioned sounds. Subjects discriminated whether the Gabors were presented in their left or right hemifields. Participants determined the location more accurately when the Gabors were presented in synchrony with positive relative to neutral sounds irrespective of reinforcer type. Thus, previously rewarded relative to neutral sounds increased the bottom-up salience of the visual Gabors. Our results are the first demonstration that prior auditory conditioning is a potent mechanism to modulate the effect of sounds on visual perception.

  8. Olfaction and Hearing Based Mobile Robot Navigation for Odor/Sound Source Search

    Science.gov (United States)

    Song, Kai; Liu, Qi; Wang, Qi

    2011-01-01

    Bionic technology provides a new elicitation for mobile robot navigation since it explores the way to imitate biological senses. In the present study, the challenging problem was how to fuse different biological senses and guide distributed robots to cooperate with each other for target searching. This paper integrates smell, hearing and touch to design an odor/sound tracking multi-robot system. The olfactory robot tracks the chemical odor plume step by step through information fusion from gas sensors and airflow sensors, while two hearing robots localize the sound source by time delay estimation (TDE) and the geometrical position of microphone array. Furthermore, this paper presents a heading direction based mobile robot navigation algorithm, by which the robot can automatically and stably adjust its velocity and direction according to the deviation between the current heading direction measured by magnetoresistive sensor and the expected heading direction acquired through the odor/sound localization strategies. Simultaneously, one robot can communicate with the other robots via a wireless sensor network (WSN). Experimental results show that the olfactory robot can pinpoint the odor source within the distance of 2 m, while two hearing robots can quickly localize and track the olfactory robot in 2 min. The devised multi-robot system can achieve target search with a considerable success ratio and high stability. PMID:22319401

  9. Olfaction and Hearing Based Mobile Robot Navigation for Odor/Sound Source Search

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Qi Wang

    2011-02-01

    Full Text Available Bionic technology provides a new elicitation for mobile robot navigation since it explores the way to imitate biological senses. In the present study, the challenging problem was how to fuse different biological senses and guide distributed robots to cooperate with each other for target searching. This paper integrates smell, hearing and touch to design an odor/sound tracking multi-robot system. The olfactory robot tracks the chemical odor plume step by step through information fusion from gas sensors and airflow sensors, while two hearing robots localize the sound source by time delay estimation (TDE and the geometrical position of microphone array. Furthermore, this paper presents a heading direction based mobile robot navigation algorithm, by which the robot can automatically and stably adjust its velocity and direction according to the deviation between the current heading direction measured by magnetoresistive sensor and the expected heading direction acquired through the odor/sound localization strategies. Simultaneously, one robot can communicate with the other robots via a wireless sensor network (WSN. Experimental results show that the olfactory robot can pinpoint the odor source within the distance of 2 m, while two hearing robots can quickly localize and track the olfactory robot in 2 min. The devised multi-robot system can achieve target search with a considerable success ratio and high stability.

  10. Quantifying loss of acoustic communication space for right whales in and around a U.S. National Marine Sanctuary.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hatch, Leila T; Clark, Christopher W; Van Parijs, Sofie M; Frankel, Adam S; Ponirakis, Dimitri W

    2012-12-01

    The effects of chronic exposure to increasing levels of human-induced underwater noise on marine animal populations reliant on sound for communication are poorly understood. We sought to further develop methods of quantifying the effects of communication masking associated with human-induced sound on contact-calling North Atlantic right whales (Eubalaena glacialis) in an ecologically relevant area (~10,000 km(2) ) and time period (peak feeding time). We used an array of temporary, bottom-mounted, autonomous acoustic recorders in the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary to monitor ambient noise levels, measure levels of sound associated with vessels, and detect and locate calling whales. We related wind speed, as recorded by regional oceanographic buoys, to ambient noise levels. We used vessel-tracking data from the Automatic Identification System to quantify acoustic signatures of large commercial vessels. On the basis of these integrated sound fields, median signal excess (the difference between the signal-to-noise ratio and the assumed recognition differential) for contact-calling right whales was negative (-1 dB) under current ambient noise levels and was further reduced (-2 dB) by the addition of noise from ships. Compared with potential communication space available under historically lower noise conditions, calling right whales may have lost, on average, 63-67% of their communication space. One or more of the 89 calling whales in the study area was exposed to noise levels ≥120 dB re 1 μPa by ships for 20% of the month, and a maximum of 11 whales were exposed to noise at or above this level during a single 10-min period. These results highlight the limitations of exposure-threshold (i.e., dose-response) metrics for assessing chronic anthropogenic noise effects on communication opportunities. Our methods can be used to integrate chronic and wide-ranging noise effects in emerging ocean-planning forums that seek to improve management of cumulative effects

  11. Ten Game-Changing Communications Steps for College and University Presidents

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jacobson, Susan

    2016-01-01

    In this article Susan Jacobson offers advice on connecting and leading as a college or university president, whether new to the job or with years of experience. The key, Jacobson says, is communicating. She explains that while it might sound obvious, the importance of reaching out, connecting, and building and maintaining relationships cannot be…

  12. Sound signatures and production mechanisms of three species of pipefishes (Family: Syngnathidae

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Adam Chee Ooi Lim

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available Background. Syngnathid fishes produce three kinds of sounds, named click, growl and purr. These sounds are generated by different mechanisms to give a consistent signal pattern or signature which is believed to play a role in intraspecific and interspecific communication. Commonly known sounds are produced when the fish feeds (click, purr or is under duress (growl. While there are more acoustic studies on seahorses, pipefishes have not received much attention. Here we document the differences in feeding click signals between three species of pipefishes and relate them to cranial morphology and kinesis, or the sound-producing mechanism.Methods. The feeding clicks of two species of freshwater pipefishes, Doryichthys martensii and Doryichthys deokhathoides and one species of estuarine pipefish, Syngnathoides biaculeatus, were recorded by a hydrophone in acoustic dampened tanks. The acoustic signals were analysed using time-scale distribution (or scalogram based on wavelet transform. A detailed time-varying analysis of the spectral contents of the localized acoustic signal was obtained by jointly interpreting the oscillogram, scalogram and power spectrum. The heads of both Doryichthys species were prepared for microtomographical scans which were analysed using a 3D imaging software. Additionally, the cranial bones of all three species were examined using a clearing and double-staining method for histological studies.Results. The sound characteristics of the feeding click of the pipefish is species-specific, appearing to be dependent on three bones: the supraoccipital, 1st postcranial plate and 2nd postcranial plate. The sounds are generated when the head of the Dorichthyes pipefishes flexes backward during the feeding strike, as the supraoccipital slides backwards, striking and pushing the 1st postcranial plate against (and striking the 2nd postcranial plate. In the Syngnathoides pipefish, in the absence of the 1st postcranial plate, the

  13. Robust segmentation and retrieval of environmental sounds

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wichern, Gordon

    The proliferation of mobile computing has provided much of the world with the ability to record any sound of interest, or possibly every sound heard in a lifetime. The technology to continuously record the auditory world has applications in surveillance, biological monitoring of non-human animal sounds, and urban planning. Unfortunately, the ability to record anything has led to an audio data deluge, where there are more recordings than time to listen. Thus, access to these archives depends on efficient techniques for segmentation (determining where sound events begin and end), indexing (storing sufficient information with each event to distinguish it from other events), and retrieval (searching for and finding desired events). While many such techniques have been developed for speech and music sounds, the environmental and natural sounds that compose the majority of our aural world are often overlooked. The process of analyzing audio signals typically begins with the process of acoustic feature extraction where a frame of raw audio (e.g., 50 milliseconds) is converted into a feature vector summarizing the audio content. In this dissertation, a dynamic Bayesian network (DBN) is used to monitor changes in acoustic features in order to determine the segmentation of continuously recorded audio signals. Experiments demonstrate effective segmentation performance on test sets of environmental sounds recorded in both indoor and outdoor environments. Once segmented, every sound event is indexed with a probabilistic model, summarizing the evolution of acoustic features over the course of the event. Indexed sound events are then retrieved from the database using different query modalities. Two important query types are sound queries (query-by-example) and semantic queries (query-by-text). By treating each sound event and semantic concept in the database as a node in an undirected graph, a hybrid (content/semantic) network structure is developed. This hybrid network can

  14. Sound-Symbolism Boosts Novel Word Learning

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lockwood, Gwilym; Dingemanse, Mark; Hagoort, Peter

    2016-01-01

    The existence of sound-symbolism (or a non-arbitrary link between form and meaning) is well-attested. However, sound-symbolism has mostly been investigated with nonwords in forced choice tasks, neither of which are representative of natural language. This study uses ideophones, which are naturally occurring sound-symbolic words that depict sensory…

  15. Second sound tracking system

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yang, Jihee; Ihas, Gary G.; Ekdahl, Dan

    2017-10-01

    It is common that a physical system resonates at a particular frequency, whose frequency depends on physical parameters which may change in time. Often, one would like to automatically track this signal as the frequency changes, measuring, for example, its amplitude. In scientific research, one would also like to utilize the standard methods, such as lock-in amplifiers, to improve the signal to noise ratio. We present a complete He ii second sound system that uses positive feedback to generate a sinusoidal signal of constant amplitude via automatic gain control. This signal is used to produce temperature/entropy waves (second sound) in superfluid helium-4 (He ii). A lock-in amplifier limits the oscillation to a desirable frequency and demodulates the received sound signal. Using this tracking system, a second sound signal probed turbulent decay in He ii. We present results showing that the tracking system is more reliable than those of a conventional fixed frequency method; there is less correlation with temperature (frequency) fluctuation when the tracking system is used.

  16. Examination of the communication interface between students with severe to profound and multiple intellectual disability and educational staff during structured teaching sessions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bunning, K; Smith, C; Kennedy, P; Greenham, C

    2013-01-01

    Individuals with severe to profound and multiple intellectual disability (S-PMID) tend to function at the earlier stages of communication development. Variable and highly individual means of communicating may present challenges to the adults providing support in everyday life. The current study aimed to examine the communication interface between students with S-PMID and educational staff. An in-depth, observational study of dyadic interaction in a class within the secondary part of a special school was conducted. The designated educational level was Key Stage 3 under the National Curriculum of England, which is typically for children from age 11 to 14 years attending a state school. There were four student-teacher dyads in the class. The students had multiple impairments with severely limited communication skills. Video capture of dyadic interaction was conducted during five English lessons and sampled to 2.5 min per dyad per lesson. The video footage was transcribed into standard orthography, detailing the vocal and non-vocal aspects. A coding framework guided by the principles of structural-functional linguistics was used to determine the nature of dyadic interaction, comprising linguistic moves, functions and communicative modalities. The relative contributions of student and teacher to the interaction were examined. Significant differences were found between the students and educational staff on the majority of the measures. The teachers dominated the interaction, occupying significantly more turns than the students. Teacher turns contained significantly more initiations and follow-up moves than the students, who used more response moves. Teacher communication mainly served the functions of requesting and information giving. Feedback and scripted functions were also significantly greater among teacher turns, with only limited occurrence among the students. Self- or shared-expression was greatest among the students. The modalities of speech, touch, singing and

  17. Underwater Sound Propagation from Marine Pile Driving.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Reyff, James A

    2016-01-01

    Pile driving occurs in a variety of nearshore environments that typically have very shallow-water depths. The propagation of pile-driving sound in water is complex, where sound is directly radiated from the pile as well as through the ground substrate. Piles driven in the ground near water bodies can produce considerable underwater sound energy. This paper presents examples of sound propagation through shallow-water environments. Some of these examples illustrate the substantial variation in sound amplitude over time that can be critical to understand when computing an acoustic-based safety zone for aquatic species.

  18. Sound topology, duality, coherence and wave-mixing an introduction to the emerging new science of sound

    CERN Document Server

    Deymier, Pierre

    2017-01-01

    This book offers an essential introduction to the notions of sound wave topology, duality, coherence and wave-mixing, which constitute the emerging new science of sound. It includes general principles and specific examples that illuminate new non-conventional forms of sound (sound topology), unconventional quantum-like behavior of phonons (duality), radical linear and nonlinear phenomena associated with loss and its control (coherence), and exquisite effects that emerge from the interaction of sound with other physical and biological waves (wave mixing).  The book provides the reader with the foundations needed to master these complex notions through simple yet meaningful examples. General principles for unraveling and describing the topology of acoustic wave functions in the space of their Eigen values are presented. These principles are then applied to uncover intrinsic and extrinsic approaches to achieving non-conventional topologies by breaking the time revers al symmetry of acoustic waves. Symmetry brea...

  19. Diffuse sound field: challenges and misconceptions

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jeong, Cheol-Ho

    2016-01-01

    Diffuse sound field is a popular, yet widely misused concept. Although its definition is relatively well established, acousticians use this term for different meanings. The diffuse sound field is defined by a uniform sound pressure distribution (spatial diffusion or homogeneity) and uniform...... tremendously in different chambers because the chambers are non-diffuse in variously different ways. Therefore, good objective measures that can quantify the degree of diffusion and potentially indicate how to fix such problems in reverberation chambers are needed. Acousticians often blend the concept...... of mixing and diffuse sound field. Acousticians often refer diffuse reflections from surfaces to diffuseness in rooms, and vice versa. Subjective aspects of diffuseness have not been much investigated. Finally, ways to realize a diffuse sound field in a finite space are discussed....

  20. A pilot investigation in constructing crisis communications: what leads to best practice?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Firestone, Rachel M; Everly, George S

    2013-01-01

    Crisis communications can play an important role in mitigating, or exacerbating, the psychological and behavioral reactions to critical incidents and disasters. Effective crisis communications can serve to mitigate anxiogenesis and direct rapid and focused rescue, recovery, and rehabilitative operations. Ambiguous and/or deceptive communications can serve to worsen mental health reactions and delay operational response and recovery (Everly, Strouse, & Everly, 2010). It seems, therefore, that inquiry into the content of acute crisis communications would be warranted Said more simply, given limited time, cryptic messaging in social media, and the "sound bite" mentality that seems to govern news dissemination, it is important to identify the most important content to convey in the wake of critical incidents and disasters. This paper reports on a pilot investigation into "best practices" for the construction of acute crisis communications.

  1. WODA Technical Guidance on Underwater Sound from Dredging.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thomsen, Frank; Borsani, Fabrizio; Clarke, Douglas; de Jong, Christ; de Wit, Pim; Goethals, Fredrik; Holtkamp, Martine; Martin, Elena San; Spadaro, Philip; van Raalte, Gerard; Victor, George Yesu Vedha; Jensen, Anders

    2016-01-01

    The World Organization of Dredging Associations (WODA) has identified underwater sound as an environmental issue that needs further consideration. A WODA Expert Group on Underwater Sound (WEGUS) prepared a guidance paper in 2013 on dredging sound, including a summary of potential impacts on aquatic biota and advice on underwater sound monitoring procedures. The paper follows a risk-based approach and provides guidance for standardization of acoustic terminology and methods for data collection and analysis. Furthermore, the literature on dredging-related sounds and the effects of dredging sounds on marine life is surveyed and guidance on the management of dredging-related sound risks is provided.

  2. Effective dose to radon considering people's activities

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Shimo, M.; Seki, K.; Kikuchi, I.

    1992-01-01

    The tidal volume was estimated for evaluating the effective dose due to radon concentration in the atmosphere. In this study regional population was separated to vocation and non-vocation. The occupancy time and the breathing rate for both vocation and non-vocation groups were estimated, and the annual tidal volume for both groups were calculated. Human actions were separated to 18 activities in the process for estimating the breathing rate. It was clear that the breathing rate depended on human activity and that the human activity changed with its age, so the breathing rate varied with age. Finally the effective doses due to radon and radon progeny indoors and outdoors were evaluated. The maximum annual effective dose was estimated to be 1.2 mSv, minimum 0.2 mSv, and mean 0.51 mSv for vocation. For non-vocation, the male maximum value 0.43 mSv was obtained at the 16 age and the minimum 0.12 mSv at the 70 age, whereas female maximum 0.26 mSv was obtained at the 12 age and the minimum 0.11 mSv at the 70 age. In addition in this study objective areas are Aichi, Gifu, and Mie prefectures for vocation and only Aichi prefecture for non-vocation. (author)

  3. Detecting change in stochastic sound sequences.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Benjamin Skerritt-Davis

    2018-05-01

    Full Text Available Our ability to parse our acoustic environment relies on the brain's capacity to extract statistical regularities from surrounding sounds. Previous work in regularity extraction has predominantly focused on the brain's sensitivity to predictable patterns in sound sequences. However, natural sound environments are rarely completely predictable, often containing some level of randomness, yet the brain is able to effectively interpret its surroundings by extracting useful information from stochastic sounds. It has been previously shown that the brain is sensitive to the marginal lower-order statistics of sound sequences (i.e., mean and variance. In this work, we investigate the brain's sensitivity to higher-order statistics describing temporal dependencies between sound events through a series of change detection experiments, where listeners are asked to detect changes in randomness in the pitch of tone sequences. Behavioral data indicate listeners collect statistical estimates to process incoming sounds, and a perceptual model based on Bayesian inference shows a capacity in the brain to track higher-order statistics. Further analysis of individual subjects' behavior indicates an important role of perceptual constraints in listeners' ability to track these sensory statistics with high fidelity. In addition, the inference model facilitates analysis of neural electroencephalography (EEG responses, anchoring the analysis relative to the statistics of each stochastic stimulus. This reveals both a deviance response and a change-related disruption in phase of the stimulus-locked response that follow the higher-order statistics. These results shed light on the brain's ability to process stochastic sound sequences.

  4. Directional sound radiation from substation transformers

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Maybee, N.

    2009-01-01

    This paper presented the results of a study in which acoustical measurements at two substations were analyzed to investigate the directional behaviour of typical arrays having 2 or 3 transformers. Substation transformers produce a characteristic humming sound that is caused primarily by vibration of the core at twice the frequency of the power supply. The humming noise radiates predominantly from the tank enclosing the core. The main components of the sound are harmonics of 120 Hz. Sound pressure level data were obtained for various directions and distances from the arrays, ranging from 0.5 m to over 100 m. The measured sound pressure levels of the transformer tones displayed substantial positive and negative excursions from the calculated average values for many distances and directions. The results support the concept that the directional effects are associated with constructive and destructive interference of tonal sound waves emanating from different parts of the array. Significant variations in the directional sound pattern can occur in the near field of a single transformer or an array, and the extent of the near field is significantly larger than the scale of the array. Based on typical dimensions for substation sites, the distance to the far field may be much beyond the substation boundary and beyond typical setbacks to the closest dwellings. As such, the directional sound radiation produced by transformer arrays introduces additional uncertainty in the prediction of substation sound levels at dwellings within a few hundred meters of a substation site. 4 refs., 4 figs.

  5. On the sound absorption coefficient of porous asphalt pavements for oblique incident sound waves

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Bezemer-Krijnen, Marieke; Wijnant, Ysbrand H.; de Boer, Andries; Bekke, Dirk; Davy, J.; Don, Ch.; McMinn, T.; Dowsett, L.; Broner, N.; Burgess, M.

    2014-01-01

    A rolling tyre will radiate noise in all directions. However, conventional measurement techniques for the sound absorption of surfaces only give the absorption coefficient for normal incidence. In this paper, a measurement technique is described with which it is possible to perform in situ sound

  6. Neuroplasticity beyond sounds

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Reybrouck, Mark; Brattico, Elvira

    2015-01-01

    Capitalizing from neuroscience knowledge on how individuals are affected by the sound environment, we propose to adopt a cybernetic and ecological point of view on the musical aesthetic experience, which includes subprocesses, such as feature extraction and integration, early affective reactions...... and motor actions, style mastering and conceptualization, emotion and proprioception, evaluation and preference. In this perspective, the role of the listener/composer/performer is seen as that of an active "agent" coping in highly individual ways with the sounds. The findings concerning the neural...

  7. Listenings of the image: the resultants of sound in the semiotic components of the visual language

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Wander Lourenço da Silva

    2014-07-01

    Full Text Available This study analyzes the communicational and aesthetic effects produced in the relationship between the image and sound elements of the films Rosso come ilcielo by Cristiano Bortone, and A Clockwork Orange by Stanley Kubrick. The theoretical framework comes from thesound and listening modes included in Theory of Film Sound Production proposed by Michel Chion and they are related to semiotic bases of C.S. Peirce. Also used is Hans Belting’s concept of endogenous images, the contributions of Vilém Flusser about the construction of mental images, and concepts of aesthetic categories treated by Umberto Eco and Sánches Vazquez. Analyzing some sequences according to the wiretaps reduced, causal, and semantics, we can say that the sound adds important elements to the scene that contribute to the final result, of communicational or aesthetic value. It is concluded, in Rosso come ilcielo, the sonorous code effectively contributes to the enhancement of synesthetic relations of the film, besides acting as an element that generates sense in the narrative as it is put as the main element in building of the mental imagery at times that the plot deals with the impairment of the sense of sight. In A Clockwork Orange, it is concluded that the sonorous component is responsible for generating of the ambiguity present in most of the film, especially in times of application of civil and system violence. It can be said that in this film, music selection was instrumental in adding to the scene elements in contrast to the imagery, thus producing a sense of the grotesque, enhanced by the mixture of pleasure and horror and sometimes by the presence of the comic.  

  8. Developmental phonagnosia: Linking neural mechanisms with the behavioural phenotype.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Roswandowitz, Claudia; Schelinski, Stefanie; von Kriegstein, Katharina

    2017-07-15

    Human voice recognition is critical for many aspects of social communication. Recently, a rare disorder, developmental phonagnosia, which describes the inability to recognise a speaker's voice, has been discovered. The underlying neural mechanisms are unknown. Here, we used two functional magnetic resonance imaging experiments to investigate brain function in two behaviourally well characterised phonagnosia cases, both 32 years old: AS has apperceptive and SP associative phonagnosia. We found distinct malfunctioned brain mechanisms in AS and SP matching their behavioural profiles. In apperceptive phonagnosia, right-hemispheric auditory voice-sensitive regions (i.e., Heschl's gyrus, planum temporale, superior temporal gyrus) showed lower responses than in matched controls (n AS =16) for vocal versus non-vocal sounds and for speaker versus speech recognition. In associative phonagnosia, the connectivity between voice-sensitive (i.e. right posterior middle/inferior temporal gyrus) and supramodal (i.e. amygdala) regions was reduced in comparison to matched controls (n SP =16) during speaker versus speech recognition. Additionally, both cases recruited distinct potential compensatory mechanisms. Our results support a central assumption of current two-system models of voice-identity processing: They provide the first evidence that dysfunction of voice-sensitive regions and impaired connectivity between voice-sensitive and supramodal person recognition regions can selectively contribute to deficits in person recognition by voice. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  9. Interactive Sonification of Spontaneous Movement of Children-Cross-Modal Mapping and the Perception of Body Movement Qualities through Sound.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Frid, Emma; Bresin, Roberto; Alborno, Paolo; Elblaus, Ludvig

    2016-01-01

    cross-modal mapping of body motion qualities from bodily movement to sounds. Sound can be translated and understood from bodily motion, conveyed through sound visualizations in the shape of drawings and translated back from sound visualizations to audio. The work underlines the potential of using interactive sonification to communicate high-level features of human movement data.

  10. Interactive Sonification of Spontaneous Movement of Children—Cross-Modal Mapping and the Perception of Body Movement Qualities through Sound

    Science.gov (United States)

    Frid, Emma; Bresin, Roberto; Alborno, Paolo; Elblaus, Ludvig

    2016-01-01

    cross-modal mapping of body motion qualities from bodily movement to sounds. Sound can be translated and understood from bodily motion, conveyed through sound visualizations in the shape of drawings and translated back from sound visualizations to audio. The work underlines the potential of using interactive sonification to communicate high-level features of human movement data. PMID:27891074

  11. Statistics of natural binaural sounds.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Wiktor Młynarski

    Full Text Available Binaural sound localization is usually considered a discrimination task, where interaural phase (IPD and level (ILD disparities at narrowly tuned frequency channels are utilized to identify a position of a sound source. In natural conditions however, binaural circuits are exposed to a stimulation by sound waves originating from multiple, often moving and overlapping sources. Therefore statistics of binaural cues depend on acoustic properties and the spatial configuration of the environment. Distribution of cues encountered naturally and their dependence on physical properties of an auditory scene have not been studied before. In the present work we analyzed statistics of naturally encountered binaural sounds. We performed binaural recordings of three auditory scenes with varying spatial configuration and analyzed empirical cue distributions from each scene. We have found that certain properties such as the spread of IPD distributions as well as an overall shape of ILD distributions do not vary strongly between different auditory scenes. Moreover, we found that ILD distributions vary much weaker across frequency channels and IPDs often attain much higher values, than can be predicted from head filtering properties. In order to understand the complexity of the binaural hearing task in the natural environment, sound waveforms were analyzed by performing Independent Component Analysis (ICA. Properties of learned basis functions indicate that in natural conditions soundwaves in each ear are predominantly generated by independent sources. This implies that the real-world sound localization must rely on mechanisms more complex than a mere cue extraction.

  12. Statistics of natural binaural sounds.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Młynarski, Wiktor; Jost, Jürgen

    2014-01-01

    Binaural sound localization is usually considered a discrimination task, where interaural phase (IPD) and level (ILD) disparities at narrowly tuned frequency channels are utilized to identify a position of a sound source. In natural conditions however, binaural circuits are exposed to a stimulation by sound waves originating from multiple, often moving and overlapping sources. Therefore statistics of binaural cues depend on acoustic properties and the spatial configuration of the environment. Distribution of cues encountered naturally and their dependence on physical properties of an auditory scene have not been studied before. In the present work we analyzed statistics of naturally encountered binaural sounds. We performed binaural recordings of three auditory scenes with varying spatial configuration and analyzed empirical cue distributions from each scene. We have found that certain properties such as the spread of IPD distributions as well as an overall shape of ILD distributions do not vary strongly between different auditory scenes. Moreover, we found that ILD distributions vary much weaker across frequency channels and IPDs often attain much higher values, than can be predicted from head filtering properties. In order to understand the complexity of the binaural hearing task in the natural environment, sound waveforms were analyzed by performing Independent Component Analysis (ICA). Properties of learned basis functions indicate that in natural conditions soundwaves in each ear are predominantly generated by independent sources. This implies that the real-world sound localization must rely on mechanisms more complex than a mere cue extraction.

  13. Production of grooming-associated sounds by chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) at Ngogo: variation, social learning, and possible functions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Watts, David P

    2016-01-01

    Chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) use some communicative signals flexibly and voluntarily, with use influenced by learning. These signals include some vocalizations and also sounds made using the lips, oral cavity, and/or teeth, but not the vocal tract, such as "attention-getting" sounds directed at humans by captive chimpanzees and lip smacking during social grooming. Chimpanzees at Ngogo, in Kibale National Park, Uganda, make four distinct sounds while grooming others. Here, I present data on two of these ("splutters" and "teeth chomps") and consider whether social learning contributes to variation in their production and whether they serve social functions. Higher congruence in the use of these two sounds between dyads of maternal relatives than dyads of non-relatives implies that social learning occurs and mostly involves vertical transmission, but the results are not conclusive and it is unclear which learning mechanisms may be involved. In grooming between adult males, tooth chomps and splutters were more likely in long than in short bouts; in bouts that were bidirectional rather than unidirectional; in grooming directed toward high-ranking males than toward low-ranking males; and in bouts between allies than in those between non-allies. Males were also more likely to make these sounds while they were grooming other males than while they were grooming females. These results are expected if the sounds promote social bonds and induce tolerance of proximity and of grooming by high-ranking males. However, the alternative hypothesis that the sounds are merely associated with motivation to groom, with no additional social function, cannot be ruled out. Limited data showing that bouts accompanied by teeth chomping or spluttering at their initiation were longer than bouts for which this was not the case point toward a social function, but more data are needed for a definitive test. Comparison to other research sites shows that the possible existence of grooming

  14. ADVERTISING BRANDS BY MEANS OF SOUNDS SYMBOLISM: THE INFLUENCE OF VOWELS ON PERCEIVED BRAND CHARACTERISTICS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Alina Catalina Duduciuc

    2015-07-01

    Full Text Available The aim of this study is to test the influence of sound symbolism on perceived characteristics of a brand as well as to highlight the importance of applied social psychology to current practice of advertising. Previous research showed that the phonetic structure of brand name communicates its characteristics, i.e. it drives consumers to assess certain features and performance of the product. I assumed that when consumers encounter an unknown brand name, they automatically infer characteristics from the meaning conveyed by the sounds (e.g. phonemes. Therefore, I supposed that a brand name for a shampoo (artificially created on experimental purpose containing back vowel is evaluated better by consumers when they compare it to another brand name with front vowels. Furthermore, for the accuracy of responses, I used the semantic differential scale to measure the differences between two brands in terms of certain attributes of product. To this end, fifty students (N=50 participated in a research based on questionnaire. As the results of the current research showed, the brand name with back vowel outnumbered the brand name with front vowel on two dimension, i.e. on brand activity and brand efficiency. The brand name containing front vowel was rated better when subjects evaluated the product in generally. Last, but not least, when it comes to convey meanings, the sound of back vowels [a] could be used more when marketers promote products that communicate its characteristics such as efficiency, velocity and health. The back vowel could be also assessed to products with larger packing or special sailing such as extra quantity. Meanwhile, the brand names with front vowels [ie] could be created for more expensive products with good quality, mainly addressed to men.

  15. Simulation of sound waves using the Lattice Boltzmann Method for fluid flow: Benchmark cases for outdoor sound propagation

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Salomons, E.M.; Lohman, W.J.A.; Zhou, H.

    2016-01-01

    Propagation of sound waves in air can be considered as a special case of fluid dynamics. Consequently, the lattice Boltzmann method (LBM) for fluid flow can be used for simulating sound propagation. In this article application of the LBM to sound propagation is illustrated for various cases:

  16. Beacons of Sound

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Knakkergaard, Martin

    2018-01-01

    The chapter discusses expectations and imaginations vis-à-vis the concert hall of the twenty-first century. It outlines some of the central historical implications of western culture’s haven for sounding music. Based on the author’s study of the Icelandic concert-house Harpa, the chapter considers...... how these implications, together with the prime mover’s visions, have been transformed as private investors and politicians took over. The chapter furthermore investigates the objectives regarding musical sound and the far-reaching demands concerning acoustics that modern concert halls are required...

  17. Sound & The Senses

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Schulze, Holger

    2012-01-01

    How are those sounds you hear right now technically generated and post-produced, how are they aesthetically conceptualized and how culturally dependant are they really? How is your ability to hear intertwined with all the other senses and their cultural, biographical and technological constructio...... over time? And how is listening and sounding a deeply social activity – constructing our way of living together in cities as well as in apartment houses? A radio feature with Jonathan Sterne, AGF a.k.a Antye Greie, Jens Gerrit Papenburg & Holger Schulze....

  18. Assessment of communication abilities in multilingual children: Language rights or human rights?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cruz-Ferreira, Madalena

    2018-02-01

    Communication involves a sender, a receiver and a shared code operating through shared rules. Breach of communication results from disruption to any of these basic components of a communicative chain, although assessment of communication abilities typically focuses on senders/receivers, on two assumptions: first, that their command of features and rules of the language in question (the code), such as sounds, words or word order, as described in linguists' theorisations, represents the full scope of linguistic competence; and second, that languages are stable, homogeneous entities, unaffected by their users' communicative needs. Bypassing the role of the code in successful communication assigns decisive rights to abstract languages rather than to real-life language users, routinely leading to suspected or diagnosed speech-language disorder in academic and clinical assessment of multilingual children's communicative skills. This commentary reflects on whether code-driven assessment practices comply with the spirit of Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

  19. Deterministic Approach to Detect Heart Sound Irregularities

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Richard Mengko

    2017-07-01

    Full Text Available A new method to detect heart sound that does not require machine learning is proposed. The heart sound is a time series event which is generated by the heart mechanical system. From the analysis of heart sound S-transform and the understanding of how heart works, it can be deducted that each heart sound component has unique properties in terms of timing, frequency, and amplitude. Based on these facts, a deterministic method can be designed to identify each heart sound components. The recorded heart sound then can be printed with each component correctly labeled. This greatly help the physician to diagnose the heart problem. The result shows that most known heart sounds were successfully detected. There are some murmur cases where the detection failed. This can be improved by adding more heuristics including setting some initial parameters such as noise threshold accurately, taking into account the recording equipment and also the environmental condition. It is expected that this method can be integrated into an electronic stethoscope biomedical system.

  20. Sound For Animation And Virtual Reality

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hahn, James K.; Docter, Pete; Foster, Scott H.; Mangini, Mark; Myers, Tom; Wenzel, Elizabeth M.; Null, Cynthia (Technical Monitor)

    1995-01-01

    Sound is an integral part of the experience in computer animation and virtual reality. In this course, we will present some of the important technical issues in sound modeling, rendering, and synchronization as well as the "art" and business of sound that are being applied in animations, feature films, and virtual reality. The central theme is to bring leading researchers and practitioners from various disciplines to share their experiences in this interdisciplinary field. The course will give the participants an understanding of the problems and techniques involved in producing and synchronizing sounds, sound effects, dialogue, and music. The problem spans a number of domains including computer animation and virtual reality. Since sound has been an integral part of animations and films much longer than for computer-related domains, we have much to learn from traditional animation and film production. By bringing leading researchers and practitioners from a wide variety of disciplines, the course seeks to give the audience a rich mixture of experiences. It is expected that the audience will be able to apply what they have learned from this course in their research or production.

  1. Analysis and Synthesis of Musical Instrument Sounds

    Science.gov (United States)

    Beauchamp, James W.

    For synthesizing a wide variety of musical sounds, it is important to understand which acoustic properties of musical instrument sounds are related to specific perceptual features. Some properties are obvious: Amplitude and fundamental frequency easily control loudness and pitch. Other perceptual features are related to sound spectra and how they vary with time. For example, tonal "brightness" is strongly connected to the centroid or tilt of a spectrum. "Attack impact" (sometimes called "bite" or "attack sharpness") is strongly connected to spectral features during the first 20-100 ms of sound, as well as the rise time of the sound. Tonal "warmth" is connected to spectral features such as "incoherence" or "inharmonicity."

  2. Audio-visual interactions in product sound design

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Özcan, E.; Van Egmond, R.

    2010-01-01

    Consistent product experience requires congruity between product properties such as visual appearance and sound. Therefore, for designing appropriate product sounds by manipulating their spectral-temporal structure, product sounds should preferably not be considered in isolation but as an integral

  3. Microflown based monopole sound sources for reciprocal measurements

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Bree, H.E. de; Basten, T.G.H.

    2008-01-01

    Monopole sound sources (i.e. omni directional sound sources with a known volume velocity) are essential for reciprocal measurements used in vehicle interior panel noise contribution analysis. Until recently, these monopole sound sources use a sound pressure transducer sensor as a reference sensor. A

  4. Pacific and Atlantic herring produce burst pulse sounds.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wilson, Ben; Batty, Robert S; Dill, Lawrence M

    2004-02-07

    The commercial importance of Pacific and Atlantic herring (Clupea pallasii and Clupea harengus) has ensured that much of their biology has received attention. However, their sound production remains poorly studied. We describe the sounds made by captive wild-caught herring. Pacific herring produce distinctive bursts of pulses, termed Fast Repetitive Tick (FRT) sounds. These trains of broadband pulses (1.7-22 kHz) lasted between 0.6 s and 7.6 s. Most were produced at night; feeding regime did not affect their frequency, and fish produced FRT sounds without direct access to the air. Digestive gas or gulped air transfer to the swim bladder, therefore, do not appear to be responsible for FRT sound generation. Atlantic herring also produce FRT sounds, and video analysis showed an association with bubble expulsion from the anal duct region (i.e. from the gut or swim bladder). To the best of the authors' knowledge, sound production by such means has not previously been described. The function(s) of these sounds are unknown, but as the per capita rates of sound production by fish at higher densities were greater, social mediation appears likely. These sounds may have consequences for our understanding of herring behaviour and the effects of noise pollution.

  5. 7 CFR 29.6036 - Sound.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 2 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Sound. 29.6036 Section 29.6036 Agriculture Regulations of the Department of Agriculture AGRICULTURAL MARKETING SERVICE (Standards, Inspections, Marketing... INSPECTION Standards Definitions § 29.6036 Sound. Free of damage. (See Rule 4.) ...

  6. Misconceptions About Sound Among Engineering Students

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pejuan, Arcadi; Bohigas, Xavier; Jaén, Xavier; Periago, Cristina

    2012-12-01

    Our first objective was to detect misconceptions about the microscopic nature of sound among senior university students enrolled in different engineering programmes (from chemistry to telecommunications). We sought to determine how these misconceptions are expressed (qualitative aspect) and, only very secondarily, to gain a general idea of the extent to which they are held (quantitative aspect). Our second objective was to explore other misconceptions about wave aspects of sound. We have also considered the degree of consistency in the model of sound used by each student. Forty students answered a questionnaire including open-ended questions. Based on their free, spontaneous answers, the main results were as follows: a large majority of students answered most of the questions regarding the microscopic model of sound according to the scientifically accepted model; however, only a small number answered consistently. The main model misconception found was the notion that sound is propagated through the travelling of air particles, even in solids. Misconceptions and mental-model inconsistencies tended to depend on the engineering programme in which the student was enrolled. However, students in general were inconsistent also in applying their model of sound to individual sound properties. The main conclusion is that our students have not truly internalised the scientifically accepted model that they have allegedly learnt. This implies a need to design learning activities that take these findings into account in order to be truly efficient.

  7. Infra-sound cancellation and mitigation in wind turbines

    Science.gov (United States)

    Boretti, Albert; Ordys, Andrew; Al Zubaidy, Sarim

    2018-03-01

    The infra-sound spectra recorded inside homes located even several kilometres far from wind turbine installations is characterized by large pressure fluctuation in the low frequency range. There is a significant body of literature suggesting inaudible sounds at low frequency are sensed by humans and affect the wellbeing through different mechanisms. These mechanisms include amplitude modulation of heard sounds, stimulating subconscious pathways, causing endolymphatic hydrops, and possibly potentiating noise-induced hearing loss. We suggest the study of infra-sound active cancellation and mitigation to address the low frequency noise issues. Loudspeakers generate pressure wave components of same amplitude and frequency but opposite phase of the recorded infra sound. They also produce pressure wave components within the audible range reducing the perception of the infra-sound to minimize the sensing of the residual infra sound.

  8. Evaluative conditioning induces changes in sound valence

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Anna C. Bolders

    2012-04-01

    Full Text Available Evaluative Conditioning (EC has hardly been tested in the auditory domain, but it is a potentially valuable research tool. In Experiment 1 we investigated whether the affective evaluation of short environmental sounds can be changed using affective words as unconditioned stimuli (US. Congruence effects on an affective priming task (APT for conditioned sounds demonstrated successful EC. Subjective ratings for sounds paired with negative words changed accordingly. In Experiment 2 we investigated whether the acquired valence remains stable after repeated presentation of the conditioned sound without the US or whether extinction occurs. The acquired affective value remained present, albeit weaker, even after 40 extinction trials. These results warrant the use of EC to study processing of short environmental sounds with acquired valence, even if this requires repeated stimulus presentations. This paves the way for studying processing of affective environmental sounds while effectively controlling low level-stimulus properties.

  9. Neuroanatomic organization of sound memory in humans.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kraut, Michael A; Pitcock, Jeffery A; Calhoun, Vince; Li, Juan; Freeman, Thomas; Hart, John

    2006-11-01

    The neural interface between sensory perception and memory is a central issue in neuroscience, particularly initial memory organization following perceptual analyses. We used functional magnetic resonance imaging to identify anatomic regions extracting initial auditory semantic memory information related to environmental sounds. Two distinct anatomic foci were detected in the right superior temporal gyrus when subjects identified sounds representing either animals or threatening items. Threatening animal stimuli elicited signal changes in both foci, suggesting a distributed neural representation. Our results demonstrate both category- and feature-specific responses to nonverbal sounds in early stages of extracting semantic memory information from these sounds. This organization allows for these category-feature detection nodes to extract early, semantic memory information for efficient processing of transient sound stimuli. Neural regions selective for threatening sounds are similar to those of nonhuman primates, demonstrating semantic memory organization for basic biological/survival primitives are present across species.

  10. Sound Equipment Fabrication and Values in Nigerian Theatre ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    The main points of this paper is to discover ways of fabricating sound and sound effects equipment for theatrical productions in Nigeria have become of essence since most educational theatres cannot afford western sound and sound effects equipment. Even when available, they are old fashioned, compared to the ...

  11. Thinking The City Through Sound

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kreutzfeldt, Jacob

    2011-01-01

    n Acoutic Territories. Sound Culture and Everyday Life Brandon LaBelle sets out to charts an urban topology through sound. Working his way through six acoustic territories: underground, home, sidewalk, street, shopping mall and sky/radio LaBelle investigates tensions and potentials inherent in mo...

  12. Basic semantics of product sounds

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Özcan Vieira, E.; Van Egmond, R.

    2012-01-01

    Product experience is a result of sensory and semantic experiences with product properties. In this paper, we focus on the semantic attributes of product sounds and explore the basic components for product sound related semantics using a semantic differential paradigmand factor analysis. With two

  13. Background noise exerts diverse effects on the cortical encoding of foreground sounds.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Malone, B J; Heiser, Marc A; Beitel, Ralph E; Schreiner, Christoph E

    2017-08-01

    In natural listening conditions, many sounds must be detected and identified in the context of competing sound sources, which function as background noise. Traditionally, noise is thought to degrade the cortical representation of sounds by suppressing responses and increasing response variability. However, recent studies of neural network models and brain slices have shown that background synaptic noise can improve the detection of signals. Because acoustic noise affects the synaptic background activity of cortical networks, it may improve the cortical responses to signals. We used spike train decoding techniques to determine the functional effects of a continuous white noise background on the responses of clusters of neurons in auditory cortex to foreground signals, specifically frequency-modulated sweeps (FMs) of different velocities, directions, and amplitudes. Whereas the addition of noise progressively suppressed the FM responses of some cortical sites in the core fields with decreasing signal-to-noise ratios (SNRs), the stimulus representation remained robust or was even significantly enhanced at specific SNRs in many others. Even though the background noise level was typically not explicitly encoded in cortical responses, significant information about noise context could be decoded from cortical responses on the basis of how the neural representation of the foreground sweeps was affected. These findings demonstrate significant diversity in signal in noise processing even within the core auditory fields that could support noise-robust hearing across a wide range of listening conditions. NEW & NOTEWORTHY The ability to detect and discriminate sounds in background noise is critical for our ability to communicate. The neural basis of robust perceptual performance in noise is not well understood. We identified neuronal populations in core auditory cortex of squirrel monkeys that differ in how they process foreground signals in background noise and that may

  14. Fourth sound of holographic superfluids

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yarom, Amos

    2009-01-01

    We compute fourth sound for superfluids dual to a charged scalar and a gauge field in an AdS 4 background. For holographic superfluids with condensates that have a large scaling dimension (greater than approximately two), we find that fourth sound approaches first sound at low temperatures. For condensates that a have a small scaling dimension it exhibits non-conformal behavior at low temperatures which may be tied to the non-conformal behavior of the order parameter of the superfluid. We show that by introducing an appropriate scalar potential, conformal invariance can be enforced at low temperatures.

  15. Cross-Modal Associations between Sounds and Drink Tastes/Textures: A Study with Spontaneous Production of Sound-Symbolic Words.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sakamoto, Maki; Watanabe, Junji

    2016-03-01

    Many languages have a word class whose speech sounds are linked to sensory experiences. Several recent studies have demonstrated cross-modal associations (or correspondences) between sounds and gustatory sensations by asking participants to match predefined sound-symbolic words (e.g., "maluma/takete") with the taste/texture of foods. Here, we further explore cross-modal associations using the spontaneous production of words and semantic ratings of sensations. In the experiment, after drinking liquids, participants were asked to express their taste/texture using Japanese sound-symbolic words, and at the same time, to evaluate it in terms of criteria expressed by adjectives. Because the Japanese language has a large vocabulary of sound-symbolic words, and Japanese people frequently use them to describe taste/texture, analyzing a variety of Japanese sound-symbolic words spontaneously produced to express taste/textures might enable us to explore the mechanism of taste/texture categorization. A hierarchical cluster analysis based on the relationship between linguistic sounds and taste/texture evaluations revealed the structure of sensation categories. The results indicate that an emotional evaluation like pleasant/unpleasant is the primary cluster in gustation. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  16. A Fast Algorithm of Cartographic Sounding Selection

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    SUI Haigang; HUA Li; ZHAO Haitao; ZHANG Yongli

    2005-01-01

    An effective strategy and framework that adequately integrate the automated and manual processes for fast cartographic sounding selection is presented. The important submarine topographic features are extracted for important soundings selection, and an improved "influence circle" algorithm is introduced for sounding selection. For automatic configuration of soundings distribution pattern, a special algorithm considering multi-factors is employed. A semi-automatic method for solving the ambiguous conflicts is described. On the basis of the algorithms and strategies a system named HGIS for fast cartographic sounding selection is developed and applied in Chinese Marine Safety Administration Bureau (CMSAB). The application experiments show that the system is effective and reliable. At last some conclusions and the future work are given.

  17. Research and Implementation of Heart Sound Denoising

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Feng; Wang, Yutai; Wang, Yanxiang

    Heart sound is one of the most important signals. However, the process of getting heart sound signal can be interfered with many factors outside. Heart sound is weak electric signal and even weak external noise may lead to the misjudgment of pathological and physiological information in this signal, thus causing the misjudgment of disease diagnosis. As a result, it is a key to remove the noise which is mixed with heart sound. In this paper, a more systematic research and analysis which is involved in heart sound denoising based on matlab has been made. The study of heart sound denoising based on matlab firstly use the powerful image processing function of matlab to transform heart sound signals with noise into the wavelet domain through wavelet transform and decomposition these signals in muli-level. Then for the detail coefficient, soft thresholding is made using wavelet transform thresholding to eliminate noise, so that a signal denoising is significantly improved. The reconstructed signals are gained with stepwise coefficient reconstruction for the processed detail coefficient. Lastly, 50HZ power frequency and 35 Hz mechanical and electrical interference signals are eliminated using a notch filter.

  18. 7 CFR 29.2298 - Sound.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 2 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Sound. 29.2298 Section 29.2298 Agriculture Regulations of the Department of Agriculture AGRICULTURAL MARKETING SERVICE (Standards, Inspections, Marketing... INSPECTION Standards Official Standard Grades for Virginia Fire-Cured Tobacco (u.s. Type 21) § 29.2298 Sound...

  19. Cognitive Control of Involuntary Distraction by Deviant Sounds

    Science.gov (United States)

    Parmentier, Fabrice B. R.; Hebrero, Maria

    2013-01-01

    It is well established that a task-irrelevant sound (deviant sound) departing from an otherwise repetitive sequence of sounds (standard sounds) elicits an involuntary capture of attention and orienting response toward the deviant stimulus, resulting in the lengthening of response times in an ongoing task. Some have argued that this type of…

  20. Eliciting Sound Memories.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Harris, Anna

    2015-11-01

    Sensory experiences are often considered triggers of memory, most famously a little French cake dipped in lime blossom tea. Sense memory can also be evoked in public history research through techniques of elicitation. In this article I reflect on different social science methods for eliciting sound memories such as the use of sonic prompts, emplaced interviewing, and sound walks. I include examples from my research on medical listening. The article considers the relevance of this work for the conduct of oral histories, arguing that such methods "break the frame," allowing room for collaborative research connections and insights into the otherwise unarticulatable.

  1. Musical Sounds, Motor Resonance, and Detectable Agency

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jacques Launay

    2015-09-01

    Full Text Available This paper discusses the paradox that while human music making evolved and spread in an environment where it could only occur in groups, it is now often apparently an enjoyable asocial phenomenon. Here I argue that music is, by definition, sound that we believe has been in some way organized by a human agent, meaning that listening to any musical sounds can be a social experience. There are a number of distinct mechanisms by which we might associate musical sound with agency. While some of these mechanisms involve learning motor associations with that sound, it is also possible to have a more direct relationship from musical sound to agency, and the relative importance of these potentially independent mechanisms should be further explored. Overall, I conclude that the apparent paradox of solipsistic musical engagement is in fact unproblematic, because the way that we perceive and experience musical sounds is inherently social.

  2. Hearing abilities and sound reception of broadband sounds in an adult Risso's dolphin (Grampus griseus).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mooney, T Aran; Yang, Wei-Cheng; Yu, Hsin-Yi; Ketten, Darlene R; Jen, I-Fan

    2015-08-01

    While odontocetes do not have an external pinna that guides sound to the middle ear, they are considered to receive sound through specialized regions of the head and lower jaw. Yet odontocetes differ in the shape of the lower jaw suggesting that hearing pathways may vary between species, potentially influencing hearing directionality and noise impacts. This work measured the audiogram and received sensitivity of a Risso's dolphin (Grampus griseus) in an effort to comparatively examine how this species receives sound. Jaw hearing thresholds were lowest (most sensitive) at two locations along the anterior, midline region of the lower jaw (the lower jaw tip and anterior part of the throat). Responses were similarly low along a more posterior region of the lower mandible, considered the area of best hearing in bottlenose dolphins. Left- and right-side differences were also noted suggesting possible left-right asymmetries in sound reception or differences in ear sensitivities. The results indicate best hearing pathways may vary between the Risso's dolphin and other odontocetes measured. This animal received sound well, supporting a proposed throat pathway. For Risso's dolphins in particular, good ventral hearing would support their acoustic ecology by facilitating echo-detection from their proposed downward oriented echolocation beam.

  3. Visualizing Sound Directivity via Smartphone Sensors

    OpenAIRE

    Hawley, Scott H.; McClain Jr, Robert E.

    2017-01-01

    We present a fast, simple method for automated data acquisition and visualization of sound directivity, made convenient and accessible via a smartphone app, "Polar Pattern Plotter." The app synchronizes measurements of sound volume with the phone's angular orientation obtained from either compass, gyroscope or accelerometer sensors and produces a graph and exportable data file. It is generalizable to various sound sources and receivers via the use of an input-jack-adaptor to supplant the smar...

  4. Effects of sounds of locomotion on speech perception

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Matz Larsson

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available Human locomotion typically creates noise, a possible consequence of which is the masking of sound signals originating in the surroundings. When walking side by side, people often subconsciously synchronize their steps. The neurophysiological and evolutionary background of this behavior is unclear. The present study investigated the potential of sound created by walking to mask perception of speech and compared the masking produced by walking in step with that produced by unsynchronized walking. The masking sound (footsteps on gravel and the target sound (speech were presented through the same speaker to 15 normal-hearing subjects. The original recorded walking sound was modified to mimic the sound of two individuals walking in pace or walking out of synchrony. The participants were instructed to adjust the sound level of the target sound until they could just comprehend the speech signal ("just follow conversation" or JFC level when presented simultaneously with synchronized or unsynchronized walking sound at 40 dBA, 50 dBA, 60 dBA, or 70 dBA. Synchronized walking sounds produced slightly less masking of speech than did unsynchronized sound. The median JFC threshold in the synchronized condition was 38.5 dBA, while the corresponding value for the unsynchronized condition was 41.2 dBA. Combined results at all sound pressure levels showed an improvement in the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR for synchronized footsteps; the median difference was 2.7 dB and the mean difference was 1.2 dB [P < 0.001, repeated-measures analysis of variance (RM-ANOVA]. The difference was significant for masker levels of 50 dBA and 60 dBA, but not for 40 dBA or 70 dBA. This study provides evidence that synchronized walking may reduce the masking potential of footsteps.

  5. Light aircraft sound transmission studies - Noise reduction model

    Science.gov (United States)

    Atwal, Mahabir S.; Heitman, Karen E.; Crocker, Malcolm J.

    1987-01-01

    Experimental tests conducted on the fuselage of a single-engine Piper Cherokee light aircraft suggest that the cabin interior noise can be reduced by increasing the transmission loss of the dominant sound transmission paths and/or by increasing the cabin interior sound absorption. The validity of using a simple room equation model to predict the cabin interior sound-pressure level for different fuselage and exterior sound field conditions is also presented. The room equation model is based on the sound power flow balance for the cabin space and utilizes the measured transmitted sound intensity data. The room equation model predictions were considered good enough to be used for preliminary acoustical design studies.

  6. THE SOUND OF CINEMA: TECHNOLOGY AND CREATIVITY

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Poznin Vitaly F.

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available Technology is a means of creating any product. However, in the onscreen art, it is one of the elements creating the art space of film. Considering the main stages of the development of cinematography, this article explores the influence of technology of sound recording on the creating a special artistic and physical space of film (the beginning of the use a sound in movies; the mastering the artistic means of an audiovisual work; the expansion of the spatial characteristics for the screen sound; and the sound in a modern cinema. Today, thanks to new technologies, the sound in a cinema forms a specific quasirealistic landscape, greatly enhancing the impact on the viewer of the virtual screen images.

  7. A taste for words and sounds: a case of lexical-gustatory and sound-gustatory synesthesia

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Colizoli, O.; Murre, J.M.J.; Rouw, R.

    2013-01-01

    Gustatory forms of synesthesia involve the automatic and consistent experience of tastes that are triggered by non-taste related inducers. We present a case of lexical-gustatory and sound-gustatory synesthesia within one individual, SC. Most words and a subset of non-linguistic sounds induce the

  8. 7 CFR 29.2550 - Sound.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 2 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Sound. 29.2550 Section 29.2550 Agriculture Regulations of the Department of Agriculture AGRICULTURAL MARKETING SERVICE (Standards, Inspections, Marketing...-Cured Tobacco (u.s. Types 22, 23, and Foreign Type 96) § 29.2550 Sound. Free of damage. [37 FR 13626...

  9. 7 CFR 29.3546 - Sound.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 2 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Sound. 29.3546 Section 29.3546 Agriculture Regulations of the Department of Agriculture AGRICULTURAL MARKETING SERVICE (Standards, Inspections, Marketing... Type 95) § 29.3546 Sound. Free of damage. [30 FR 9207, July 23, 1965. Redesignated at 49 FR 16759, Apr...

  10. 7 CFR 29.1058 - Sound.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 2 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Sound. 29.1058 Section 29.1058 Agriculture Regulations of the Department of Agriculture AGRICULTURAL MARKETING SERVICE (Standards, Inspections, Marketing... Type 92) § 29.1058 Sound. Free of damage. [42 FR 21092, Apr. 25, 1977. Redesignated at 47 FR 51721, Nov...

  11. 7 CFR 29.3056 - Sound.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 2 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Sound. 29.3056 Section 29.3056 Agriculture Regulations of the Department of Agriculture AGRICULTURAL MARKETING SERVICE (Standards, Inspections, Marketing... Sound. Free of damage. [24 FR 8771, Oct. 29, 1959. Redesignated at 47 FR 51722, Nov. 17, 1982, and at 49...

  12. Sound Settlements

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Mortensen, Peder Duelund; Hornyanszky, Elisabeth Dalholm; Larsen, Jacob Norvig

    2013-01-01

    Præsentation af projektresultater fra Interreg forskningen Sound Settlements om udvikling af bæredygtighed i det almene boligbyggerier i København, Malmø, Helsingborg og Lund samt europæiske eksempler på best practice...

  13. Improving Sound Systems by Electrical Means

    OpenAIRE

    Schneider, Henrik; Andersen, Michael A. E.; Knott, Arnold

    2015-01-01

    The availability and flexibility of audio services on various digital platforms have created a high demand for a large range of sound systems. The fundamental components of sound systems such as docking stations, sound bars and wireless mobile speakers consists of a power supply, amplifiers and transducers. Due to historical reasons the design of each of these components are commonly handled separately which are indeed limiting the full performance potential of such systems. To state some exa...

  14. Juvenile Pacific Salmon in Puget Sound

    National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

    Fresh, Kurt L

    2006-01-01

    Puget sound salmon (genus Oncorhynchus) spawn in freshwater and feed, grow and mature in marine waters, During their transition from freshwater to saltwater, juvenile salmon occupy nearshore ecosystems in Puget Sound...

  15. Physics of thermo-acoustic sound generation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Daschewski, M.; Boehm, R.; Prager, J.; Kreutzbruck, M.; Harrer, A.

    2013-09-01

    We present a generalized analytical model of thermo-acoustic sound generation based on the analysis of thermally induced energy density fluctuations and their propagation into the adjacent matter. The model provides exact analytical prediction of the sound pressure generated in fluids and solids; consequently, it can be applied to arbitrary thermal power sources such as thermophones, plasma firings, laser beams, and chemical reactions. Unlike existing approaches, our description also includes acoustic near-field effects and sound-field attenuation. Analytical results are compared with measurements of sound pressures generated by thermo-acoustic transducers in air for frequencies up to 1 MHz. The tested transducers consist of titanium and indium tin oxide coatings on quartz glass and polycarbonate substrates. The model reveals that thermo-acoustic efficiency increases linearly with the supplied thermal power and quadratically with thermal excitation frequency. Comparison of the efficiency of our thermo-acoustic transducers with those of piezoelectric-based airborne ultrasound transducers using impulse excitation showed comparable sound pressure values. The present results show that thermo-acoustic transducers can be applied as broadband, non-resonant, high-performance ultrasound sources.

  16. The Early Years: Becoming Attuned to Sound

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ashbrook, Peggy

    2014-01-01

    Exploration of making and changing sounds is part of the first-grade performance expectation 1-PS4-1, "Plan and conduct investigations to provide evidence that vibrating materials can make sound and that sound can make materials vibrate" (NGSS Lead States 2013, p. 10; see Internet Resource). Early learning experiences build toward…

  17. A Lexical Analysis of Environmental Sound Categories

    Science.gov (United States)

    Houix, Olivier; Lemaitre, Guillaume; Misdariis, Nicolas; Susini, Patrick; Urdapilleta, Isabel

    2012-01-01

    In this article we report on listener categorization of meaningful environmental sounds. A starting point for this study was the phenomenological taxonomy proposed by Gaver (1993b). In the first experimental study, 15 participants classified 60 environmental sounds and indicated the properties shared by the sounds in each class. In a second…

  18. RASS sound speed profile (SSP) measurements for use in outdoor sound propagation models

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Bradley, S G [Physics Department, University of Auckland (New Zealand); Huenerbein, S v; Waddington, D [Research Institute for the Built and Human Environment, University of Salford (United Kingdom)], E-mail: s.vonhunerbein@salford.ac.uk

    2008-05-01

    The performance of outdoor sound propagation models depends to a great extent on meteorological input parameters. In an effort to improve speed and accuracy, model output synthetic sound speed profiles (SSP) are commonly used depending on meteorological classification schemes. In order to use SSP measured by RASS in outdoor sound propagation models, the complex profiles need to be simplified. In this paper we extend an investigation on the spatial and temporal characteristics of the meteorological data set required to yield adequate comparisons between models and field measurements, so that the models can be fairly judged. Vertical SSP from RASS, SODAR wind profiles as well as mast wind and temperature data from a flat terrain site and measured over a period of several months are used to evaluate applicability of the logarithmic approximation for a stability classification scheme proposed by the HARMONOISE working group.

  19. RASS sound speed profile (SSP) measurements for use in outdoor sound propagation models

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bradley, S G; Huenerbein, S v; Waddington, D

    2008-01-01

    The performance of outdoor sound propagation models depends to a great extent on meteorological input parameters. In an effort to improve speed and accuracy, model output synthetic sound speed profiles (SSP) are commonly used depending on meteorological classification schemes. In order to use SSP measured by RASS in outdoor sound propagation models, the complex profiles need to be simplified. In this paper we extend an investigation on the spatial and temporal characteristics of the meteorological data set required to yield adequate comparisons between models and field measurements, so that the models can be fairly judged. Vertical SSP from RASS, SODAR wind profiles as well as mast wind and temperature data from a flat terrain site and measured over a period of several months are used to evaluate applicability of the logarithmic approximation for a stability classification scheme proposed by the HARMONOISE working group

  20. Contrast of Hemispheric Lateralization for Oro-Facial Movements between Learned Attention-Getting Sounds and Species-Typical Vocalizations in Chimpanzees: Extension in a Second Colony

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wallez, Catherine; Schaeffer, Jennifer; Meguerditchian, Adrien; Vauclair, Jacques; Schapiro, Steven J.; Hopkins, William D.

    2012-01-01

    Studies involving oro-facial asymmetries in nonhuman primates have largely demonstrated a right hemispheric dominance for communicative signals and conveyance of emotional information. A recent study on chimpanzee reported the first evidence of significant left-hemispheric dominance when using attention-getting sounds and rightward bias for…

  1. Differential presence of anthropogenic compounds dissolved in the marine waters of Puget Sound, WA and Barkley Sound, BC.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Keil, Richard; Salemme, Keri; Forrest, Brittany; Neibauer, Jaqui; Logsdon, Miles

    2011-11-01

    Organic compounds were evaluated in March 2010 at 22 stations in Barkley Sound, Vancouver Island Canada and at 66 locations in Puget Sound. Of 37 compounds, 15 were xenobiotics, 8 were determined to have an anthropogenic imprint over natural sources, and 13 were presumed to be of natural or mixed origin. The three most frequently detected compounds were salicyclic acid, vanillin and thymol. The three most abundant compounds were diethylhexyl phthalate (DEHP), ethyl vanillin and benzaldehyde (∼600 n g L(-1) on average). Concentrations of xenobiotics were 10-100 times higher in Puget Sound relative to Barkley Sound. Three compound couplets are used to illustrate the influence of human activity on marine waters; vanillin and ethyl vanillin, salicylic acid and acetylsalicylic acid, and cinnamaldehyde and cinnamic acid. Ratios indicate that anthropogenic activities are the predominant source of these chemicals in Puget Sound. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

  2. Predictive Brain Mechanisms in Sound-to-Meaning Mapping during Speech Processing.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lyu, Bingjiang; Ge, Jianqiao; Niu, Zhendong; Tan, Li Hai; Gao, Jia-Hong

    2016-10-19

    Spoken language comprehension relies not only on the identification of individual words, but also on the expectations arising from contextual information. A distributed frontotemporal network is known to facilitate the mapping of speech sounds onto their corresponding meanings. However, how prior expectations influence this efficient mapping at the neuroanatomical level, especially in terms of individual words, remains unclear. Using fMRI, we addressed this question in the framework of the dual-stream model by scanning native speakers of Mandarin Chinese, a language highly dependent on context. We found that, within the ventral pathway, the violated expectations elicited stronger activations in the left anterior superior temporal gyrus and the ventral inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) for the phonological-semantic prediction of spoken words. Functional connectivity analysis showed that expectations were mediated by both top-down modulation from the left ventral IFG to the anterior temporal regions and enhanced cross-stream integration through strengthened connections between different subregions of the left IFG. By further investigating the dynamic causality within the dual-stream model, we elucidated how the human brain accomplishes sound-to-meaning mapping for words in a predictive manner. In daily communication via spoken language, one of the core processes is understanding the words being used. Effortless and efficient information exchange via speech relies not only on the identification of individual spoken words, but also on the contextual information giving rise to expected meanings. Despite the accumulating evidence for the bottom-up perception of auditory input, it is still not fully understood how the top-down modulation is achieved in the extensive frontotemporal cortical network. Here, we provide a comprehensive description of the neural substrates underlying sound-to-meaning mapping and demonstrate how the dual-stream model functions in the modulation of

  3. Content Analysis as a Foundation for Programmatic Research in Communication.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Slater, Michael D

    2013-06-01

    Previous arguments that content analyses provide the descriptive foundation for media effects research (McLeod & Reeves, 1980) are extended to include that content analyses can provide a sound and useful foundation for programmatic research by individual communication scientists. I discuss examples from my own work and from that of colleagues in communication and related disciplines. Use of messages sampled and coded in a content analysis in combination with survey data sets or as stimuli in experiments are highlighted. The particular potential for employing larger numbers of randomly sampled messages in experimental designs, and, with use of appropriate statistical methods, being able to generalize to populations of messages, is described.

  4. The Textile Form of Sound

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bendixen, Cecilie

    2010-01-01

    The aim of this article is to shed light on a small part of the research taking place in the textile field. The article describes an ongoing PhD research project on textiles and sound and outlines the project's two main questions: how sound can be shaped by textiles and conversely how textiles can...

  5. Measuring the 'complexity' of sound

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    cate that specialized regions of the brain analyse different types of sounds [1]. Music, ... The left panel of figure 1 shows examples of sound–pressure waveforms from the nat- ... which is shown in the right panels in the spectrographic representation using a 45 Hz .... Plot of SFM(t) vs. time for different environmental sounds.

  6. Constraints on decay of environmental sound memory in adult rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sakai, Masashi

    2006-11-27

    When adult rats are pretreated with a 48-h-long 'repetitive nonreinforced sound exposure', performance in two-sound discriminative operant conditioning transiently improves. We have already proven that this 'sound exposure-enhanced discrimination' is dependent upon enhancement of the perceptual capacity of the auditory cortex. This study investigated principles governing decay of sound exposure-enhanced discrimination decay. Sound exposure-enhanced discrimination disappeared within approximately 72 h if animals were deprived of environmental sounds after sound exposure, and that shortened to less than approximately 60 h if they were exposed to environmental sounds in the animal room. Sound-deprivation itself exerted no clear effects. These findings suggest that the memory of a passively exposed behaviorally irrelevant sound signal does not merely pass along the intrinsic lifetime but also gets deteriorated by other incoming signals.

  7. Game Sound from Behind the Sofa

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Garner, Tom Alexander

    2013-01-01

    The central concern of this thesis is upon the processes by which human beings perceive sound and experience emotions within a computer video gameplay context. The potential of quantitative sound parameters to evoke and modulate emotional experience is explored, working towards the development...... that provide additional support of the hypothetical frameworks: an ecological process of fear, a fear-related model of virtual and real acoustic ecologies, and an embodied virtual acoustic ecology framework. It is intended that this thesis will clearly support more effective and efficient sound design...... practices and also improve awareness of the capacity of sound to generate significant emotional experiences during computer video gameplay. It is further hoped that this thesis will elucidate the potential of biometrics/psychophysiology to allow game designers to better understand the player and to move...

  8. 33 CFR 67.20-10 - Sound signal.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... 33 Navigation and Navigable Waters 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Sound signal. 67.20-10 Section 67... AIDS TO NAVIGATION ON ARTIFICIAL ISLANDS AND FIXED STRUCTURES Class âAâ Requirements § 67.20-10 Sound signal. (a) The owner of a Class “A” structure shall: (1) Install a sound signal that has a rated range...

  9. Toward Inverse Control of Physics-Based Sound Synthesis

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pfalz, A.; Berdahl, E.

    2017-05-01

    Long Short-Term Memory networks (LSTMs) can be trained to realize inverse control of physics-based sound synthesizers. Physics-based sound synthesizers simulate the laws of physics to produce output sound according to input gesture signals. When a user's gestures are measured in real time, she or he can use them to control physics-based sound synthesizers, thereby creating simulated virtual instruments. An intriguing question is how to program a computer to learn to play such physics-based models. This work demonstrates that LSTMs can be trained to accomplish this inverse control task with four physics-based sound synthesizers.

  10. Perception of environmental sounds by experienced cochlear implant patients

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shafiro, Valeriy; Gygi, Brian; Cheng, Min-Yu; Vachhani, Jay; Mulvey, Megan

    2011-01-01

    Objectives Environmental sound perception serves an important ecological function by providing listeners with information about objects and events in their immediate environment. Environmental sounds such as car horns, baby cries or chirping birds can alert listeners to imminent dangers as well as contribute to one's sense of awareness and well being. Perception of environmental sounds as acoustically and semantically complex stimuli, may also involve some factors common to the processing of speech. However, very limited research has investigated the abilities of cochlear implant (CI) patients to identify common environmental sounds, despite patients' general enthusiasm about them. This project (1) investigated the ability of patients with modern-day CIs to perceive environmental sounds, (2) explored associations among speech, environmental sounds and basic auditory abilities, and (3) examined acoustic factors that might be involved in environmental sound perception. Design Seventeen experienced postlingually-deafened CI patients participated in the study. Environmental sound perception was assessed with a large-item test composed of 40 sound sources, each represented by four different tokens. The relationship between speech and environmental sound perception, and the role of working memory and some basic auditory abilities were examined based on patient performance on a battery of speech tests (HINT, CNC, and individual consonant and vowel tests), tests of basic auditory abilities (audiometric thresholds, gap detection, temporal pattern and temporal order for tones tests) and a backward digit recall test. Results The results indicated substantially reduced ability to identify common environmental sounds in CI patients (45.3%). Except for vowels, all speech test scores significantly correlated with the environmental sound test scores: r = 0.73 for HINT in quiet, r = 0.69 for HINT in noise, r = 0.70 for CNC, r = 0.64 for consonants and r = 0.48 for vowels. HINT and

  11. Sound radiation contrast in MR phase images. Method for the representation of elasticity, sound damping, and sound impedance changes; Schallstrahlungskontrast in MR-Phasenbildern. Methode zur Darstellung von Elastizitaets-, Schalldaempfungs- und Schallimpedanzaenderungen

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Radicke, Marcus

    2009-12-18

    The method presented in this thesis combines ultrasound techniques with the magnetic-resonance tomography (MRT). An ultrasonic wave generates in absorbing media a static force in sound-propagation direction. The force leads at sound intensities of some W/cm{sup 2} and a sound frequency in the lower MHz range to a tissue shift in the micrometer range. This tissue shift depends on the sound power, the sound frequency, the sound absorption, and the elastic properties of the tissue. A MRT sequence of the Siemens Healthcare AG was modified so that it measures (indirectly) the tissue shift, codes as grey values, and presents as 2D picture. By means of the grey values the sound-beam slope in the tissue can be visualized, and so additionally sound obstacles (changes of the sound impedance) can be detected. By the MRT images token up spatial changes of the tissue parameters sound absorption and elasticity can be detected. In this thesis measurements are presented, which show the feasibility and future chances of this method especially for the mammary-cancer diagnostics. [German] Die in dieser Arbeit praesentierte Methode kombiniert Ultraschalltechniken mit der Magnetresonanztomographie (MRT). Eine Ultraschallwelle ruft in absorbierenden Medien eine statische Kraft in Schallausbreitungsrichtung hervor. Die Kraft fuehrt bei Schallintensitaeten von einigen W/cm{sup 2} und einer Schallfrequenz im niederen MHz-Bereich zu einer Gewebeverschiebung im Mikrometerbereich. Diese Gewebeverschiebung haengt ab von der Schallleistung, der Schallfrequenz, der Schallabsorption und den elastischen Eigenschaften des Gewebes. Es wurde eine MRT-Sequenz der Siemens Healthcare AG modifiziert, so dass sie (indirekt) die Gewebeverschiebung misst, als Grauwerte kodiert und als 2D-Bild darstellt. Anhand der Grauwerte kann der Schallstrahlverlauf in dem Gewebe visualisiert werden, und so koennen zusaetzlich Schallhindernisse (Aenderungen der Schallkennimpedanz) aufgespuert werden. Mit den

  12. Coastal Habitats in Puget Sound: A Research Plan in Support of the Puget Sound Nearshore Partnership

    Science.gov (United States)

    2006-11-01

    2Puget Sound nearshore ecosystems encompass the bluffs, beaches, tide flats, estuaries, rocky shores, lagoons , salt marshes, and other shoreline features...investigations of intertidal benthic macroinvertebrate assemblages along Puget Sound and the Strait of Juan de Fuca (e.g., Long and others, 1983

  13. Sound-proof Sandwich Panel Design via Metamaterial Concept

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sui, Ni

    Sandwich panels consisting of hollow core cells and two face-sheets bonded on both sides have been widely used as lightweight and strong structures in practical engineering applications, but with poor acoustic performance especially at low frequency regime. Basic sound-proof methods for the sandwich panel design are spontaneously categorized as sound insulation and sound absorption. Motivated by metamaterial concept, this dissertation presents two sandwich panel designs without sacrificing weight or size penalty: A lightweight yet sound-proof honeycomb acoustic metamateiral can be used as core material for honeycomb sandwich panels to block sound and break the mass law to realize minimum sound transmission; the other sandwich panel design is based on coupled Helmholtz resonators and can achieve perfect sound absorption without sound reflection. Based on the honeycomb sandwich panel, the mechanical properties of the honeycomb core structure were studied first. By incorporating a thin membrane on top of each honeycomb core, the traditional honeycomb core turns into honeycomb acoustic metamaterial. The basic theory for such kind of membrane-type acoustic metamaterial is demonstrated by a lumped model with infinite periodic oscillator system, and the negative dynamic effective mass density for clamped membrane is analyzed under the membrane resonance condition. Evanescent wave mode caused by negative dynamic effective mass density and impedance methods are utilized to interpret the physical phenomenon of honeycomb acoustic metamaterials at resonance. The honeycomb metamaterials can extraordinarily improve low-frequency sound transmission loss below the first resonant frequency of the membrane. The property of the membrane, the tension of the membrane and the numbers of attached membranes can impact the sound transmission loss, which are observed by numerical simulations and validated by experiments. The sandwich panel which incorporates the honeycomb metamateiral as

  14. Designing a Sound Reducing Wall

    Science.gov (United States)

    Erk, Kendra; Lumkes, John; Shambach, Jill; Braile, Larry; Brickler, Anne; Matthys, Anna

    2015-01-01

    Acoustical engineers use their knowledge of sound to design quiet environments (e.g., classrooms and libraries) as well as to design environments that are supposed to be loud (e.g., concert halls and football stadiums). They also design sound barriers, such as the walls along busy roadways that decrease the traffic noise heard by people in…

  15. Interactively Evolving Compositional Sound Synthesis Networks

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jónsson, Björn Þór; Hoover, Amy K.; Risi, Sebastian

    2015-01-01

    the space of potential sounds that can be generated through such compositional sound synthesis networks (CSSNs). To study the effect of evolution on subjective appreciation, participants in a listener study ranked evolved timbres by personal preference, resulting in preferences skewed toward the first......While the success of electronic music often relies on the uniqueness and quality of selected timbres, many musicians struggle with complicated and expensive equipment and techniques to create their desired sounds. Instead, this paper presents a technique for producing novel timbres that are evolved...

  16. International perception of lung sounds: a comparison of classification across some European borders.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Aviles-Solis, Juan Carlos; Vanbelle, Sophie; Halvorsen, Peder A; Francis, Nick; Cals, Jochen W L; Andreeva, Elena A; Marques, Alda; Piirilä, Päivi; Pasterkamp, Hans; Melbye, Hasse

    2017-01-01

    Lung auscultation is helpful in the diagnosis of lung and heart diseases; however, the diagnostic value of lung sounds may be questioned due to interobserver variation. This situation may also impair clinical research in this area to generate evidence-based knowledge about the role that chest auscultation has in a modern clinical setting. The recording and visual display of lung sounds is a method that is both repeatable and feasible to use in large samples, and the aim of this study was to evaluate interobserver agreement using this method. With a microphone in a stethoscope tube, we collected digital recordings of lung sounds from six sites on the chest surface in 20 subjects aged 40 years or older with and without lung and heart diseases. A total of 120 recordings and their spectrograms were independently classified by 28 observers from seven different countries. We employed absolute agreement and kappa coefficients to explore interobserver agreement in classifying crackles and wheezes within and between subgroups of four observers. When evaluating agreement on crackles (inspiratory or expiratory) in each subgroup, observers agreed on between 65% and 87% of the cases. Conger's kappa ranged from 0.20 to 0.58 and four out of seven groups reached a kappa of ≥0.49. In the classification of wheezes, we observed a probability of agreement between 69% and 99.6% and kappa values from 0.09 to 0.97. Four out of seven groups reached a kappa ≥0.62. The kappa values we observed in our study ranged widely but, when addressing its limitations, we find the method of recording and presenting lung sounds with spectrograms sufficient for both clinic and research. Standardisation of terminology across countries would improve international communication on lung auscultation findings.

  17. The sound of high winds. The effect of atmospheric stability on wind turbine sound and microphone noise

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Van den Berg, G.P.

    2006-01-01

    In this thesis issues are raised concerning wind turbine noise and its relationship to altitude dependent wind velocity. The following issues are investigated: what is the influence of atmospheric stability on the speed and sound power of a wind turbine?; what is the influence of atmospheric stability on the character of wind turbine sound?; how widespread is the impact of atmospheric stability on wind turbine performance: is it relevant for new wind turbine projects; how can noise prediction take this stability into account?; what can be done to deal with the resultant higher impact of wind turbine sound? Apart from these directly wind turbine related issues, a final aim was to address a measurement problem: how does wind on a microphone affect the measurement of the ambient sound level?

  18. A Comparative Study of Sound Speed in Air at Room Temperature between a Pressure Sensor and a Sound Sensor

    Science.gov (United States)

    Amrani, D.

    2013-01-01

    This paper deals with the comparison of sound speed measurements in air using two types of sensor that are widely employed in physics and engineering education, namely a pressure sensor and a sound sensor. A computer-based laboratory with pressure and sound sensors was used to carry out measurements of air through a 60 ml syringe. The fast Fourier…

  19. Bubbles That Change the Speed of Sound

    Science.gov (United States)

    Planinsic, Gorazd; Etkina, Eugenia

    2012-01-01

    The influence of bubbles on sound has long attracted the attention of physicists. In his 1920 book Sir William Bragg described sound absorption caused by foam in a glass of beer tapped by a spoon. Frank S. Crawford described and analyzed the change in the pitch of sound in a similar experiment and named the phenomenon the "hot chocolate effect."…

  20. Neuromimetic Sound Representation for Percept Detection and Manipulation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Chi Taishih

    2005-01-01

    Full Text Available The acoustic wave received at the ears is processed by the human auditory system to separate different sounds along the intensity, pitch, and timbre dimensions. Conventional Fourier-based signal processing, while endowed with fast algorithms, is unable to easily represent a signal along these attributes. In this paper, we discuss the creation of maximally separable sounds in auditory user interfaces and use a recently proposed cortical sound representation, which performs a biomimetic decomposition of an acoustic signal, to represent and manipulate sound for this purpose. We briefly overview algorithms for obtaining, manipulating, and inverting a cortical representation of a sound and describe algorithms for manipulating signal pitch and timbre separately. The algorithms are also used to create sound of an instrument between a "guitar" and a "trumpet." Excellent sound quality can be achieved if processing time is not a concern, and intelligible signals can be reconstructed in reasonable processing time (about ten seconds of computational time for a one-second signal sampled at . Work on bringing the algorithms into the real-time processing domain is ongoing.

  1. Assessment and improvement of sound quality in cochlear implant users.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Caldwell, Meredith T; Jiam, Nicole T; Limb, Charles J

    2017-06-01

    Cochlear implants (CIs) have successfully provided speech perception to individuals with sensorineural hearing loss. Recent research has focused on more challenging acoustic stimuli such as music and voice emotion. The purpose of this review is to evaluate and describe sound quality in CI users with the purposes of summarizing novel findings and crucial information about how CI users experience complex sounds. Here we review the existing literature on PubMed and Scopus to present what is known about perceptual sound quality in CI users, discuss existing measures of sound quality, explore how sound quality may be effectively studied, and examine potential strategies of improving sound quality in the CI population. Sound quality, defined here as the perceived richness of an auditory stimulus, is an attribute of implant-mediated listening that remains poorly studied. Sound quality is distinct from appraisal, which is generally defined as the subjective likability or pleasantness of a sound. Existing studies suggest that sound quality perception in the CI population is limited by a range of factors, most notably pitch distortion and dynamic range compression. Although there are currently very few objective measures of sound quality, the CI-MUSHRA has been used as a means of evaluating sound quality. There exist a number of promising strategies to improve sound quality perception in the CI population including apical cochlear stimulation, pitch tuning, and noise reduction processing strategies. In the published literature, sound quality perception is severely limited among CI users. Future research should focus on developing systematic, objective, and quantitative sound quality metrics and designing therapies to mitigate poor sound quality perception in CI users. NA.

  2. Sound Rhythms Are Encoded by Postinhibitory Rebound Spiking in the Superior Paraolivary Nucleus

    Science.gov (United States)

    Felix, Richard A.; Fridberger, Anders; Leijon, Sara; Berrebi, Albert S.; Magnusson, Anna K.

    2013-01-01

    The superior paraolivary nucleus (SPON) is a prominent structure in the auditory brainstem. In contrast to the principal superior olivary nuclei with identified roles in processing binaural sound localization cues, the role of the SPON in hearing is not well understood. A combined in vitro and in vivo approach was used to investigate the cellular properties of SPON neurons in the mouse. Patch-clamp recordings in brain slices revealed that brief and well timed postinhibitory rebound spiking, generated by the interaction of two subthreshold-activated ion currents, is a hallmark of SPON neurons. The Ih current determines the timing of the rebound, whereas the T-type Ca2+ current boosts the rebound to spike threshold. This precisely timed rebound spiking provides a physiological explanation for the sensitivity of SPON neurons to sinusoidally amplitude-modulated (SAM) tones in vivo, where peaks in the sound envelope drive inhibitory inputs and SPON neurons fire action potentials during the waveform troughs. Consistent with this notion, SPON neurons display intrinsic tuning to frequency-modulated sinusoidal currents (1–15Hz) in vitro and discharge with strong synchrony to SAMs with modulation frequencies between 1 and 20 Hz in vivo. The results of this study suggest that the SPON is particularly well suited to encode rhythmic sound patterns. Such temporal periodicity information is likely important for detection of communication cues, such as the acoustic envelopes of animal vocalizations and speech signals. PMID:21880918

  3. Plastic modes of listening: affordance in constructed sound environments

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sjolin, Anders

    This thesis is concerned with how the ecological approach to perception with the inclusion of listening modes, informs the creation of sound art installation, or more specifically as referred to in this thesis as constructed sound environments. The basis for the thesis has been a practiced based research where the aim and purpose of the written part of this PhD project has been to critically investigate the area of sound art, in order to map various approaches towards participating in and listening to a constructed sound environment. The main areas has been the notion of affordance as coined by James J. Gibson (1986), listening modes as coined by Pierre Schaeffer (1966) and further developed by Michel Chion (1994), aural architects as coined by Blesser and Salter (2007) and the holistic approach towards understanding sound art developed by Brandon LaBelle (2006). The findings within the written part of the thesis, based on a qualitative analysis, have informed the practice that has resulted in artefacts in the form of seven constructed sound environments that also functions as case studies for further analysis. The aim of the practice has been to exemplify the methodology, strategy and progress behind the organisation and construction of sound environments The research concerns point towards the acknowledgment of affordance as the crucial factor in understanding a constructed sound environment. The affordance approach govern the idea that perceiving a sound environment is a top-down process where the autonomic quality of a constructed sound environment is based upon the perception of structures of the sound material and its relationship with speaker placement and surrounding space. This enables a researcher to side step the conflicting poles of musical/abstract and non-musical/realistic classification of sound elements and regard these poles as included, not separated elements in the analysis of a constructed sound environment.

  4. A recognition method research based on the heart sound texture map

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Huizhong Cheng

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available In order to improve the Heart Sound recognition rate and reduce the recognition time, in this paper, we introduces a new method for Heart Sound pattern recognition by using Heart Sound Texture Map. Based on the Heart Sound model, we give the Heart Sound time-frequency diagram and the Heart Sound Texture Map definition, we study the structure of the Heart Sound Window Function principle and realization method, and then discusses how to use the Heart Sound Window Function and the Short-time Fourier Transform to obtain two-dimensional Heart Sound time-frequency diagram, propose corner correlation recognition algorithm based on the Heart Sound Texture Map according to the characteristics of Heart Sound. The simulation results show that the Heart Sound Window Function compared with the traditional window function makes the first (S1 and the second (S2 Heart Sound texture clearer. And the corner correlation recognition algorithm based on the Heart Sound Texture Map can significantly improve the recognition rate and reduce the expense, which is an effective Heart Sound recognition method.

  5. Imagination, Perceptual Engagement and Sound Mediation. Thinking Technologically-Produced Sound Through Simondon's Concept of the Image

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Paiuk, G.

    2018-01-01

    Applying French philosopher Gilbert Simondon’s concept of image to the domain of the sonorous, this article aims to tackle how imagination is constitutional in our grasp of sound, and how this grasp is informed by the protocols and affordances of technological tools of sound reproduction and

  6. Sound exposure measurements using hearing-aid technology

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jensen, Simon Boelt; Drastrup, Mads; Morales, Esteban Chávez

    2016-01-01

    scenarios. The purpose of this work is to document the use of a modified behind-the-ear (BTE) hearing-aid as a portable sound pressure level (SPL) meter. In order to obtain sound level measurements with a BTE device comparable to sound field values that can be used with existing risk assessment strategies...... levels of sound exposures are experienced in modern society in many different situations such as attending concerts, sport events and others. This leads to an interest in measurement devices which are discreet and simple to use, in order to assess sound exposures encountered in typical daily life......, differences due to microphone positions and the presence of a person in the measurement must be taken into account. The present study presents measurements carried out to document the characteristics of the BTE device, using the same framework presented in the ISO 11904 standard series. The responses...

  7. A stethoscope with wavelet separation of cardiac and respiratory sounds for real time telemedicine implemented on field-programmable gate array

    Science.gov (United States)

    Castro, Víctor M.; Muñoz, Nestor A.; Salazar, Antonio J.

    2015-01-01

    Auscultation is one of the most utilized physical examination procedures for listening to lung, heart and intestinal sounds during routine consults and emergencies. Heart and lung sounds overlap in the thorax. An algorithm was used to separate them based on the discrete wavelet transform with multi-resolution analysis, which decomposes the signal into approximations and details. The algorithm was implemented in software and in hardware to achieve real-time signal separation. The heart signal was found in detail eight and the lung signal in approximation six. The hardware was used to separate the signals with a delay of 256 ms. Sending wavelet decomposition data - instead of the separated full signa - allows telemedicine applications to function in real time over low-bandwidth communication channels.

  8. 33 CFR 167.1700 - In Prince William Sound: General.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... 33 Navigation and Navigable Waters 2 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false In Prince William Sound: General... Schemes and Precautionary Areas Pacific West Coast § 167.1700 In Prince William Sound: General. The Prince William Sound Traffic Separation Scheme consists of four parts: Prince William Sound Traffic Separation...

  9. First and second sound in He films

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Oh, H.G.; Um, C.I.; Kahng, W.H.; Isihara, A.

    1986-01-01

    In consideration of a collision integral in the Boltzmann equation and with use of kinetic and hydrodynamical equations, the velocities of the first and second sound in liquid 4 He films are evaluated as functions of temperature, and the attenuation coefficients are obtained. The second sound is 2/sup -1/2/ times the first-sound velocity in the low-temperature and low-frequency limit

  10. Lexical and perceptual grounding of a sound ontology

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Lobanova, Anna; Spenader, Jennifer; Valkenier, Bea; Matousek,; Mautner, P

    2007-01-01

    Sound ontologies need to incorporate source unidentifiable sounds in an adequate and consistent manner. Computational lexical resources like WordNet have either inserted these descriptions into conceptual categories, or make no attempt to organize the terms for these sounds. This work attempts to

  11. 33 CFR 334.412 - Albemarle Sound, Pamlico Sound, Harvey Point and adjacent waters, NC; restricted area.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... 33 Navigation and Navigable Waters 3 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Albemarle Sound, Pamlico Sound, Harvey Point and adjacent waters, NC; restricted area. 334.412 Section 334.412 Navigation and Navigable Waters CORPS OF ENGINEERS, DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY, DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE DANGER ZONE AND RESTRICTED AREA...

  12. Sound response of superheated drop bubble detectors to neutrons

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gao Size; Chen Zhe; Liu Chao; Ni Bangfa; Zhang Guiying; Zhao Changfa; Xiao Caijin; Liu Cunxiong; Nie Peng; Guan Yongjing

    2012-01-01

    The sound response of the bubble detectors to neutrons by using 252 Cf neutron source was described. Sound signals were filtered by sound card and PC. The short-time signal energy. FFT spectrum, power spectrum, and decay time constant were got to determine the authenticity of sound signal for bubbles. (authors)

  13. The Opponent Channel Population Code of Sound Location Is an Efficient Representation of Natural Binaural Sounds

    Science.gov (United States)

    Młynarski, Wiktor

    2015-01-01

    In mammalian auditory cortex, sound source position is represented by a population of broadly tuned neurons whose firing is modulated by sounds located at all positions surrounding the animal. Peaks of their tuning curves are concentrated at lateral position, while their slopes are steepest at the interaural midline, allowing for the maximum localization accuracy in that area. These experimental observations contradict initial assumptions that the auditory space is represented as a topographic cortical map. It has been suggested that a “panoramic” code has evolved to match specific demands of the sound localization task. This work provides evidence suggesting that properties of spatial auditory neurons identified experimentally follow from a general design principle- learning a sparse, efficient representation of natural stimuli. Natural binaural sounds were recorded and served as input to a hierarchical sparse-coding model. In the first layer, left and right ear sounds were separately encoded by a population of complex-valued basis functions which separated phase and amplitude. Both parameters are known to carry information relevant for spatial hearing. Monaural input converged in the second layer, which learned a joint representation of amplitude and interaural phase difference. Spatial selectivity of each second-layer unit was measured by exposing the model to natural sound sources recorded at different positions. Obtained tuning curves match well tuning characteristics of neurons in the mammalian auditory cortex. This study connects neuronal coding of the auditory space with natural stimulus statistics and generates new experimental predictions. Moreover, results presented here suggest that cortical regions with seemingly different functions may implement the same computational strategy-efficient coding. PMID:25996373

  14. Extended abstracts from the Coastal Habitats in Puget Sound (CHIPS) 2006 Workshop

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gelfenbaum, Guy R.; Fuentes, Tracy L.; Duda, Jeffrey J.; Grossman, Eric E.; Takesue, Renee K.

    2010-01-01

    Puget Sound is the second largest estuary in the United States. Its unique geology, climate, and nutrient-rich waters produce and sustain biologically productive coastal habitats. These same natural characteristics also contribute to a high quality of life that has led to a significant growth in human population and associated development. This population growth, and the accompanying rural and urban development, has played a role in degrading Puget Sound ecosystems, including declines in fish and wildlife populations, water-quality issues, and loss and degradation of coastal habitats.In response to these ecosystem declines and the potential for strategic large-scale preservation and restoration, a coalition of local, State, and Federal agencies, including the private sector, Tribes, and local universities, initiated the Puget Sound Nearshore Ecosystem Restoration Project (PSNERP). The Nearshore Science Team (NST) of PSNERP, along with the U.S. Geological Survey, developed a Science Strategy and Research Plan (Gelfenbaum and others, 2006) to help guide science activities associated with nearshore ecosystem restoration. Implementation of the Research Plan includes a call for State and Federal agencies to direct scientific studies to support PSNERP information needs. In addition, the overall Science Strategy promotes greater communication with decision makers and dissemination of scientific results to the broader scientific community.On November 14–16, 2006, the U.S. Geological Survey sponsored an interdisciplinary Coastal Habitats in Puget Sound (CHIPS) Research Workshop at Fort Worden State Park, Port Townsend, Washington. The main goals of the workshop were to coordinate, integrate, and link research on the nearshore of Puget Sound. Presented research focused on three themes: (1) restoration of large river deltas; (2) recovery of the nearshore ecosystem of the Elwha River; and (3) effects of urbanization on nearshore ecosystems. The more than 35 presentations

  15. Effects of spectral complexity and sound duration on automatic complex-sound pitch processing in humans - a mismatch negativity study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tervaniemi, M; Schröger, E; Saher, M; Näätänen, R

    2000-08-18

    The pitch of a spectrally rich sound is known to be more easily perceived than that of a sinusoidal tone. The present study compared the importance of spectral complexity and sound duration in facilitated pitch discrimination. The mismatch negativity (MMN), which reflects automatic neural discrimination, was recorded to a 2. 5% pitch change in pure tones with only one sinusoidal frequency component (500 Hz) and in spectrally rich tones with three (500-1500 Hz) and five (500-2500 Hz) harmonic partials. During the recordings, subjects concentrated on watching a silent movie. In separate blocks, stimuli were of 100 and 250 ms in duration. The MMN amplitude was enhanced with both spectrally rich sounds when compared with pure tones. The prolonged sound duration did not significantly enhance the MMN. This suggests that increased spectral rather than temporal information facilitates pitch processing of spectrally rich sounds.

  16. Sound Insulation Property Study on Nylon 66 Scrim Reinforced PVF Laminated Membranes and their Composite Sound Proof Structure

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chen, Lihe; Chen, Zhaofeng; Zhang, Xinyang; Wang, Weiwei

    2018-01-01

    In this paper, we investigated the sound insulation property of nylon 66 scrim reinforced PVF laminated membranes and their corresponding composite structures with glass fiber felt and carbon fiber board. Sound transmission loss (STL) was measured by standing wave tube method. The results show that, with the decrease of nylon 66 gridlines spacing, STL of nylon 66 scrim reinforced PVF laminated membranes was improved. The sound insulation performance of laminated membranes with gridlines spacing of 3mm is the best, whose STL was up to 10dB at 6.3 kHz. Besides, STL was improved effectively as air layers were embedded into the composite sound proof construction consist of laminated membrane, glass fiber felt and carbon fiber board.

  17. Climate Communication from a Science Perspective

    Science.gov (United States)

    Somerville, R. C.

    2012-12-01

    Today, the world faces crucial choices in deciding what to do about climate change. Wise policy can be usefully informed by sound science. Scientists who are both climate experts and skilled communicators can provide valuable input into this policy process. They can help the public, media and policymakers learn what science has discovered about climate change. Scientists as a group are widely admired throughout the world. They can often use their prestige as well as their technical knowledge to advantage in publicizing and illuminating the findings of climate science. However, most scientists are unaware of the main obstacles to effective communication, such as the distrust that arises when the scientist and the audience do not have a shared worldview and shared cultural values. Many climate scientists also fail to realize that the jargon they use in their work is a significant barrier to communication, and that their messages requires skilled translation into the everyday language that people understand. Scientists need to recognize that lecturing is almost always poor communication. Speaking in a television interview or a Congressional hearing is completely unlike teaching a class of graduate students. The people whom one is trying to reach are rarely hungry for pure scientific information. Instead, they want to know how climate change will affect them and what can be done about it. Communicating climate science resembles skiing or speaking a foreign language: it is a skill that can be learned, but beginners are well advised to take lessons from expert instructors. Becoming adept at climate communication requires study and practice. Effective professional training in climate communication is available for those scientists who have the time and the willingness to improve as communicators.

  18. ISEE : An Intuitive Sound Editing Environment

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Vertegaal, R.P.H.; Bonis, E.

    1994-01-01

    This article presents ISEE, an intuitive sound editing environment, as a general sound synthesis model based on expert auditory perception and cognition of musical instruments. It discusses the backgrounds of current synthesizer user interface design and related timbre space research. Of the three

  19. Intercepting a sound without vision

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vercillo, Tiziana; Tonelli, Alessia; Gori, Monica

    2017-01-01

    Visual information is extremely important to generate internal spatial representations. In the auditory modality, the absence of visual cues during early infancy does not preclude the development of some spatial strategies. However, specific spatial abilities might result impaired. In the current study, we investigated the effect of early visual deprivation on the ability to localize static and moving auditory stimuli by comparing sighted and early blind individuals’ performance in different spatial tasks. We also examined perceptual stability in the two groups of participants by matching localization accuracy in a static and a dynamic head condition that involved rotational head movements. Sighted participants accurately localized static and moving sounds. Their localization ability remained unchanged after rotational movements of the head. Conversely, blind participants showed a leftward bias during the localization of static sounds and a little bias for moving sounds. Moreover, head movements induced a significant bias in the direction of head motion during the localization of moving sounds. These results suggest that internal spatial representations might be body-centered in blind individuals and that in sighted people the availability of visual cues during early infancy may affect sensory-motor interactions. PMID:28481939

  20. Second sound shock waves in rotating superfluid helium

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Torczynski, J.R.

    1983-01-01

    Second sound shock waves have been used to examine the breakdown of superfluidity in bulk He II. The maximum counterflow velocity achieved in this manner was measured at a variety of temperatures and pressures. The results are found to agree with predictions of vortex nucleation theories (Langer and Fisher, 1967) in their pressure and temperature dependences although it was shown that dissipation occurred only near the heater. A simple scaling argument is suggested, assuming breakdown occurs near the heater. A vortex dynamics model of breakdown (following the method of Turner, private communication) is developed. To examine the effect of vorticity on breakdown, second sound shocks were produced in rotating helium. Experiments were performed in which the shocks propagated either along or normal to the axis of rotation, called axial and transverse cases, respectively. In both cases the decay was seen to increase monotonically with the rotation rate. Furthermore, the decay was ongoing rather than being confined to a narrow region near the heater. However, the extraordinary dissipation in the transverse case seemed to be related primarily to the arrival of secondary waves from the heater-sidewall boundary. An explanation of this difference is put forth in terms of vortex nucleation in the bulk fluid, using ideas similar to Crocco's Theorem. In order to examine the breakdown of superfluidity away from walls in nonrotation fluid, spherically converging second shocks were produced. The temperature jumps of the waves were measured, and exact numerical solutions of the two-fluid jump conditions (Moody, 1983) were used to calculate the relative velocity in each case

  1. The auditory brainstem response in two lizard species

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Brittan-Powell, Elizabeth F; Christensen-Dalsgaard, Jakob; Tang, Yezhong

    2010-01-01

    Although lizards have highly sensitive ears, it is difficult to condition them to sound, making standard psychophysical assays of hearing sensitivity impractical. This paper describes non-invasive measurements of the auditory brainstem response (ABR) in both Tokay geckos (Gekko gecko; nocturnal...... animals, known for their loud vocalizations) and the green anole (Anolis carolinensis, diurnal, non-vocal animals). Hearing sensitivity was measured in 5 geckos and 7 anoles. The lizards were sedated with isoflurane, and ABRs were measured at levels of 1 and 3% isoflurane. The typical ABR waveform......). Above 5 kHz, however, anoles were more than 20 dB more sensitive than geckos and showed a wider range of sensitivity (1-7 kHz). Generally, thresholds from ABR audiograms were comparable to those of small birds. Best hearing sensitivity, however, extended over a larger frequency range in lizards than...

  2. WODA technical guidance on underwater sound from dredging

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Thomsen, F.; Borsani, F.; Clarke, D.; Jong, C. de; Wit, P. de; Goethals, F.; Holtkamp, M.; Martin, E.S.; Spadaro, P.; Raalte, G. van; Victor, G.Y.V.; Jensen, A.

    2016-01-01

    The World Organization of Dredging Associations (WODA) has identified underwater sound as an environmental issue that needs further consideration. A WODA Expert Group on Underwater Sound (WEGUS) prepared a guidance paper in 2013 on dredging sound, including a summary of potential impacts on aquatic

  3. Spherical loudspeaker array for local active control of sound.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rafaely, Boaz

    2009-05-01

    Active control of sound has been employed to reduce noise levels around listeners' head using destructive interference from noise-canceling sound sources. Recently, spherical loudspeaker arrays have been studied as multiple-channel sound sources, capable of generating sound fields with high complexity. In this paper, the potential use of a spherical loudspeaker array for local active control of sound is investigated. A theoretical analysis of the primary and secondary sound fields around a spherical sound source reveals that the natural quiet zones for the spherical source have a shell-shape. Using numerical optimization, quiet zones with other shapes are designed, showing potential for quiet zones with extents that are significantly larger than the well-known limit of a tenth of a wavelength for monopole sources. The paper presents several simulation examples showing quiet zones in various configurations.

  4. Framing sound: Using expectations to reduce environmental noise annoyance.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Crichton, Fiona; Dodd, George; Schmid, Gian; Petrie, Keith J

    2015-10-01

    Annoyance reactions to environmental noise, such as wind turbine sound, have public health implications given associations between annoyance and symptoms related to psychological distress. In the case of wind farms, factors contributing to noise annoyance have been theorised to include wind turbine sound characteristics, the noise sensitivity of residents, and contextual aspects, such as receiving information creating negative expectations about sound exposure. The experimental aim was to assess whether receiving positive or negative expectations about wind farm sound would differentially influence annoyance reactions during exposure to wind farm sound, and also influence associations between perceived noise sensitivity and noise annoyance. Sixty volunteers were randomly assigned to receive either negative or positive expectations about wind farm sound. Participants in the negative expectation group viewed a presentation which incorporated internet material indicating that exposure to wind turbine sound, particularly infrasound, might present a health risk. Positive expectation participants viewed a DVD which framed wind farm sound positively and included internet information about the health benefits of infrasound exposure. Participants were then simultaneously exposed to sub-audible infrasound and audible wind farm sound during two 7 min exposure sessions, during which they assessed their experience of annoyance. Positive expectation participants were significantly less annoyed than negative expectation participants, while noise sensitivity only predicted annoyance in the negative group. Findings suggest accessing negative information about sound is likely to trigger annoyance, particularly in noise sensitive people and, importantly, portraying sound positively may reduce annoyance reactions, even in noise sensitive individuals. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  5. Physiological phenotyping of dementias using emotional sounds.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fletcher, Phillip D; Nicholas, Jennifer M; Shakespeare, Timothy J; Downey, Laura E; Golden, Hannah L; Agustus, Jennifer L; Clark, Camilla N; Mummery, Catherine J; Schott, Jonathan M; Crutch, Sebastian J; Warren, Jason D

    2015-06-01

    Emotional behavioral disturbances are hallmarks of many dementias but their pathophysiology is poorly understood. Here we addressed this issue using the paradigm of emotionally salient sounds. Pupil responses and affective valence ratings for nonverbal sounds of varying emotional salience were assessed in patients with behavioral variant frontotemporal dementia (bvFTD) (n = 14), semantic dementia (SD) (n = 10), progressive nonfluent aphasia (PNFA) (n = 12), and AD (n = 10) versus healthy age-matched individuals (n = 26). Referenced to healthy individuals, overall autonomic reactivity to sound was normal in Alzheimer's disease (AD) but reduced in other syndromes. Patients with bvFTD, SD, and AD showed altered coupling between pupillary and affective behavioral responses to emotionally salient sounds. Emotional sounds are a useful model system for analyzing how dementias affect the processing of salient environmental signals, with implications for defining pathophysiological mechanisms and novel biomarker development.

  6. Sound reduction by metamaterial-based acoustic enclosure

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Shanshan Yao

    2014-12-01

    Full Text Available In many practical systems, acoustic radiation control on noise sources contained within a finite volume by an acoustic enclosure is of great importance, but difficult to be accomplished at low frequencies due to the enhanced acoustic-structure interaction. In this work, we propose to use acoustic metamaterials as the enclosure to efficiently reduce sound radiation at their negative-mass frequencies. Based on a circularly-shaped metamaterial model, sound radiation properties by either central or eccentric sources are analyzed by numerical simulations for structured metamaterials. The parametric analyses demonstrate that the barrier thickness, the cavity size, the source type, and the eccentricity of the source have a profound effect on the sound reduction. It is found that increasing the thickness of the metamaterial barrier is an efficient approach to achieve large sound reduction over the negative-mass frequencies. These results are helpful in designing highly efficient acoustic enclosures for blockage of sound in low frequencies.

  7. Sound reduction by metamaterial-based acoustic enclosure

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Yao, Shanshan; Li, Pei; Zhou, Xiaoming; Hu, Gengkai, E-mail: hugeng@bit.edu.cn [Key Laboratory of Dynamics and Control of Flight Vehicle, Ministry of Education and School of Aerospace Engineering, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing 100081 (China)

    2014-12-15

    In many practical systems, acoustic radiation control on noise sources contained within a finite volume by an acoustic enclosure is of great importance, but difficult to be accomplished at low frequencies due to the enhanced acoustic-structure interaction. In this work, we propose to use acoustic metamaterials as the enclosure to efficiently reduce sound radiation at their negative-mass frequencies. Based on a circularly-shaped metamaterial model, sound radiation properties by either central or eccentric sources are analyzed by numerical simulations for structured metamaterials. The parametric analyses demonstrate that the barrier thickness, the cavity size, the source type, and the eccentricity of the source have a profound effect on the sound reduction. It is found that increasing the thickness of the metamaterial barrier is an efficient approach to achieve large sound reduction over the negative-mass frequencies. These results are helpful in designing highly efficient acoustic enclosures for blockage of sound in low frequencies.

  8. Specially Designed Sound-Boxes Used by Students to Perform School-Lab Sensor–Based Experiments, to Understand Sound Phenomena

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Stefanos Parskeuopoulos

    2011-02-01

    Full Text Available The research presented herein investigates and records students’ perceptions relating to sound phenomena and their improvement during a specialised laboratory practice utilizing ICT and a simple experimental apparatus, especially designed for teaching. This school-lab apparatus and its operation are also described herein. A number of 71 first and second grade Vocational-school students, aged 16 to 20, participated in the research. These were divided into groups of 4-5 students, each of which worked for 6 hours in order to complete all activities assigned. Data collection was carried out through personal interviews as well as questionnaires which were distributed before and after the instructive intervention. The results shows that students’ active involvement with the simple teaching apparatus, through which the effects of sound waves are visible, helps them comprehend sound phenomena. It also altered considerably their initial misconceptions about sound propagation. The results are presented diagrammatically herein, while some important observations are made, relating to the teaching and learning of scientific concepts concerning sound.

  9. Xinyinqin: a computer-based heart sound simulator.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhan, X X; Pei, J H; Xiao, Y H

    1995-01-01

    "Xinyinqin" is the Chinese phoneticized name of the Heart Sound Simulator (HSS). The "qin" in "Xinyinqin" is the Chinese name of a category of musical instruments, which means that the operation of HSS is very convenient--like playing an electric piano with the keys. HSS is connected to the GAME I/O of an Apple microcomputer. The generation of sound is controlled by a program. Xinyinqin is used as a teaching aid of Diagnostics. It has been applied in teaching for three years. In this demonstration we will introduce the following functions of HSS: 1) The main program has two modules. The first one is the heart auscultation training module. HSS can output a heart sound selected by the student. Another program module is used to test the student's learning condition. The computer can randomly simulate a certain heart sound and ask the student to name it. The computer gives the student's answer an assessment: "correct" or "incorrect." When the answer is incorrect, the computer will output that heart sound again for the student to listen to; this process is repeated until she correctly identifies it. 2) The program is convenient to use and easy to control. By pressing the S key, it is able to output a slow heart rate until the student can clearly identify the rhythm. The heart rate, like the actual rate of a patient, can then be restored by hitting any key. By pressing the SPACE BAR, the heart sound output can be stopped to allow the teacher to explain something to the student. The teacher can resume playing the heart sound again by hitting any key; she can also change the content of the training by hitting RETURN key. In the future, we plan to simulate more heart sounds and incorporate relevant graphs.

  10. Sound for digital video

    CERN Document Server

    Holman, Tomlinson

    2013-01-01

    Achieve professional quality sound on a limited budget! Harness all new, Hollywood style audio techniques to bring your independent film and video productions to the next level.In Sound for Digital Video, Second Edition industry experts Tomlinson Holman and Arthur Baum give you the tools and knowledge to apply recent advances in audio capture, video recording, editing workflow, and mixing to your own film or video with stunning results. This fresh edition is chockfull of techniques, tricks, and workflow secrets that you can apply to your own projects from preproduction

  11. Noise detection during heart sound recording using periodicity signatures

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kumar, D; Carvalho, P; Paiva, R P; Henriques, J; Antunes, M

    2011-01-01

    Heart sound is a valuable biosignal for diagnosis of a large set of cardiac diseases. Ambient and physiological noise interference is one of the most usual and highly probable incidents during heart sound acquisition. It tends to change the morphological characteristics of heart sound that may carry important information for heart disease diagnosis. In this paper, we propose a new method applicable in real time to detect ambient and internal body noises manifested in heart sound during acquisition. The algorithm is developed on the basis of the periodic nature of heart sounds and physiologically inspired criteria. A small segment of uncontaminated heart sound exhibiting periodicity in time as well as in the time-frequency domain is first detected and applied as a reference signal in discriminating noise from the sound. The proposed technique has been tested with a database of heart sounds collected from 71 subjects with several types of heart disease inducing several noises during recording. The achieved average sensitivity and specificity are 95.88% and 97.56%, respectively

  12. Sound-symbolism boosts novel word learning

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Lockwood, G.F.; Dingemanse, M.; Hagoort, P.

    2016-01-01

    The existence of sound-symbolism (or a non-arbitrary link between form and meaning) is well-attested. However, sound-symbolism has mostly been investigated with nonwords in forced choice tasks, neither of which are representative of natural language. This study uses ideophones, which are naturally

  13. Heart sounds: are you listening? Part 1.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Reimer-Kent, Jocelyn

    2013-01-01

    All nurses should have an understanding of heart sounds and be proficient in cardiac auscultation. Unfortunately, this skill is not part of many nursing school curricula, nor is it necessarily a required skillfor employment. Yet, being able to listen and accurately describe heart sounds has tangible benefits to the patient, as it is an integral part of a complete cardiac assessment. In this two-part article, I will review the fundamentals of cardiac auscultation, how cardiac anatomy and physiology relate to heart sounds, and describe the various heart sounds. Whether you are a beginner or a seasoned nurse, it is never too early or too late to add this important diagnostic skill to your assessment tool kit.

  14. A note on measurement of sound pressure with intensity probes

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Juhl, Peter; Jacobsen, Finn

    2004-01-01

    be improved under a variety of realistic sound field conditions by applying a different weighting of the two pressure signals from the probe. The improved intensity probe can measure the sound pressure more accurately at high frequencies than an ordinary sound intensity probe or an ordinary sound level meter......The effect of scattering and diffraction on measurement of sound pressure with "two-microphone" sound intensity probes is examined using an axisymmetric boundary element model of the probe. Whereas it has been shown a few years ago that the sound intensity estimated with a two-microphone probe...... is reliable up to 10 kHz when using 0.5 in. microphones in the usual face-to-face arrangement separated by a 12 mm spacer, the sound pressure measured with the same instrument will typically be underestimated at high frequencies. It is shown in this paper that the estimate of the sound pressure can...

  15. New perspectives on mechanisms of sound generation in songbirds

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Goller, Franz; Larsen, Ole Næsbye

    2002-01-01

    -tone mechanism similar to human phonation with the labia forming a pneumatic valve. The classical avian model proposed that vibrations of the thin medial tympaniform membranes are the primary sound generating mechanism. As a direct test of these two hypotheses we ablated the medial tympaniform membranes in two......The physical mechanisms of sound generation in the vocal organ, the syrinx, of songbirds have been investigated mostly with indirect methods. Recent direct endoscopic observation identified vibrations of the labia as the principal sound source. This model suggests sound generation in a pulse...... atmosphere) as well as direct (labial vibration during tonal sound) measurements of syringeal vibrations support a vibration-based soundgenerating mechanism even for tonal sounds....

  16. Pectoral sound generation in the blue catfish Ictalurus furcatus.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mohajer, Yasha; Ghahramani, Zachary; Fine, Michael L

    2015-03-01

    Catfishes produce pectoral stridulatory sounds by "jerk" movements that rub ridges on the dorsal process against the cleithrum. We recorded sound synchronized with high-speed video to investigate the hypothesis that blue catfish Ictalurus furcatus produce sounds by a slip-stick mechanism, previously described only in invertebrates. Blue catfish produce a variably paced series of sound pulses during abduction sweeps (pulsers) although some individuals (sliders) form longer duration sound units (slides) interspersed with pulses. Typical pulser sounds are evoked by short 1-2 ms movements with a rotation of 2°-3°. Jerks excite sounds that increase in amplitude after motion stops, suggesting constructive interference, which decays before the next jerk. Longer contact of the ridges produces a more steady-state sound in slides. Pulse pattern during stridulation is determined by pauses without movement: the spine moves during about 14 % of the abduction sweep in pulsers (~45 % in sliders) although movement appears continuous to the human eye. Spine rotation parameters do not predict pulse amplitude, but amplitude correlates with pause duration suggesting that force between the dorsal process and cleithrum increases with longer pauses. Sound production, stimulated by a series of rapid movements that set the pectoral girdle into resonance, is caused by a slip-stick mechanism.

  17. Ultrahromatizm as a Sound Meditation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zaytseva Marina

    2016-08-01

    Full Text Available The article scientifically substantiates the insights on the theory and the practice of using microchromatic in modern musical art, defines compositional and expressive possibilities of microtonal system in the works of composers of XXI century. It justifies the author's interpretation of the concept of “ultrahromatizm”, as a principle of musical thinking, which is connected with the sound space conception as the space-time continuum. The paper identifies the correlation of the notions “microchromatism” and “ultrahromatizm”. If microchromosome is understood, first and for most, as the technique of dividing the sound into microparticles, ultrahromatizm is interpreted as the principle of musical and artistic consciousness, as the musical focus of consciousness on the formation of the specific model of sound meditation and understanding of the world.

  18. Problems in nonlinear acoustics: Pulsed finite amplitude sound beams, nonlinear acoustic wave propagation in a liquid layer, nonlinear effects in asymmetric cylindrical sound beams, effects of absorption on the interaction of sound beams, and parametric receiving arrays

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hamilton, Mark F.

    1990-12-01

    This report discusses five projects all of which involve basic theoretical research in nonlinear acoustics: (1) pulsed finite amplitude sound beams are studied with a recently developed time domain computer algorithm that solves the KZK nonlinear parabolic wave equation; (2) nonlinear acoustic wave propagation in a liquid layer is a study of harmonic generation and acoustic soliton information in a liquid between a rigid and a free surface; (3) nonlinear effects in asymmetric cylindrical sound beams is a study of source asymmetries and scattering of sound by sound at high intensity; (4) effects of absorption on the interaction of sound beams is a completed study of the role of absorption in second harmonic generation and scattering of sound by sound; and (5) parametric receiving arrays is a completed study of parametric reception in a reverberant environment.

  19. Methodology for designing aircraft having optimal sound signatures

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Sahai, A.K.; Simons, D.G.

    2017-01-01

    This paper presents a methodology with which aircraft designs can be modified such that they produce optimal sound signatures on the ground. With optimal sound it is implied in this case sounds that are perceived as less annoying by residents living near airport vicinities. A novel design and

  20. An Integrated Approach to Motion and Sound

    National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

    Hahn, James K; Geigel, Joe; Lee, Jong W; Gritz, Larry; Takala, Tapio; Mishra, Suneil

    1995-01-01

    Until recently, sound has been given little attention in computer graphics and related domains of computer animation and virtual environments, although sounds which are properly synchronized to motion...

  1. Sounds in context

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Weed, Ethan

    A sound is never just a sound. It is becoming increasingly clear that auditory processing is best thought of not as a one-way afferent stream, but rather as an ongoing interaction between interior processes and the environment. Even the earliest stages of auditory processing in the nervous system...... time-course of contextual influence on auditory processing in three different paradigms: a simple mismatch negativity paradigm with tones of differing pitch, a multi-feature mismatch negativity paradigm in which tones were embedded in a complex musical context, and a cross-modal paradigm, in which...... auditory processing of emotional speech was modulated by an accompanying visual context. I then discuss these results in terms of their implication for how we conceive of the auditory processing stream....

  2. Sound Synthesis of Objects Swinging through Air Using Physical Models

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rod Selfridge

    2017-11-01

    Full Text Available A real-time physically-derived sound synthesis model is presented that replicates the sounds generated as an object swings through the air. Equations obtained from fluid dynamics are used to determine the sounds generated while exposing practical parameters for a user or game engine to vary. Listening tests reveal that for the majority of objects modelled, participants rated the sounds from our model as plausible as actual recordings. The sword sound effect performed worse than others, and it is speculated that one cause may be linked to the difference between expectations of a sound and the actual sound for a given object.

  3. Sound modes in hot nuclear matter

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kolomietz, V. M.; Shlomo, S.

    2001-01-01

    The propagation of the isoscalar and isovector sound modes in a hot nuclear matter is considered. The approach is based on the collisional kinetic theory and takes into account the temperature and memory effects. It is shown that the sound velocity and the attenuation coefficient are significantly influenced by the Fermi surface distortion (FSD). The corresponding influence is much stronger for the isoscalar mode than for the isovector one. The memory effects cause a nonmonotonous behavior of the attenuation coefficient as a function of the relaxation time leading to a zero-to-first sound transition with increasing temperature. The mixing of both the isoscalar and the isovector sound modes in an asymmetric nuclear matter is evaluated. The condition for the bulk instability and the instability growth rate in the presence of the memory effects is studied. It is shown that both the FSD and the relaxation processes lead to a shift of the maximum of the instability growth rate to the longer-wavelength region

  4. Perceived spatial positioning of self-footstep sounds in three surround sound speaker setups for immersive virtual reality

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Sikström, Erik; Nilsson, Niels Christian; Nordahl, Rolf

    2013-01-01

    Are there differences in how well loudspeaker setups are able to provide a believable illusion of footstep sounds originating from the user of an immersive virtual reality? To investigate this performance in spatial positioning via loudspeakers, a comparison of the three surround sound loudspeaker...

  5. Urban sound energy reduction by means of sound barriers

    Science.gov (United States)

    Iordache, Vlad; Ionita, Mihai Vlad

    2018-02-01

    In urban environment, various heating ventilation and air conditioning appliances designed to maintain indoor comfort become urban acoustic pollution vectors due to the sound energy produced by these equipment. The acoustic barriers are the recommended method for the sound energy reduction in urban environment. The current sizing method of these acoustic barriers is too difficult and it is not practical for any 3D location of the noisy equipment and reception point. In this study we will develop based on the same method a new simplified tool for acoustic barriers sizing, maintaining the same precision characteristic to the classical method. Abacuses for acoustic barriers sizing are built that can be used for different 3D locations of the source and the reception points, for several frequencies and several acoustic barrier heights. The study case presented in the article represents a confirmation for the rapidity and ease of use of these abacuses in the design of the acoustic barriers.

  6. Urban sound energy reduction by means of sound barriers

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Iordache Vlad

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available In urban environment, various heating ventilation and air conditioning appliances designed to maintain indoor comfort become urban acoustic pollution vectors due to the sound energy produced by these equipment. The acoustic barriers are the recommended method for the sound energy reduction in urban environment. The current sizing method of these acoustic barriers is too difficult and it is not practical for any 3D location of the noisy equipment and reception point. In this study we will develop based on the same method a new simplified tool for acoustic barriers sizing, maintaining the same precision characteristic to the classical method. Abacuses for acoustic barriers sizing are built that can be used for different 3D locations of the source and the reception points, for several frequencies and several acoustic barrier heights. The study case presented in the article represents a confirmation for the rapidity and ease of use of these abacuses in the design of the acoustic barriers.

  7. Objective function analysis for electric soundings (VES), transient electromagnetic soundings (TEM) and joint inversion VES/TEM

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bortolozo, Cassiano Antonio; Bokhonok, Oleg; Porsani, Jorge Luís; Monteiro dos Santos, Fernando Acácio; Diogo, Liliana Alcazar; Slob, Evert

    2017-11-01

    Ambiguities in geophysical inversion results are always present. How these ambiguities appear in most cases open to interpretation. It is interesting to investigate ambiguities with regard to the parameters of the models under study. Residual Function Dispersion Map (RFDM) can be used to differentiate between global ambiguities and local minima in the objective function. We apply RFDM to Vertical Electrical Sounding (VES) and TEM Sounding inversion results. Through topographic analysis of the objective function we evaluate the advantages and limitations of electrical sounding data compared with TEM sounding data, and the benefits of joint inversion in comparison with the individual methods. The RFDM analysis proved to be a very interesting tool for understanding the joint inversion method of VES/TEM. Also the advantage of the applicability of the RFDM analyses in real data is explored in this paper to demonstrate not only how the objective function of real data behaves but the applicability of the RFDM approach in real cases. With the analysis of the results, it is possible to understand how the joint inversion can reduce the ambiguity of the methods.

  8. Seismic and Biological Sources of Ambient Ocean Sound

    Science.gov (United States)

    Freeman, Simon Eric

    Sound is the most efficient radiation in the ocean. Sounds of seismic and biological origin contain information regarding the underlying processes that created them. A single hydrophone records summary time-frequency information from the volume within acoustic range. Beamforming using a hydrophone array additionally produces azimuthal estimates of sound sources. A two-dimensional array and acoustic focusing produce an unambiguous two-dimensional `image' of sources. This dissertation describes the application of these techniques in three cases. The first utilizes hydrophone arrays to investigate T-phases (water-borne seismic waves) in the Philippine Sea. Ninety T-phases were recorded over a 12-day period, implying a greater number of seismic events occur than are detected by terrestrial seismic monitoring in the region. Observation of an azimuthally migrating T-phase suggests that reverberation of such sounds from bathymetric features can occur over megameter scales. In the second case, single hydrophone recordings from coral reefs in the Line Islands archipelago reveal that local ambient reef sound is spectrally similar to sounds produced by small, hard-shelled benthic invertebrates in captivity. Time-lapse photography of the reef reveals an increase in benthic invertebrate activity at sundown, consistent with an increase in sound level. The dominant acoustic phenomenon on these reefs may thus originate from the interaction between a large number of small invertebrates and the substrate. Such sounds could be used to take census of hard-shelled benthic invertebrates that are otherwise extremely difficult to survey. A two-dimensional `map' of sound production over a coral reef in the Hawaiian Islands was obtained using two-dimensional hydrophone array in the third case. Heterogeneously distributed bio-acoustic sources were generally co-located with rocky reef areas. Acoustically dominant snapping shrimp were largely restricted to one location within the area surveyed

  9. Propagation of Sound in a Bose-Einstein Condensate

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Andrews, M.R.; Kurn, D.M.; Miesner, H.; Durfee, D.S.; Townsend, C.G.; Inouye, S.; Ketterle, W.

    1997-01-01

    Sound propagation has been studied in a magnetically trapped dilute Bose-Einstein condensate. Localized excitations were induced by suddenly modifying the trapping potential using the optical dipole force of a focused laser beam. The resulting propagation of sound was observed using a novel technique, rapid sequencing of nondestructive phase-contrast images. The speed of sound was determined as a function of density and found to be consistent with Bogoliubov theory. This method may generally be used to observe high-lying modes and perhaps second sound. copyright 1997 The American Physical Society

  10. Airborne sound insulation of new composite wall structures

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ivanova Yonka

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available Protection against noise is one of the essential requirements of the European Construction Product directive. In buildings, airborne sound insulation is used to define the acoustical quality between rooms. In order to develop wall structures with optimal sound insulation, an understanding of the physical origins of sound transmission is necessary. To develop a kind of knowledge that is applicable to the improvement of real walls and room barriers is the motive behind this study. The purpose of the work is to study the sound insulation of new composite wall structure.

  11. 33 CFR 117.309 - Nassau Sound.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... 33 Navigation and Navigable Waters 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Nassau Sound. 117.309 Section 117.309 Navigation and Navigable Waters COAST GUARD, DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY BRIDGES DRAWBRIDGE OPERATION REGULATIONS Specific Requirements Florida § 117.309 Nassau Sound. The draw of the Fernandina Port...

  12. Knowledge about Sounds – Context-Specific Meaning Differently Activates Cortical Hemispheres, Auditory Cortical Fields and Layers in House Mice

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Diana B. Geissler

    2016-03-01

    Full Text Available Activation of the auditory cortex (AC by a given sound pattern is plastic, depending, in largely unknown ways, on the physiological state and the behavioral context of the receiving animal and on the receiver's experience with the sounds. Such plasticity can be inferred when house mouse mothers respond maternally to pup ultrasounds right after parturition and naïve females have to learn to respond. Here we use c-FOS immunocytochemistry to quantify highly activated neurons in the AC fields and layers of seven groups of mothers and naïve females who have different knowledge about and are differently motivated to respond to acoustic models of pup ultrasounds of different behavioral significance. Profiles of FOS-positive cells in the AC primary fields (AI, AAF, the ultrasonic field (UF, the secondary field (AII, and the dorsoposterior field (DP suggest that activation reflects in AI, AAF, and UF the integration of sound properties with animal state-dependent factors, in the higher-order field AII the news value of a given sound in the behavioral context, and in the higher-order field DP the level of maternal motivation and, by left-hemisphere activation advantage, the recognition of the meaning of sounds in the given context. Anesthesia reduced activation in all fields, especially in cortical layers 2/3. Thus, plasticity in the AC is field-specific preparing different output of AC fields in the process of perception, recognition and responding to communication sounds. Further, the activation profiles of the auditory cortical fields suggest the differentiation between brains hormonally primed to know (mothers and brains which acquired knowledge via implicit learning (naïve females. In this way, auditory cortical activation discriminates between instinctive (mothers and learned (naïve females cognition.

  13. Airborne sound transmission loss characteristics of wood-frame construction

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rudder, F. F., Jr.

    1985-03-01

    This report summarizes the available data on the airborne sound transmission loss properties of wood-frame construction and evaluates the methods for predicting the airborne sound transmission loss. The first part of the report comprises a summary of sound transmission loss data for wood-frame interior walls and floor-ceiling construction. Data bases describing the sound transmission loss characteristics of other building components, such as windows and doors, are discussed. The second part of the report presents the prediction of the sound transmission loss of wood-frame construction. Appropriate calculation methods are described both for single-panel and for double-panel construction with sound absorption material in the cavity. With available methods, single-panel construction and double-panel construction with the panels connected by studs may be adequately characterized. Technical appendices are included that summarize laboratory measurements, compare measurement with theory, describe details of the prediction methods, and present sound transmission loss data for common building materials.

  14. Statistical Analysis for Subjective and Objective Evaluations of Dental Drill Sounds.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tomomi Yamada

    Full Text Available The sound produced by a dental air turbine handpiece (dental drill can markedly influence the sound environment in a dental clinic. Indeed, many patients report that the sound of a dental drill elicits an unpleasant feeling. Although several manufacturers have attempted to reduce the sound pressure levels produced by dental drills during idling based on ISO 14457, the sound emitted by such drills under active drilling conditions may negatively influence the dental clinic sound environment. The physical metrics related to the unpleasant impressions associated with dental drill sounds have not been determined. In the present study, psychological measurements of dental drill sounds were conducted with the aim of facilitating improvement of the sound environment at dental clinics. Specifically, we examined the impressions elicited by the sounds of 12 types of dental drills in idling and drilling conditions using a semantic differential. The analysis revealed that the impressions of dental drill sounds varied considerably between idling and drilling conditions and among the examined drills. This finding suggests that measuring the sound of a dental drill in idling conditions alone may be insufficient for evaluating the effects of the sound. We related the results of the psychological evaluations to those of measurements of the physical metrics of equivalent continuous A-weighted sound pressure levels (LAeq and sharpness. Factor analysis indicated that impressions of the dental drill sounds consisted of two factors: "metallic and unpleasant" and "powerful". LAeq had a strong relationship with "powerful impression", calculated sharpness was positively related to "metallic impression", and "unpleasant impression" was predicted by the combination of both LAeq and calculated sharpness. The present analyses indicate that, in addition to a reduction in sound pressure level, refining the frequency components of dental drill sounds is important for creating a

  15. Language Experience Affects Grouping of Musical Instrument Sounds

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bhatara, Anjali; Boll-Avetisyan, Natalie; Agus, Trevor; Höhle, Barbara; Nazzi, Thierry

    2016-01-01

    Language experience clearly affects the perception of speech, but little is known about whether these differences in perception extend to non-speech sounds. In this study, we investigated rhythmic perception of non-linguistic sounds in speakers of French and German using a grouping task, in which complexity (variability in sounds, presence of…

  16. A unified approach for the spatial enhancement of sound

    Science.gov (United States)

    Choi, Joung-Woo; Jang, Ji-Ho; Kim, Yang-Hann

    2005-09-01

    This paper aims to control the sound field spatially, so that the desired or target acoustic variable is enhanced within a zone where a listener is located. This is somewhat analogous to having manipulators that can draw sounds in any place. This also means that one can somehow see the controlled shape of sound in frequency or in real time. The former assures its practical applicability, for example, listening zone control for music. The latter provides a mean of analyzing sound field. With all these regards, a unified approach is proposed that can enhance selected acoustic variables using multiple sources. Three kinds of acoustic variables that have to do with magnitude and direction of sound field are formulated and enhanced. The first one, which has to do with the spatial control of acoustic potential energy, enables one to make a zone of loud sound over an area. Otherwise, one can control directional characteristic of sound field by controlling directional energy density, or one can enhance the magnitude and direction of sound at the same time by controlling acoustic intensity. Throughout various examples, it is shown that these acoustic variables can be controlled successfully by the proposed approach.

  17. Communicating with the public: NRPB experience and future plans

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Croft, J.R.

    2001-01-01

    Since its inception NRPB has taken the view that it is important to communicate across a broad spectrum, including the public. It has developed a range of easily understood publications, targeted at the public, that have been successful and influenced output from other organisations. However the needs and perceptions of the public are not static. Increasingly these need to be addressed within the wider context of other public health issues. Changes in communication technology, particularly the use of the Internet, creates opportunities, and expectations, that need to be addressed. Against this background the Board's Strategic Review has identified a range of actions that when implemented will be a quantum step forward in NRPB's Communication activities, both in quantity and style. However NRPB is also aware that to be effective the quality and soundness of its underpinning scientific work must be maintained. Above all else it must retain its reputation for independence and impartiality. (authors)

  18. Concepts for evaluation of sound insulation of dwellings

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Rasmussen, Birgit; Rindel, Jens Holger

    2005-01-01

    Legal sound insulation requirements have existed more than 50 years in some countries, and single-number quantities for evaluation of sound insulation have existed nearly as long time. However, the concepts have changed considerably over time from simple arithmetic averaging of frequency bands......¬ments and classification schemes revealed significant differences of concepts. The paper summarizes the history of concepts, the disadvantages of the present chaos and the benefits of consensus concerning concepts for airborne and impact sound insulation between dwellings and airborne sound insulation of facades...... with a trend towards light-weight constructions are contradictory and challenging. This calls for exchange of data and experience, implying a need for harmonized concepts, including use of spectrum adaptation terms. The paper will provide input for future discussions in EAA TC-RBA WG4: "Sound insulation...

  19. Sound Performance – Experience and Event

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Holmboe, Rasmus

    . The present paper draws on examples from my ongoing PhD-project, which is connected to Museum of Contemporary Art in Roskilde, Denmark, where I curate a sub-programme at ACTS 2014 – a festival for performative arts. The aim is to investigate, how sound performance can be presented and represented - in real....... In itself – and as an artistic material – sound is always already process. It involves the listener in a situation that is both filled with elusive presence and one that evokes rooted memory. At the same time sound is bodily, social and historical. It propagates between individuals and objects, it creates...

  20. Focused sound: oncological therapy for transformed tissue

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mares, C. E.; Cordova F, T.; Hernandez, A.

    2017-10-01

    The restlessness of the human being involves observing and being critical through their senses, in particular a disturbance in the environment cause vibrations that can be registered by the sense of hearing through the eardrum, if what it produces is in the frequency of the audible sound. The distinction of the sound of the other forms of energy transfer is that the waves of the same quickly involve the progressive return of displacements or vibrations of the molecules in the medium that propagates. In this work a sweep of frequencies was made from infra sound to ultrasound in plants of different types with different thicknesses and two people in order to find the resonance of each of them and compare it with the resonances registered in text, which allowed evaluate the secondary effect of sound focused on the tissue of the leaves and in particular of people. We consider that there is potential for this focused sound modality if it is at the resonance frequency of the transformed tissue as a means of oncological therapy without affecting the neighboring cells. (Author)

  1. Review of sound card photogates

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gingl, Zoltan; Mingesz, Robert; Mellar, Janos; Makra, Peter

    2011-01-01

    Photogates are probably the most commonly used electronic instruments to aid experiments in the field of mechanics. Although they are offered by many manufacturers, they can be too expensive to be widely used in all classrooms, in multiple experiments or even at home experimentation. Today all computers have a sound card - an interface for analogue signals. It is possible to make very simple yet highly accurate photogates for cents, while much more sophisticated solutions are also available at a still very low cost. In our paper we show several experimentally tested ways of implementing sound card photogates in detail, and we also provide full-featured, free, open-source photogate software as a much more efficient experimentation tool than the usually used sound recording programs. Further information is provided on a dedicated web page, www.noise.physx.u-szeged.hu/edudev.

  2. Verifying generalized soundness for workflow nets

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Hee, van K.M.; Oanea, O.I.; Sidorova, N.; Voorhoeve, M.; Virbitskaite, I.; Voronkov, A.

    2007-01-01

    We improve the decision procedure from [10] for the problem of generalized soundness of workflow nets. A workflow net is generalized sound iff every marking reachable from an initial marking with k tokens on the initial place terminates properly, i.e. it can reach a marking with k tokens on the

  3. Handbook for sound engineers

    CERN Document Server

    Ballou, Glen

    2013-01-01

    Handbook for Sound Engineers is the most comprehensive reference available for audio engineers. All audio topics are explored: if you work on anything related to audio you should not be without this book! The 4th edition of this trusted reference has been updated to reflect changes in the industry since the publication of the 3rd edition in 2002 -- including new technologies like software-based recording systems such as Pro Tools and Sound Forge; digital recording using MP3, wave files and others; mobile audio devices such as iPods and MP3 players. Over 40 topic

  4. Experiencing biodiversity as a bridge over the science-society communication gap.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Meinard, Yves; Quétier, Fabien

    2014-06-01

    Drawing on the idea that biodiversity is simply the diversity of living things, and that everyone knows what diversity and living things mean, most conservation professionals eschew the need to explain the many complex ways in which biodiversity is understood in science. On many biodiversity-related issues, this lack of clarity leads to a communication gap between science and the general public, including decision makers who must design and implement biodiversity policies. Closing this communication gap is pivotal to the ability of science to inform sound environmental decision making. To address this communication gap, we propose a surrogate of biodiversity for communication purposes that captures the scientific definition of biodiversity yet can be understood by nonscientists; that is, biodiversity as a learning experience. The prerequisites of this or any other biodiversity communication surrogate are that it should have transdisciplinary relevance; not be measurable; be accessible to a wide audience; be usable to translate biodiversity issues; and understandably encompass biodiversity concepts. Biodiversity as a learning experience satisfies these prerequisites and is philosophically robust. More importantly, it can effectively contribute to closing the communication gap between biodiversity science and society at large. © 2013 Society for Conservation Biology.

  5. Offshore dredger sounds: Source levels, sound maps, and risk assessment

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Jong, C.A.F. de; Ainslie, M.A.; Heinis, F.; Janmaat, J.

    2016-01-01

    The underwater sound produced during construction of the Port of Rotterdam harbor extension (Maasvlakte 2) was measured, with emphasis on the contribution of the trailing suction hopper dredgers during their various activities: dredging, transport, and discharge of sediment. Measured source levels

  6. Cultura, communicacion e interaccion: hacia el contexto total del lenguaje y el hombre hispanicos (Culture, Communication and Interaction: Toward the Total Context of Hispanic Man and his Language)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Poyatos, Fernando

    1975-01-01

    This fourth and final of a series of papers on communication in the Spanish-speaking world deals with body language and other nonverbal communication. The use of nonverbal sounds, the visual and olfactory senses, and behavior patterns are noted. (Text is in Spanish.) (CK)

  7. The sound symbolism bootstrapping hypothesis for language acquisition and language evolution.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Imai, Mutsumi; Kita, Sotaro

    2014-09-19

    Sound symbolism is a non-arbitrary relationship between speech sounds and meaning. We review evidence that, contrary to the traditional view in linguistics, sound symbolism is an important design feature of language, which affects online processing of language, and most importantly, language acquisition. We propose the sound symbolism bootstrapping hypothesis, claiming that (i) pre-verbal infants are sensitive to sound symbolism, due to a biologically endowed ability to map and integrate multi-modal input, (ii) sound symbolism helps infants gain referential insight for speech sounds, (iii) sound symbolism helps infants and toddlers associate speech sounds with their referents to establish a lexical representation and (iv) sound symbolism helps toddlers learn words by allowing them to focus on referents embedded in a complex scene, alleviating Quine's problem. We further explore the possibility that sound symbolism is deeply related to language evolution, drawing the parallel between historical development of language across generations and ontogenetic development within individuals. Finally, we suggest that sound symbolism bootstrapping is a part of a more general phenomenon of bootstrapping by means of iconic representations, drawing on similarities and close behavioural links between sound symbolism and speech-accompanying iconic gesture. © 2014 The Author(s) Published by the Royal Society. All rights reserved.

  8. 33 CFR 110.233 - Prince William Sound, Alaska.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... 33 Navigation and Navigable Waters 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Prince William Sound, Alaska. 110... ANCHORAGES ANCHORAGE REGULATIONS Anchorage Grounds § 110.233 Prince William Sound, Alaska. (a) The anchorage grounds. In Prince William Sound, Alaska, beginning at a point at latitude 60°40′00″ N., longitude 146°40...

  9. Phonaesthemes and sound symbolism in Swedish brand names

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Åsa Abelin

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available This study examines the prevalence of sound symbolism in Swedish brand names. A general principle of brand name design is that effective names should be distinctive, recognizable, easy to pronounce and meaningful. Much money is invested in designing powerful brand names, where the emotional impact of the names on consumers is also relevant and it is important to avoid negative connotations. Customers prefer brand names, which say something about the product, as this reduces product uncertainty (Klink, 2001. Therefore, consumers might prefer sound symbolic names. It has been shown that people associate the sounds of the nonsense words maluma and takete with round and angular shapes, respectively. By extension, more complex shapes and textures might activate words containing certain sounds. This study focuses on semantic dimensions expected to be relevant to product names, such as mobility, consistency, texture and shape. These dimensions are related to the senses of sight, hearing and touch and are also interesting from a cognitive linguistic perspective. Cross-modal assessment and priming experiments with pictures and written words were performed and the results analysed in relation to brand name databases and to sound symbolic sound combinations in Swedish (Abelin, 1999. The results show that brand names virtually never contain pejorative, i.e. depreciatory, consonant clusters, and that certain sounds and sound combinations are overrepresented in certain content categories. Assessment tests show correlations between pictured objects and phoneme combinations in newly created words (non-words. The priming experiment shows that object images prime newly created words as expected, based on the presence of compatible consonant clusters.

  10. Applying cybernetic technology to diagnose human pulmonary sounds.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chen, Mei-Yung; Chou, Cheng-Han

    2014-06-01

    Chest auscultation is a crucial and efficient method for diagnosing lung disease; however, it is a subjective process that relies on physician experience and the ability to differentiate between various sound patterns. Because the physiological signals composed of heart sounds and pulmonary sounds (PSs) are greater than 120 Hz and the human ear is not sensitive to low frequencies, successfully making diagnostic classifications is difficult. To solve this problem, we constructed various PS recognition systems for classifying six PS classes: vesicular breath sounds, bronchial breath sounds, tracheal breath sounds, crackles, wheezes, and stridor sounds. First, we used a piezoelectric microphone and data acquisition card to acquire PS signals and perform signal preprocessing. A wavelet transform was used for feature extraction, and the PS signals were decomposed into frequency subbands. Using a statistical method, we extracted 17 features that were used as the input vectors of a neural network. We proposed a 2-stage classifier combined with a back-propagation (BP) neural network and learning vector quantization (LVQ) neural network, which improves classification accuracy by using a haploid neural network. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve verifies the high performance level of the neural network. To expand traditional auscultation methods, we constructed various PS diagnostic systems that can correctly classify the six common PSs. The proposed device overcomes the lack of human sensitivity to low-frequency sounds and various PS waves, characteristic values, and a spectral analysis charts are provided to elucidate the design of the human-machine interface.

  11. Automatic adventitious respiratory sound analysis: A systematic review.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Renard Xaviero Adhi Pramono

    Full Text Available Automatic detection or classification of adventitious sounds is useful to assist physicians in diagnosing or monitoring diseases such as asthma, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD, and pneumonia. While computerised respiratory sound analysis, specifically for the detection or classification of adventitious sounds, has recently been the focus of an increasing number of studies, a standardised approach and comparison has not been well established.To provide a review of existing algorithms for the detection or classification of adventitious respiratory sounds. This systematic review provides a complete summary of methods used in the literature to give a baseline for future works.A systematic review of English articles published between 1938 and 2016, searched using the Scopus (1938-2016 and IEEExplore (1984-2016 databases. Additional articles were further obtained by references listed in the articles found. Search terms included adventitious sound detection, adventitious sound classification, abnormal respiratory sound detection, abnormal respiratory sound classification, wheeze detection, wheeze classification, crackle detection, crackle classification, rhonchi detection, rhonchi classification, stridor detection, stridor classification, pleural rub detection, pleural rub classification, squawk detection, and squawk classification.Only articles were included that focused on adventitious sound detection or classification, based on respiratory sounds, with performance reported and sufficient information provided to be approximately repeated.Investigators extracted data about the adventitious sound type analysed, approach and level of analysis, instrumentation or data source, location of sensor, amount of data obtained, data management, features, methods, and performance achieved.A total of 77 reports from the literature were included in this review. 55 (71.43% of the studies focused on wheeze, 40 (51.95% on crackle, 9 (11.69% on stridor, 9

  12. Automatic adventitious respiratory sound analysis: A systematic review.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pramono, Renard Xaviero Adhi; Bowyer, Stuart; Rodriguez-Villegas, Esther

    2017-01-01

    Automatic detection or classification of adventitious sounds is useful to assist physicians in diagnosing or monitoring diseases such as asthma, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), and pneumonia. While computerised respiratory sound analysis, specifically for the detection or classification of adventitious sounds, has recently been the focus of an increasing number of studies, a standardised approach and comparison has not been well established. To provide a review of existing algorithms for the detection or classification of adventitious respiratory sounds. This systematic review provides a complete summary of methods used in the literature to give a baseline for future works. A systematic review of English articles published between 1938 and 2016, searched using the Scopus (1938-2016) and IEEExplore (1984-2016) databases. Additional articles were further obtained by references listed in the articles found. Search terms included adventitious sound detection, adventitious sound classification, abnormal respiratory sound detection, abnormal respiratory sound classification, wheeze detection, wheeze classification, crackle detection, crackle classification, rhonchi detection, rhonchi classification, stridor detection, stridor classification, pleural rub detection, pleural rub classification, squawk detection, and squawk classification. Only articles were included that focused on adventitious sound detection or classification, based on respiratory sounds, with performance reported and sufficient information provided to be approximately repeated. Investigators extracted data about the adventitious sound type analysed, approach and level of analysis, instrumentation or data source, location of sensor, amount of data obtained, data management, features, methods, and performance achieved. A total of 77 reports from the literature were included in this review. 55 (71.43%) of the studies focused on wheeze, 40 (51.95%) on crackle, 9 (11.69%) on stridor, 9 (11

  13. The influence of meaning on the perception of speech sounds.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kazanina, Nina; Phillips, Colin; Idsardi, William

    2006-07-25

    As part of knowledge of language, an adult speaker possesses information on which sounds are used in the language and on the distribution of these sounds in a multidimensional acoustic space. However, a speaker must know not only the sound categories of his language but also the functional significance of these categories, in particular, which sound contrasts are relevant for storing words in memory and which sound contrasts are not. Using magnetoencephalographic brain recordings with speakers of Russian and Korean, we demonstrate that a speaker's perceptual space, as reflected in early auditory brain responses, is shaped not only by bottom-up analysis of the distribution of sounds in his language but also by more abstract analysis of the functional significance of those sounds.

  14. Dredged Material Management in Long Island Sound

    Science.gov (United States)

    Information on Western and Central Long Island Sound Dredged Material Disposal Sites including the Dredged Material Management Plan and Regional Dredging Team. Information regarding the Eastern Long Island Sound Selected Site including public meetings.

  15. Dissipation in vibrating superleak second sound transducers

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Giordano, N.

    1985-01-01

    We have performed an experimental study of the generation and detection of second sound in 4 He using vibrating superleak second sound transducers. At temperatures well below T/sub lambda/ and for low driving amplitudes, the magnitude of the generated second sound wave is proportional to the drive amplitude. However, near T/sub lambda/ and for high drive amplitudes this is no longer the case--instead, the second sound amplitude saturates. In this regime we also find that overtones of the drive frequency are generated. Our results suggest that this behavior is due to critical velocity effects in the pores of the superleak in the generator transducer. This type of measurement may prove to be a useful way in which to study critical velocity effects in confined geometries

  16. Analysis of acoustic sound signal for ONB measurement

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Park, S. J.; Kim, H. I.; Han, K. Y.; Chai, H. T.; Park, C.

    2003-01-01

    The onset of nucleate boiling (ONB) was measured in a test fuel bundle composed of several fuel element simulators (FES) by analysing the aquatic sound signals. In order measure ONBs, a hydrophone, a pre-amplifier, and a data acquisition system to acquire/process the aquatic signal was prepared. The acoustic signal generated in the coolant is converted to the current signal through the microphone. When the signal is analyzed in the frequency domain, each sound signal can be identified according to its origin of sound source. As the power is increased to a certain degree, a nucleate boiling is started. The frequent formation and collapse of the void bubbles produce sound signal. By measuring this sound signal one can pinpoint the ONB. Since the signal characteristics is identical for different mass flow rates, this method can be applicable for ascertaining ONB

  17. A Two-Level Sound Classification Platform for Environmental Monitoring

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Stelios A. Mitilineos

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available STORM is an ongoing European research project that aims at developing an integrated platform for monitoring, protecting, and managing cultural heritage sites through technical and organizational innovation. Part of the scheduled preventive actions for the protection of cultural heritage is the development of wireless acoustic sensor networks (WASNs that will be used for assessing the impact of human-generated activities as well as for monitoring potentially hazardous environmental phenomena. Collected sound samples will be forwarded to a central server where they will be automatically classified in a hierarchical manner; anthropogenic and environmental activity will be monitored, and stakeholders will be alarmed in the case of potential malevolent behavior or natural phenomena like excess rainfall, fire, gale, high tides, and waves. Herein, we present an integrated platform that includes sound sample denoising using wavelets, feature extraction from sound samples, Gaussian mixture modeling of these features, and a powerful two-layer neural network for automatic classification. We contribute to previous work by extending the proposed classification platform to perform low-level classification too, i.e., classify sounds to further subclasses that include airplane, car, and pistol sounds for the anthropogenic sound class; bird, dog, and snake sounds for the biophysical sound class; and fire, waterfall, and gale for the geophysical sound class. Classification results exhibit outstanding classification accuracy in both high-level and low-level classification thus demonstrating the feasibility of the proposed approach.

  18. Pervasive Sound Sensing: A Weakly Supervised Training Approach.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kelly, Daniel; Caulfield, Brian

    2016-01-01

    Modern smartphones present an ideal device for pervasive sensing of human behavior. Microphones have the potential to reveal key information about a person's behavior. However, they have been utilized to a significantly lesser extent than other smartphone sensors in the context of human behavior sensing. We postulate that, in order for microphones to be useful in behavior sensing applications, the analysis techniques must be flexible and allow easy modification of the types of sounds to be sensed. A simplification of the training data collection process could allow a more flexible sound classification framework. We hypothesize that detailed training, a prerequisite for the majority of sound sensing techniques, is not necessary and that a significantly less detailed and time consuming data collection process can be carried out, allowing even a nonexpert to conduct the collection, labeling, and training process. To test this hypothesis, we implement a diverse density-based multiple instance learning framework, to identify a target sound, and a bag trimming algorithm, which, using the target sound, automatically segments weakly labeled sound clips to construct an accurate training set. Experiments reveal that our hypothesis is a valid one and results show that classifiers, trained using the automatically segmented training sets, were able to accurately classify unseen sound samples with accuracies comparable to supervised classifiers, achieving an average F -measure of 0.969 and 0.87 for two weakly supervised datasets.

  19. Investigating the amplitude of interactive footstep sounds and soundscape reproduction

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Turchet, Luca; Serafin, Stefania

    2013-01-01

    In this paper, we study the perception of amplitude of soundscapes and interactively generated footstep sounds provided both through headphones and a surround sound system. In particular, we investigate whether there exists a value for the amplitude of soundscapes and footstep sounds which...... of soundscapes does not significantly affect the selected amplitude of footstep sounds. Similarly, the perception of the soundscapes amplitude is not significantly affected by the selected amplitude of footstep sounds....

  20. Second Sound

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    Home; Journals; Resonance – Journal of Science Education; Volume 4; Issue 6. Second Sound - The Role of Elastic Waves. R Srinivasan. General Article Volume 4 Issue 6 June 1999 pp 15-19. Fulltext. Click here to view fulltext PDF. Permanent link: https://www.ias.ac.in/article/fulltext/reso/004/06/0015-0019 ...

  1. Recent paleoseismicity record in Prince William Sound, Alaska, USA

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kuehl, Steven A.; Miller, Eric J.; Marshall, Nicole R.; Dellapenna, Timothy M.

    2017-12-01

    Sedimentological and geochemical investigation of sediment cores collected in the deep (>400 m) central basin of Prince William Sound, along with geochemical fingerprinting of sediment source areas, are used to identify earthquake-generated sediment gravity flows. Prince William Sound receives sediment from two distinct sources: from offshore (primarily Copper River) through Hinchinbrook Inlet, and from sources within the Sound (primarily Columbia Glacier). These sources are found to have diagnostic elemental ratios indicative of provenance; Copper River Basin sediments were significantly higher in Sr/Pb and Cu/Pb, whereas Prince William Sound sediments were significantly higher in K/Ca and Rb/Sr. Within the past century, sediment gravity flows deposited within the deep central channel of Prince William Sound have robust geochemical (provenance) signatures that can be correlated with known moderate to large earthquakes in the region. Given the thick Holocene sequence in the Sound ( 200 m) and correspondingly high sedimentation rates (>1 cm year-1), this relationship suggests that sediments within the central basin of Prince William Sound may contain an extraordinary high-resolution record of paleoseismicity in the region.

  2. Analysis of sound pressure levels emitted by children's toys.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sleifer, Pricila; Gonçalves, Maiara Santos; Tomasi, Marinês; Gomes, Erissandra

    2013-06-01

    To verify the levels of sound pressure emitted by non-certified children's toys. Cross-sectional study of sound toys available at popular retail stores of the so-called informal sector. Electronic, mechanical, and musical toys were analyzed. The measurement of each product was carried out by an acoustic engineer in an acoustically isolated booth, by a decibel meter. To obtain the sound parameters of intensity and frequency, the toys were set to produce sounds at a distance of 10 and 50cm from the researcher's ear. The intensity of sound pressure [dB(A)] and the frequency in hertz (Hz) were measured. 48 toys were evaluated. The mean sound pressure 10cm from the ear was 102±10 dB(A), and at 50cm, 94±8 dB(A), with ptoys was above 85dB(A). The frequency ranged from 413 to 6,635Hz, with 56.3% of toys emitting frequency higher than 2,000Hz. The majority of toys assessed in this research emitted a high level of sound pressure.

  3. Sound level measurements using smartphone "apps": Useful or inaccurate?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Daniel R Nast

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available Many recreational activities are accompanied by loud concurrent sounds and decisions regarding the hearing hazards associated with these activities depend on accurate sound measurements. Sound level meters (SLMs are designed for this purpose, but these are technical instruments that are not typically available in recreational settings and require training to use properly. Mobile technology has made such sound level measurements more feasible for even inexperienced users. Here, we assessed the accuracy of sound level measurements made using five mobile phone applications or "apps" on an Apple iPhone 4S, one of the most widely used mobile phones. Accuracy was assessed by comparing application-based measurements to measurements made using a calibrated SLM. Whereas most apps erred by reporting higher sound levels, one application measured levels within 5 dB of a calibrated SLM across all frequencies tested.

  4. Intelligent Systems Approaches to Product Sound Quality Analysis

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pietila, Glenn M.

    As a product market becomes more competitive, consumers become more discriminating in the way in which they differentiate between engineered products. The consumer often makes a purchasing decision based on the sound emitted from the product during operation by using the sound to judge quality or annoyance. Therefore, in recent years, many sound quality analysis tools have been developed to evaluate the consumer preference as it relates to a product sound and to quantify this preference based on objective measurements. This understanding can be used to direct a product design process in order to help differentiate the product from competitive products or to establish an impression on consumers regarding a product's quality or robustness. The sound quality process is typically a statistical tool that is used to model subjective preference, or merit score, based on objective measurements, or metrics. In this way, new product developments can be evaluated in an objective manner without the laborious process of gathering a sample population of consumers for subjective studies each time. The most common model used today is the Multiple Linear Regression (MLR), although recently non-linear Artificial Neural Network (ANN) approaches are gaining popularity. This dissertation will review publicly available published literature and present additional intelligent systems approaches that can be used to improve on the current sound quality process. The focus of this work is to address shortcomings in the current paired comparison approach to sound quality analysis. This research will propose a framework for an adaptive jury analysis approach as an alternative to the current Bradley-Terry model. The adaptive jury framework uses statistical hypothesis testing to focus on sound pairings that are most interesting and is expected to address some of the restrictions required by the Bradley-Terry model. It will also provide a more amicable framework for an intelligent systems approach

  5. Evaluation of a novel individualised communication-skills training intervention to improve doctors' confidence and skills in end-of-life communication.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Clayton, Josephine M; Butow, Phyllis N; Waters, Amy; Laidsaar-Powell, Rebekah C; O'Brien, Angela; Boyle, Frances; Back, Anthony L; Arnold, Robert M; Tulsky, James A; Tattersall, Martin H N

    2013-03-01

    We developed a novel individualised training program regarding end-of-life communication, designed to be time effective for busy junior-doctors working in hospital settings. We aimed to pilot this brief individualised training program with junior-doctors to explore its acceptability, feasibility and effect on the doctors' confidence, communication skills, attitudes towards psychosocial care and burnout. The content of the training intervention was informed by a systematic literature review and evidence-based clinical practice guidelines regarding end-of-life communication. The intervention was based on sound educational principles and involved three one-hour teaching sessions over a three-week period, including two individual sessions with an expert facilitator and simulated patient/caregiver. In addition, participants received written and audiovisual take-home learning materials. PARTICIPANTS were videotaped consulting with a simulated patient/caregiver pre/post training to assess the impact of the course on their communication behaviours. PARTICIPANTS completed de-identified questionnaires pre/post training, including self-assessed confidence, attitudes to psychosocial care, and the Maslach Burnout inventory. PARTICIPANTS included 22 junior-doctors from a large teaching hospital in Sydney, Australia. All participants reported that the training was useful, had been helpful for their communication with patients and that they would recommend the training to others. Significant improvements were found in participants' communication skills (in seven out of 21 specific and all three global communication behaviours assessed, range P=0.02 to confidence in communicating about relevant topics (P<0.001), attitudes towards psychosocial care (P=0.03) and sense of personal accomplishment (P=0.043). There were no overall differences in participants' burnout levels. This intervention shows promise and warrants further formal evaluation.

  6. Tables of the velocity of sound in sea water

    CERN Document Server

    Bark, L S; Meister, N A

    1964-01-01

    Tables of the Velocity of Sound in Sea Water contains tables of the velocity of sound in sea water computed on a ""Strela-3"" high-speed electronic computer and a T-5 tabulator at the Computational Center of the Academy of Sciences. Knowledge of the precise velocity of sound in sea water is of great importance when investigating sound propagations in the ocean and when solving practical problems involving the use of hydro-acoustic devices. This book demonstrates the computations made for the velocity of sound in sea water, which can be found in two ways: by direct measurement with the aid of s

  7. Research on crisis communication of nuclear and radiation safety

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cao Yali; Zhang Ying

    2013-01-01

    Insufficient public cognition of nuclear and radiation safety and absence of effective method to handle crisis lead to common crisis events of nuclear and radiation safety, which brings about unfavorable impact on the sound development of nuclear energy exploring and application of nuclear technology. This paper, based on crisis communication theory, analyzed the effect of current situation on nuclear and radiation safety crisis, discussed how to handle crisis, and tried to explore the effective strategies for nuclear and radiation safety crisis handling. (authors)

  8. Sound Exposure During Outdoor Music Festivals

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tronstad, Tron V.; Gelderblom, Femke B.

    2016-01-01

    Most countries have guidelines to regulate sound exposure at concerts and music festivals. These guidelines limit the allowed sound pressure levels and the concert/festival's duration. In Norway, where there is such a guideline, it is up to the local authorities to impose the regulations. The need to prevent hearing-loss among festival participants is self-explanatory, but knowledge of the actual dose received by visitors is extremely scarce. This study looks at two Norwegian music festivals where only one was regulated by the Norwegian guideline for concert and music festivals. At each festival the sound exposure of four participants was monitored with noise dose meters. This study compared the exposures experienced at the two festivals, and tested them against the Norwegian guideline and the World Health Organization's recommendations. Sound levels during the concerts were higher at the festival not regulated by any guideline, and levels there exceeded both the national and the Worlds Health Organization's recommendations. The results also show that front-of-house measurements reliably predict participant exposure. PMID:27569410

  9. Sound exposure during outdoor music festivals

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tron V Tronstad

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available Most countries have guidelines to regulate sound exposure at concerts and music festivals. These guidelines limit the allowed sound pressure levels and the concert/festival’s duration. In Norway, where there is such a guideline, it is up to the local authorities to impose the regulations. The need to prevent hearing-loss among festival participants is self-explanatory, but knowledge of the actual dose received by visitors is extremely scarce. This study looks at two Norwegian music festivals where only one was regulated by the Norwegian guideline for concert and music festivals. At each festival the sound exposure of four participants was monitored with noise dose meters. This study compared the exposures experienced at the two festivals, and tested them against the Norwegian guideline and the World Health Organization’s recommendations. Sound levels during the concerts were higher at the festival not regulated by any guideline, and levels there exceeded both the national and the Worlds Health Organization’s recommendations. The results also show that front-of-house measurements reliably predict participant exposure.

  10. Second sound scattering in superfluid helium

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rosgen, T.

    1985-01-01

    Focusing cavities are used to study the scattering of second sound in liquid helium II. The special geometries reduce wall interference effects and allow measurements in very small test volumes. In a first experiment, a double elliptical cavity is used to focus a second sound wave onto a small wire target. A thin film bolometer measures the side scattered wave component. The agreement with a theoretical estimate is reasonable, although some problems arise from the small measurement volume and associated alignment requirements. A second cavity is based on confocal parabolas, thus enabling the use of large planar sensors. A cylindrical heater produces again a focused second sound wave. Three sensors monitor the transmitted wave component as well as the side scatter in two different directions. The side looking sensors have very high sensitivities due to their large size and resistance. Specially developed cryogenic amplifers are used to match them to the signal cables. In one case, a second auxiliary heater is used to set up a strong counterflow in the focal region. The second sound wave then scatters from the induced fluid disturbances

  11. Non-musical sound branding – a conceptualization and research overview

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Graakjær, Nicolai J.; Bonde, Anders

    2018-01-01

    Purpose The purpose of this paper is to advance the understanding of sound branding by developing a new conceptual framework and providing an overview of the research literature on non-musical sound. Design/methodology/approach Using four mutually exclusive and collectively exhaustive types of non......-musical sound, the paper assesses and synthesizes 99 significant studies across various scholarly fields. Findings The overview reveals two areas in which more research may be warranted, that is, non-musical atmospherics and non-musical sonic logos. Moreover, future sound-branding research should examine...... in further detail the potentials of developed versus annexed object sounds, and mediated versus unmediated brand sounds. Research limitations/implications The paper provides important insights into critical issues that suggest directions for further research on non-musical sound branding. Practical...

  12. Communicating the Uncertainty in Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Agriculture

    Science.gov (United States)

    Milne, Alice; Glendining, Margaret; Perryman, Sarah; Whitmore, Andy

    2014-05-01

    Effective communication of the uncertainty in estimates of greenhouse gas emissions is important. It allows an individual, whether they are a scientist, policy maker or member of the public, to draw proper conclusions and so make sound decisions. Communicating uncertainty is challenging, however. There is no single best method for communicating uncertainty and the success of a particular method will depend on the subject matter and the target audience. Our interest is in communicating the uncertainty in estimates of greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture to those who might directly use the results from a national inventory. We tested six methods of communication. These were: calibrated phrases such as 'very uncertain' and 'likely'; probabilities, whereby the probability of being within a defined range of values is given; confidence intervals for the expected value; histograms; box plots and shaded arrays. We asked 64 individuals who use results from the greenhouse gas inventory for their opinions on how successfully these methods communicated uncertainty. We analysed the results to see which methods were preferred and to see whether this preference was affected either by the professional group to which individuals belonged or the level of mathematics to which they were educated. The professional groups represented in our study were categorised as (i) those who influence policy (ii) research scientists (iii) those representing the environment and (iv) those representing the agricultural industry. The responses to our questionnaire were varied but some clear messages came through. Our analysis showed that although calibrated phrases were thought to be a good method of communication they did not convey enough information and were open to misinterpretation. Shaded arrays were similarly criticized for being open to misinterpretation, but proved to give the best indication of uncertainty when individuals were asked to interpret results from the greenhouse gas

  13. Protected transitional solution to transformational satellite communications

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brand, Jerry C.

    2005-06-01

    As the Warfighter progresses into the next generation battlefield, transformational communications become evident as an enabling technology. Satellite communications become even more vital as the battles range over greater non-contiguous spaces. While current satellite communications provide suitable beyond line-of-sight communications and the Transformational Communications Architecture (TCA) sets the stage for sound information exchange, a realizable transition must occur to ensure successful succession to this higher level. This paper addresses the need for a planned escalation to the next generation satellite communications architecture and offers near-term alternatives. Commercial satellite systems continue to enable the Warfighter to reach back to needed information resources, providing a large majority of available bandwidth. Four areas of concentration for transition include encrypted Telemetry, Tracking and Control (or Command) (TT&C), encrypted and covered data, satellite attack detection and protection, and operational mobility. Solution methodologies include directly embedding COMSEC devices in the satellites and terminals, and supplementing existing terminals with suitable equipment and software. Future satellites planned for near-term launches can be adapted to include commercial grade and higher-level secure equipment. Alternately, the expected use of programmable modems (Software Defined Radios (SDR)) enables incorporation of powerful cipher methods approaching military standards as well as waveforms suitable for on-the-move operation. Minimal equipment and software additions on the satellites can provide reasonable attack detection and protection methods in concert with the planned satellite usage. Network management suite modifications enable cohesive incorporation of these protection schemes. Such transitional ideas offer a smooth and planned transition as the TCA takes life.

  14. Elements of effective communication--rediscoveries from homeopathy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hartog, Christiane S

    2009-11-01

    Patients are increasingly attracted to homeopathy despite the unproven effectiveness of homeopathic remedies. Clinical benefit of homeopathy may be due to communication. This review aims to identify and assess effective communication patterns in homeopathy. Narrative review and synthesis of published communication patterns, patient narratives and the author's professional experience as a homeopathic practitioner. In the biomedical model, where the focus is on disease, communication is physician-centered with early redirection of patients' concerns, and associated with reduced compliance, increasing risk of malpractice claims and low professional fulfillment. The biopsychosocial and the developing integrative medicine models are based on biomedicine but aim to include the whole person. Patient-centeredness is a behavior that elicits, respects and incorporates patients' wishes, allows active patient participation and is related to improved outcomes. The homeopathic model is based on holism and comprehension of the totality of the patient and uses patient-centered communication with a high degree of physician co-operation, empathy, hopefulness, enablement and narrative competence, all of which can improve outcomes. Both biopsychosocial and homeopathic models rely on patient-centered communication. Regardless of conceptual differences, they overlap in their common respect for the totality and individuality of the patient. The study of the homeopathic model shows that respect for the whole person is a basic requirement to entrench patient-centeredness more firmly in medicine. Medical education should include values such as individual coping strategies, the benefits of a sound and healthy life-style and the necessity of hope and enablement. Health care should be redesigned to honor physicians who practice these values.

  15. 76 FR 1130 - Prince William Sound Resource Advisory Committee

    Science.gov (United States)

    2011-01-07

    ... DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE Forest Service Prince William Sound Resource Advisory Committee AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA. ACTION: Notice of meeting. SUMMARY: The Prince William Sound Resource Advisory... conducted: The Prince William Sound Resource Advisory Committee (RAC) will be discussing and voting on...

  16. 76 FR 44893 - Prince William Sound Resource Advisory Committee

    Science.gov (United States)

    2011-07-27

    ... DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE Forest Service Prince William Sound Resource Advisory Committee AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA. ACTION: Notice of meeting. SUMMARY: The Prince William Sound Resource Advisory... District, 145 Forest Station Road, Girdwood, AK; Prince Willam Sound Community College, 303 Lowe Street...

  17. 77 FR 45331 - Prince William Sound Resource Advisory Committee

    Science.gov (United States)

    2012-07-31

    ... DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE Forest Service Prince William Sound Resource Advisory Committee AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA. ACTION: Notice of meeting. SUMMARY: The Prince William Sound Resource Advisory... Prince William Sound Resource Advisory Committee (RAC) will be discussing and voting on proposals that...

  18. Dissonance: scientific paradigms underpinning the study of sound in geography

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Daniel Paiva

    2018-05-01

    Full Text Available The objective of this article is to approach the different conceptions of sound – and its relations to the underlying scientific paradigms – that emerged throughout the history of geography. There has been a growing interest among geographers in understanding the spatialities of sound, and geographies of sound have become an emerging subfield of the discipline. For this reason, it is the right time to address how the discipline has approached sound throughout its history. Several theoretical perspectives influenced geography in the twentieth century, changing its methodologies and how its subjects were conceived. Sound, like other subjects, has been conceived very differently by geographers of competing paradigms. Concepts such as noise, soundscape, or sound as affect, among others, have dominated geographies of sound at specific periods. Due to the marginality of the subject in the discipline, assessments of these conceptual shifts are rare. I tackle this issue in this article as I provide a first attempt of writing a history of sound in geography. The article reviews debates regarding the name of the subfield, and the conceptions of sound in the successive and competing scientific paradigms in geography.

  19. Introducing the Oxford Vocal (OxVoc Sounds Database: A validated set of non-acted affective sounds from human infants, adults and domestic animals

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Christine eParsons

    2014-06-01

    Full Text Available Sound moves us. Nowhere is this more apparent than in our responses to genuine emotional vocalisations, be they heartfelt distress cries or raucous laughter. Here, we present perceptual ratings and a description of a freely available, large database of natural affective vocal sounds from human infants, adults and domestic animals, the Oxford Vocal (OxVoc Sounds database. This database consists of 173 non-verbal sounds expressing a range of happy, sad and neutral emotional states. Ratings are presented for the sounds on a range of dimensions from a number of independent participant samples. Perceptions related to valence, including distress, vocaliser mood, and listener mood are presented in Study 1. Perceptions of the arousal of the sound, listener motivation to respond and valence (positive, negative are presented in Study 2. Perceptions of the emotional content of the stimuli in both Study 1 and Study 2 were consistent with the predefined categories (e.g., laugh stimuli perceived as positive. While the adult vocalisations received more extreme valence ratings, rated motivation to respond to the sounds was highest for the infant sounds. The major advantages of this database are the inclusion of vocalisations from naturalistic situations, which represent genuine expressions of emotion, and the inclusion of vocalisations from animals and infants, providing comparison stimuli for use in cross-species and developmental studies. The associated website provides a detailed description of the physical properties of the each sound stimulus along with cross-category descriptions.

  20. Usefulness of bowel sound auscultation: a prospective evaluation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Felder, Seth; Margel, David; Murrell, Zuri; Fleshner, Phillip

    2014-01-01

    Although the auscultation of bowel sounds is considered an essential component of an adequate physical examination, its clinical value remains largely unstudied and subjective. The aim of this study was to determine whether an accurate diagnosis of normal controls, mechanical small bowel obstruction (SBO), or postoperative ileus (POI) is possible based on bowel sound characteristics. Prospectively collected recordings of bowel sounds from patients with normal gastrointestinal motility, SBO diagnosed by computed tomography and confirmed at surgery, and POI diagnosed by clinical symptoms and a computed tomography without a transition point. Study clinicians were instructed to categorize the patient recording as normal, obstructed, ileus, or not sure. Using an electronic stethoscope, bowel sounds of healthy volunteers (n = 177), patients with SBO (n = 19), and patients with POI (n = 15) were recorded. A total of 10 recordings randomly selected from each category were replayed through speakers, with 15 of the recordings duplicated to surgical and internal medicine clinicians (n = 41) blinded to the clinical scenario. The sensitivity, positive predictive value, and intra-rater variability were determined based on the clinician's ability to properly categorize the bowel sound recording when blinded to additional clinical information. Secondary outcomes were the clinician's perceived level of expertise in interpreting bowel sounds. The overall sensitivity for normal, SBO, and POI recordings was 32%, 22%, and 22%, respectively. The positive predictive value of normal, SBO, and POI recordings was 23%, 28%, and 44%, respectively. Intra-rater reliability of duplicated recordings was 59%, 52%, and 53% for normal, SBO, and POI, respectively. No statistically significant differences were found between the surgical and internal medicine clinicians for sensitivity, positive predictive value, or intra-rater variability. Overall, 44% of clinicians reported that they rarely listened