Women in sound: addressing the music industry’s gender gap
There is a gender gap in the music and sound industry. Inspiring young girls about careers in these fields has never been more important.
Academic rigor, journalistic flair
Articles on Sound
Displaying 1 - 20 of 24 articles
Riverfire, sonic awe and the pornography of war
Fly-bys by RAAF Super Hornets and army helicopters are a noisy finale to the Brisbane Festival. While many find this sound awe-inspiring, what of those with lived experience of war?
I asked artists to create films using real sounds from space – this is what they came up with
With the wealth of data being created nowadays, new forms of artistic collaboration with scientists are emerging.
Soundscapes in the past: Adding a new dimension to our archaeological picture of ancient cultures
We tend to think of archaeological sites as dead silent – empty ruins left by past cultures. But this isn't how the people who lived in and used these sites would have experienced them.
Human noise pollution is disrupting parks and wild places
A recent study finds that noise from human activities is intruding into many parks and other protected areas. Creating quiet zones and noise corridors can help reduce impacts from noise pollution.
For the record: the vinyl revival and a plug-in too far
Vinyl is one thing but digital plug-ins which claim to emulate the analogue sound are a rose-tinted step too far.
Autistic people can hear more than most – which can be a strength and a challenge
A noisy environment can be hell for a person with autism. On the plus side, they are more likely to have perfect pitch than a non-autistic person.
Contested spaces: you can’t stop the music – the sounds that divide shoppers
Unlike vision or touch, sound is much more difficult to control or avoid; music in particular spills across thresholds and intrudes into situations where it is unwelcome.
Why do elephants bellow but whales squeak like a mouse?
Size doesn't always matter when it comes to the pitch of your voice, especially if you're an aquatic mammal.
The silencing of the seas: how our oceans are going quiet
The oceans are filled with sounds produced by animals. However, a recent study shows that ocean sounds are diminishing due to nutrient pollution and ocean acidification.
Just for you: how to create sounds that only you can hear in a venue
Your own choice of music in a restaurant, your preferred language in a cinema, and a personal tour in a museum. All are possible if you can control the sound in almost any place.
Turkey’s coup and the call to prayer: Sounds of violence meet Islamic devotionals
Unexpected calls to prayer from mosques in Turkey caught many off guard on the night of the attempted coup. An ethnomusicologist explains the political and social power of sound.
What does the solar system sound like?
Scientists are excited about sending a microphone to Mars for the very first time.
Highway to hearing hell: musicians and the danger of deafness
It's not only Brian Johnson who's at risk of deafness – are you around music a lot?
Science fact vs fiction in Star Wars and other sci-fi movies: relax, and enjoy the entertainment
Some people love to pick holes in science fiction movies, such as Star Wars, especially when they stray from science fact. But does it really matter?
We need a new relationship with urban noise
After travelling through the bush, returning to the cacophonies of the sonic city can be exhilarating. The body is immediately swamped with an energy that speaks of action, progress, and possibility.
Hear this: it’s no longer enough to just look at paintings
Sound art is nothing new. But do we really need it to appreciate the classics?
Look, our voices sound different now, in case you weren’t listening
The intensity and the consistent presence of sonic textures such as machine noise, distorted high-frequency sounds, midrange drones, sub-sonic hums and the like have significantly shaped the contexts of our hearing.
Magnetic fields can control heat and sound
Sound waves are made of particles called phonons. New research shows they're affected by magnetic fields, with researchers able to steer heat magnetically.
Shaping up our ‘soundscapes’ can improve our lives
We live in an increasingly noisy world. Since even low-level noise can affect quality of life, new tools to deal with noise are welcome. “Auralisation”, the audio equivalent of visualisation, is now helping…
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Adjunct Lecturer, The University of Queensland
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Michael J. I. Brown is a Friend of The Conversation.
Associate professor, Monash University
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Lecturer in Psychology and Cognitive Science, University of Sheffield
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Professor of Film and Television, Goldsmiths, University of London
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Professor, Marine Biology, University of Adelaide
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Professor of Planetary and Space Sciences, The Open University
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Lecturer in Jazz, Bath Spa University
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Assistant Professor of Social Science, University of Canberra
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Reader in Audio and Music Technology, University of York
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Associate Professor Evolution & Ecology, UNSW
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Professor of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Physics, and Materials Science & Engineering, The Ohio State University
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Senior Lecturer in Creativity and Innovation, James Cook University
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Senior Lecturer in Cognitive Science, UCL
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Professor of Music - Composer / Multimedia Artist, University of Newcastle
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PhD Candidate, University of Wollongong
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