There is a lot to consider when buying a new pair of headphones. A professional musician and acoustics researcher explains how the science of sound and quirks of human hearing make for a great listening experience.
When we read comics, we ‘hear’ sound on the page. Creators are experts at this cross-sensory form of storytelling - indeed one database lists over 2500 comic book sounds.
A leap and a plunge into the snow could earn this arctic fox its supper.
Jupiterimages/PHOTOS.com via Getty Images
This Ig Nobel-winning research is shedding light on how ultrasound waves could be used to non-invasively control nerve impulses (and therefore ‘thoughts’) in our brains.
Sound and its subtle, malleable possibilities for interpretation can be a valuable tool for those trying to capture pasts that have been erased, marginalised or forgotten.
A team of scholars have been documenting the sound of worship for six years. Since the lockdown, they have heard a different form of religious expression.
A muezzin calling Muslims to prayer stands on the minaret of the Gazi Husrev-beg mosque in Sarajevo.
(Shutterstock)
Listening more deeply to what makes sounds meaningful for people within their respective contexts matters in an era of rising expressions of racism in the pandemic.
The music we choose to listen to not only allows us to retreat into a place of peace and privacy, but also helps frame our daily routines and interactions with others.
Sound waves are displayed as an oscillating glow light.
natrot/Shutterstock.com
Some treatments for neurodegenerative diseases involve inserting wires into the brain and zapping certain brain cells with electricity. But what if you could do the same thing using sound waves?
One of the Klasies River spinning discs and the replica built for the recording studio.
Kumbani et al (2019), Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports
Working with bone artefacts from archaeological sites in South Africa’s southern Cape region, we’ve been able to show that some implements might have been used for sound production in the past.
Don’t call it a comeback.
Aero Icarus/Wikimedia Commons
Recent advances in technology and new trends in commercial air travel could make supersonic flight economically viable. But regulations will have to change first.
The crests (bright) and troughs (dark) of waves spread out after they were produced. The picture applies to both light and sound waves.
Titima Ongkantong
Most people are familiar with lasers. But what about a laser made with sound rather than light? A couple of physicists have now created one that they plan to use for measuring imperceivable forces.
It’s going to get loud.
Alexey Laputin/Shutterstock.com
As gas from your stomach comes up your food pipe, it makes the surface of the upper part of your oesophagus rattle and vibrate. It is a bit like windows that rattle during a windy storm.
From bird songs to wind patterns, sound is a key but often underappreciated element of natural places. Learning how to listen to nature can alert us to changes in the environment before we see them.