Psychological acoustics

A primary objective of psychological acoustics is to define the psychological correlates to the physical parameters of sound waves. Sound waves in air may be characterized by three physical parameters frequency, intensity, and their spectrum. When a sound... 

Physiological and Psychological Acoustics. Because the ear is a nonlinear system, it produces beat tones that are the sum and difference of two frequencies. For example, if two sinusoidal frequencies of 100 and 150 Hz simultaneously arrive at the ear, the brain will, in addition to these two tones, create tones of 250 and 50 Hz (sum and difference, respectively). Thus, although a small speaker cannot reproduce the fundamental frequencies of bass tones, the difference between the harmonics of that pitch will re-create the missing fundamental in the listener s brain. 

A psychologically normal 55-year-old man had a large acoustic neuroma removed from his hrain. Following operation, he became so violently angry and aggressive that he was unahle to work, and, according to his wife, became impossible to live with. After six months of misery, he was begun on treatment with a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRl) to increase the levels of the neurotransmitter, serotonin, in his brain. After two weeks of treatment, he was able to return to his normal preoperative mental state, and go back to work. 

Stevens, S., Volkman, J., and Newman, E. A scale for the measurement of the psychological rnagnimde of pitch. Journal of the Acoustical Society of America 8 (1937),... 

Acoustics is the science dealing with the production, transmission, and effects of vibration in material media. If the medium is air and the vibration frequency is between 18and 18,000 hertz (Hz), the vibration is termed sound. Sound is used in a broader context to describe sounds in solids and underwater and structure-borne sounds. Because mechanical vibrations, whether natural or human induced, have accompanied humans through the long course of human evolution, acoustics is the most interdisciplinary science. For humans, hearing is a very important sense, and the ability to vocalize gready facilitates communication and social interaction. Sound can have profound psychological effects music may soothe or relax a troubled mind, and noise can induce anxiety and hypertension. 

To become a speech therapist in the United States, one needs to obtain a master s degree in the field. In many other countries, a bachelor s degree is accepted. Basic course work includes topics in child development, linguistics, psychology, physics and acoustics, physiolog y, anatomy, and neurology. Other qualifications vary by state. Many states require speech therapists to complete a minimum of four hundred hours of clinical experience, a thirty-six-week clinical fellowship, and the speech therapy Praxis exam to earn a clinical competence certificate (C.G.C.). 

Ecological Acoustic Research Group (EAR) Department of Psychology University of Portsmouth Portsmouth, United Kingdom... 

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