Chapter 6 - The Auditory System: Perceptual Aspects of Hearing Flashcards
hearing
refers specifically to the act of perceiving sound and is therefore distinguished from the physical operations that underlie auditory function
loudness
magnitude of the perceived impression created by the sound of a particular physical intensity
minimum audible field (MAF)
open-field technique for obtaining detection thresholds by providing sound sstimuli through a loudspeaker in front of a subject
calibration
establish a precise relationship between two different variables (e.g., the volume on a sound-producing device and the actual air pressure produced at the eardrum)
minimum audible pressure (MAP)
closed-ear method for obtaining detection thresholds whereby sound is provided through a set of earphones
psychophysical function
relationship between sensory thresholds and a particular dimention, feature, or parameter of the stimulus
binaural summation
intergration of sound signals from the two ears by the auditory nerve signals
temporal summation
intergration of sound energy over time by the auditory system
terminal threshold
sound pressure level that produces severe discomfort or pain thereby representing the upper intensity limit of auditory function
dynamic range
intensity range between the terminal and detection thresholds for a particular frequency. the dynamic range for all audible frequencies represents the auditory response region of suprathreshold hearing
bandpass noise
noise signal that contains a limited range of sound frequencies
bandwidth
range of frequencies contained int he noise signal (i.e., the difference between the highest and lowest frequency values)
tonal masking
masking effect on a tone of a particular frequency by another single tone
critical band
range of frequencies that can mask a tone of a particular frequency. The critical band provides an estimate of the functional bandwidth of an internal filter
critical band
range of frequencies that can mask a tone of a particular frequency. The critical band provides an estimate of the functional bandwidth of an internal filter
critical band
range of frequencies that can mask a tone of a particular frequency. The critical band provides an estimate of the functional bandwidth of an internal filter
fundamental
lowest frequency component in a complex tone. Also known as the first harmonic
complex tone
sound made up of multiple frequency components that are equally spaced from one another (i.e.,, the fundamental and higher harmonics)
diotic stimulation
binaural stimulation whereby both ears receive the same quality sound. The situation arises when the sound source is directly in front of or behind the head along the mid-sagittal axis, resulting in equal path lengths to both ears
dichotic stimulation
binaural stimulation whereby the sound quality reaching each ear is different. The situation arises when the sound source is off the mid-sagittal axis, resulting in a greater path length to the father ear
interaural intensity difference (IID)
difference in sound intensity arriving at the two ears for dichotic sounds
interaural time difference (ITD)
difference in arrival time at the two ears for dichotic sounds
superior olive
auditory nucleus located in the lower brain stem that codes for binaural sound differences
masking
process by which the detection threshold of a sound is elevated in the presence of other sounds
