Week 1

Question 1

What is the difference between sound signals and sound stimuli

Answer 1

A sound signal describes the mechanical disturbance in the atmosphere caused by vibrations in the materia.
A Sound stimuli describes the translation of these mechanical disturbance into perceptible audio information to the human brain.

Hence, if a tree falls and noone is there to hear it, you may have a sound signal, but you won’t have a sound stimuli.

Question 2

What is a Tonal Sound

Answer 2

A tonal sound is a sound that repeats systematically and continuously over time.

Question 3

What is Noise

Answer 3

Noise can be described as a sound that repeats in a non-systematical manner.

Question 4

What is the extreme of noise

Answer 4

The extreme of noise is know as white noise, which is a sound that repeats in a non-systematical manner through all of the frequencies humans are able to hear.

Question 5

Which of the following mechanical changes leads most directly to sound perception?

Answer 5

Local pressure changes displace hair cells

Question 6

What is a spectrum?

Answer 6

A representation of how energy is distributed

Question 7

What term defines the most powerful mode of vibration in a spectrum?

Answer 7

Fundamental frequency

Question 8

What fundamental problem do we face in determining the meaning of sound signals?

Answer 8

Audition does not depend only on the measurement of the disturbance of reality.