LIN228H1 Chapter Notes - Chapter 1: Articulatory Phonetics, Vocal Folds, Auditory Phonetics
Document Summary
Phonetics is concerned with the sounds we make in speech, how we produce the, how these sounds are transferred from the speaker to the hearer of sound waves, and how we hear and perceive them. In speech, air passes through a complex passageway through the lungs, windpipe, vocal folds, throat, mouth and nose. The lungs start speech production by pushing air upwards. The vocal folds (located in the larynx) may vibrate, causing the air that flows between them to vibrate as well. The vibrating airstream is then modified according to the shape of the vocal tract (throat, mouth, and nasal cavity) By moving our tongue and lips, we can produce a large number of modifications on the vibrating air stream, thus many sounds. The lungs consist of small air sacs, or alveoli, where oxygen from the fresh air is exchanged for carbon dioxide in the blood. When the lungs are expanded, air is drawn in.
