SAR SH 522 Chapter Notes - Chapter 13: Eustachian Tube, Middle Ear, Sound Energy

• School: Boston University
• Department: Speech, Language & Hearing Sciences
• Course: SAR SH 522
• Professor: Polyak

Document Summary

Sound needs to be generated before it can be heard. To be a source of sound, an object must have mass and elasticity. Mass is the amount of matter present in a given object. Elasticity is the object"s ability to return to its original shape after being deformed. The more elastic, the more likely it will be a good source of sound. Frequency refers to the number of cycles of vibration that occur in 1 second. The unit of measurement is hertz, abbreviated hz. Frequency must be derived by period. f=1/p the measure of the distance from one wave to the next is known as the amplitude. The maximum displacement in the positive or negative direction is called the peak amplitude. The duration of vibration means how long the sound lasts. The starting phase of vibration described the position of the sound source when the vibration begins. These four quantities (frequency, period, amplitude and starting phase) characterize simple sounds.