bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Soundscape design connecting people with the environment
Authors: Shono Taiko , Shimoda Hidemaro
Published: October 2018

We have been engaged in soundscape design that enables people to connect with the environment and, in time, with the world beyond our immediate surrounds through sounds. We create sounds employing the elements on site: waves, wind, rain, spring water, etc., and strive to bring people into creative contact with our earth’s environment and make people aware of something which may be present yet typically goes unnoticed. All of these works have been designed not as temporary performances but as permanent constructions responding to their environments. We have also dealt with “sound as media,” employing not only audio from the natural world but also the familiar sounds of daily life, communities, and events, creating opportunities for people to rediscover the world around them in a new light. In addition, We have offered programs designed to awaken listening sense, including workshops at museums and other cultural facilities and university classes, with themes such as “aural adventure.” In this paper, we show some examples of our activities and how we design the mechanisms of gathering or creating sounds.
Acoustic radiation force manipulation of tissue, cell, and interactions with neurons
Authors: Zheng Hairong , Cai Feiyan
Published: October 2018

It is well known that an object in a sound field that absorbs, scatters, or reflects sound energy is subjected to the acoustic radiation force, and thus can be manipulated without contact. This unidirectional force has profound application in biomedicine. For example, the acoustic radiation force can be used to generate localized displacements in tissue, and the magnitude of the tissue displacement is inversely proportional to the local stiffness of the tissue. Based on this principle, the acoustic radiation force interaction with the tissue can be used for elasticity Imaging. The acoustic radiation force can also be used to manipulate cell’s movement and simulate isolated neuron, which may have potential application in tissue engineering and ultrasound neuro-modulation. In this study, our recent research on the application of the acoustic radiation force for manipulation of tissue, cell and interactions with neurons, will be presented. New approaches or systems for generation acoustic radiation force with special application will also be shown.
Orbital motion of a particle levitated in a standing-vortex acoustical trap
Authors: Pazos-Ospina Jhon F. , Ealo Joao L. , Volke-Sepulveda Karen
Published: October 2018

Stable acoustical tweezers and particle manipulation using vortex beams have recently been accomplished in air [Nature Commun. 6: 8661 (2015)] and in water [Phys. Rev. Lett. 116: 024301 (2016)]. In both configurations, a particle is trapped along the propagation axis of a focused vortex, where the acoustic field exhibits a pressure node. More recently, a stable orbital motion of a particle trapped off-axis was achieved by alternating between two counter-rotating vortices [Phys. Rev. Lett. 120: 044301 (2018)]. However, this kind of orbital motion had not been possible so far with a steady helical field having a single angular momentum state. In this work, we present the first experimental evidence of the simultaneous 3D trapping and stable orbiting of millimeter-sized particles in air due to angular momentum transfer in a standing wave trap created by the interference of two vortices. In contrast with previous work, the two vortices have the same helicity with respect to the laboratory reference frame, and thus the angular momentum of this field is well-defined. A description of the particle kinematics as a function of different control parameters is presented, along with a comparison between experimental measurements of the field and theoretical simulations.
Kuki-Chin languages in Indiana: Investigating typologically rare sounds in a developing community of collaboration
Authors: Berkson Kelly , Lotven Samson A. , Wamsley James , Sung Zai , Thang Peng H. , Thawngza Thomas , de Jong Kenneth , Kuebler Sandra , Lulich Steven M.
Published: October 2018

More than 20,000 Burmese refugees live in Indiana at the time of this writing. Most are originally from Chin State in western Myanmar and speak under-documented Tibeto-Burman languages from the Kuki-Chin branch. For the most widely spoken of them—Hakha Chin, also known as Laiholh or Hakha Lai—syntactic and morphological work exists but basic acoustic work is minimal. Others are completely undocumented: Zophei is spoken by about 4,000 people in Indiana and has to the best of our knowledge been mentioned but not described. In this talk, we describe a burgeoning collaboration between speech scientists and speakers of Kuki-Chin languages in Central Indiana. Our long-term communal goal is to develop resources ranging from the linguistic (e.g., documentary, analytical) to the practical (e.g., speech technology for use in emergency rooms, literacy materials). Phonetic investigation is a necessary precursor to much of this work, in part because these languages contain typologically unusual sounds (voiceless laterals, rhotics, and nasals; a 5-way coronal stop contrast involving dental and alveolar obstruents; voiced and voiceless laterally-released obstruents). Herein, we present the results of several phonetic investigations which will support future development of both theoretical and practical technological resources.
Obstruent and rhotic contrasts in Adnyamathanha, a language of South Australia
Authors: Butcher Andrew , McEntee John
Published: October 2018

Adnyamathanha is one of the Thura-Yura languages, spoken in the northern Flinders Ranges of South Australia. It has a fairly complex consonant system with six places of articulation (including four coronals). Through a combination of traditional phonological analysis and acoustic phonetic measurement, we attempt to throw some light on one aspect of this complexity. We show that there is a contrast between two series of obstruents in intervocalic position, which sets Adnyamathanha apart from most other languages of the region—and of the Pama-Nyungan language family as a whole. The main phonetic correlates of the contrast are closure duration and presence versus absence of glottal pulsing during the closure. Voiceless obstruents are consistently realised as long stops, whereas their voiced counterparts, though always shorter, vary in duration and manner of articulation, depending on place of articulation. We analyse the voiced labial fricative as the voiced equivalent of the voiceless (bi)labial stop and we analyse the alveolar tap and the retroflex flap as voiced cognates of the voiceless alveolar and retroflex stops respectively. Thus, although we recognise the existence of four phonetically distinct rhotic sounds, we assign only the alveolar trill and the retroflex glide to the phonological category of rhotics.
Dagaare [a] is not neutral to ATR harmony
Authors: Ozburn Avery , Akinbo Samuel , Angsongna Alexander , Schellenberg Murray , Pulleyblank Douglas
Published: October 2018

Bodomo (1997) describes Dagaare (Gur; Ghana) as having a single low vowel, [a], which is neutral to ATR harmony. This paper presents acoustic data from a study of Dagaare  which is inconsistent with this description. A list of sentences was elicited from five native speakers of Dagaare. Each sentence contained  in one of four verbal particles situated in one of four contexts: ATR _ ATR, ATR _ RTR, RTR _ ATR, and RTR _ RTR. Formants of the low vowel were measured and compared across contexts. Results showed a substantial, significant difference in F1 values and a smaller but still significant difference in F2 values in contexts where  is followed by an ATR word compared to when it is followed by an RTR word. All speakers and all particles showed the same pattern. We conclude that, contrary to previous claims, the Dagaare low vowel is not neutral to harmony, but rather has acoustically distinct variants in RTR versus ATR contexts. Bodomo, A. (1997). The structure of Dagaare. California: CSLI publications. [Funded by SSHRC.]
The special nature of Australian phonologies: Why auditory constraints on the sound systems of human languages are not universal
Authors: Butcher Andrew
Published: October 2018

The phonological systems of human languages are constrained by what are often assumed to be universal properties of human auditory perception. However, the atypical phonologies found in many hearing-impaired speakers indicate that such constraints also operate at an individual level. The phonology of a child with chronic otitis media, for example, may lack a voicing distinction or sometimes have no fricatives. So, if a large group of speakers in a speech community operates with an atypical auditory system over many generations, then the phonology of the language(s) spoken by such a community might also over time be influenced by the particular properties of that common auditory system. Over half of the Australian Aboriginal population develop chronic otitis media with effusion in infancy and 50–70% of Aboriginal children have a significant hearing loss at both ends of the frequency range. Most Australian languages have phonologies which are atypical in world terms, having no voicing distinction and no fricatives or affricates, but an unusually large number of places of articulation. Acoustically, the sound systems of Australian languages appear to be a very good match for the hearing profiles of large numbers of their speakers. This paper reviews the evidence for a connection.
Pausing as a prosodic correlate of speech units in St’át’imcets (Lillooet Salish)
Authors: Caldecott Marion , Czaykowska-Higgins Ewa , Leonard Janet , Lyon John
Published: October 2018

The reliability of pausing as a correlate to prosodic, syntactic and discourse units has been debated in commonly-studied languages (outlined, for instance, in Krivokapic 2007). Preliminary research in Nxaʔamxčín (Interior Salish) (Caldecott & Czaykowska-Higgins 2012) has shown that pausing could be a more reliable acoustic correlate of these structures than pitch, in line with previous research indicating that Salish languages do not exhibit a strong reliance on pitch to mark information structure (Caldecott 2017; Caldecott & Czaykowska-Higgins 2012; Davis 2012; Koch 2008, 2011). The current study further tests this hypothesis by examining the occurrence and duration of pauses in a 9.5-minute spontaneous narrative by a fluent speaker of St’át’imcets (Interior Salish). Pause distribution with respect to syntactic and prosodic boundaries is analysed. Preliminary analysis suggests that St’át’imcets follows previous research on spontaneous narratives in some respects but not others. Very long pauses (<5.5 s) mark major thematic shifts (Oliveira 2000) and most pauses (70%) occur clause-finally (Henderson, Goldman-Eisler & Skarbek 1966). Most clause-medial pauses occurred between a determiner and noun, following Goldman-Eisler (1968), but contra Gee & Grosjean (1983). A t-test indicates that clause-final vs. clause medial pauses are not significantly different in duration (p>.05) (contra Goldman-Eisler 1972).
Acoustics of Tatar vowels: Articulation and vowel-to-vowel coarticulation
Authors: Conklin Jenna , Dmitrieva Olga
Published: October 2018

Volga Tatar is a Turkic language spoken by 5 million people in Central Russia for which instrumental acoustic descriptions are lacking. This study uses formant analysis of acoustic recordings from 27 native speakers of Volga Tatar to describe the vowels of Tatar and evaluate the accuracy of previous impressionistic phonetic descriptions. In addition to describing the acoustic vowel space of Tatar, the study uses carefully chosen target words to evaluate vowel-to-vowel coarticulation in height and backness among the Tatar vowels /i, æ, ɑ/. Examining vowel-to-vowel coarticulation in Tatar is of particular theoretical interest due to the presence of vowel harmony in the language. While the majority of native Tatar words are subject to backness, and possibly rounding, harmony, a large class of disharmonic lexical items, mostly from borrowings, provides insight into the coexistence of long-distance phonological vowel assimilation (vowel harmony) and long-distance phonetic vowel assimilation (coarticulation) in the same language. Previous research (Banerjee, Dutta, & S., 2017; Beddor & Yavuz, 1995) suggests that vowel harmony may suppress coarticulation proceeding in the same direction. However, the current results indicate that direction of coarticulation in Tatar is mediated primarily by other factors, such as target and trigger vowel identity.
Enriching the understanding of glottalic consonant production: Vertical larynx movement in Hausa ejectives and implosives
Authors: Oh Miran , Byrd Dani , Goldstein Louis , Narayanan Shrikanth S.
Published: October 2018

Ejectives and implosives are understood to have laryngeal activity distinct from their pulmonic counterparts. However, while correlations of vertical larynx movement (VLM) with tone and intraoral pressure are known, little articulatory data exists regarding VLM in glottalic consonants. This study examines the degree and timing of VLM in a Hausa speaker’s productions, using real-time MRI of the vocal tract. We use a novel centroid tracking technique developed to quantify VLM. Findings indicate that the onset of VLM is tightly coordinated with oral closure achievement for glottalic stops. For ejectives, larynx raising is faster than in plosives and is especially large for ejective fricatives, which require maintenance of sufficient air flow for turbulence. Additionally, contrary to previous descriptions, implosives and voiced plosives do not differ in degree of larynx lowering. Instead, they contrast in timing of the VLM with the oral closure; larynx lowering starts early, with initiation of the oral constriction gesture, for voiced plosives; whereas lowering begins later, at oral closure achievement, for implosives. Overall these patterns suggest that VLM may be coupled in an anti-phase mode with the oral constriction gesture in both glottalic stops and coupled in-phase with the oral gesture in pulmonic stops. [Work supported by NIH.]
Comparison of adaptive and compressed sensing beamformers
Authors: Hursky Paul
Published: October 2018

We will review the capabilities and requirements of the Minimum Variance Distortionless Response (MVDR) and sparsity-seeking beamformers, from a system design perspective. We will focus on the problem of detecting a quiet source in the presence of loud interferers. These methods are solutions to particular and different optimization problems, requiring particular combinations of inputs. Thus, for example, MVDR does not require us to model the interference, whereas the sparsity-seeking methods need both interferer and quiet source models to be put into their dictionary. MVDR is notorious for requiring more precise calibration than is needed for conventional beamformers. We will present demonstrations on simulated and experiment data, illustrating key differences between the two methods.
Research on suppression for tow-ship interference
Authors: Hui Juan , Song Mingyu , Li JiangQiao
Published: October 2018

Towing line array underwater detection equipment detection performance will be tug of radiation noise interference, in order to enhance the performance of sonar detection, the key from the array spacing and follow-up signal processing to proceed. The purpose of using the towing array underwater probing device is to target the tail of the tug, but in actual use the towed array of half-wave lengths is affected by the strong tug noise The detection performance of the ship's tail direction is greatly restricted, and it is imperative to improve it. Otherwise, it will not be able to detect the threat target from the wake of the wake, and the target can not be found in time. This paper focuses on the reception directivity of the quarter-wave spacing matrix under the single-frequency signal and the wideband signal. By comparing the results of the two directional simulations, it is known that, unlike the half-wavelength interval matrix, the end-to-receive directionality of the quarter-wave spacing matrix is asymmetric, which can significantly suppress the interference in the direction of the drag Detection performance. The tandem noise can be suppressed by the combination of the received signal and the zeroing of the tampon, and the quarter-wave spacing matrix formed by the permutation-weighted combination array can further suppress the tug noise.
Development of the application of the digital microphone array system for real time source localization
Authors: Too Gee-Pinn J. , Liao Ke-Han
Published: October 2018

This research is to develop a digital microphone array system to build a real-time sound source localization system and to produce acoustical holography. Acoustical holography can be understood as taking a photo of sound which can be used to source localization. In the situation of free field with an unknown signal, source signal is restored by time reversal mirror(TRM) where a free-field impulse response function(IRF) is used to achieve the goal of real time source localization. During the processing, the unknown source location is identified by scanning over a possible space for source locations to find a maximum restored signal. In the present study, simulations and experiments of source localization are carried out in 2D and 3D space. In the experiment of source localization with single source, the estimation errors are below 10% in certain distances between source and microphone array. For two sources situation, the distance between two sources will limit the application of the present approach.
Effect of acoustic horizontal refraction on DOA estimation with a single vector hydrophone
Authors: Tang Jun , Piao Shengchun
Published: October 2018

The effect of horizontal refraction (HR) on DOA estimation with a single vector hydrophone is studied. It has been demonstrated in a previous study that HR may bring about a significant deviation between the true bearing of the source and the direction of time-averaged sound flux at the receiver point, i.e., DOA estimation error. [J. Tang et al., 2018, 43(2), ACTA ACUSTICA (in Chinese)]. In the present work, the DOA estimation error in a more realistic scenario is studied, more precisely, source signals are considered to be wide-band instead of time-harmonic, and meanwhile ambient noise is added to the received signal. The ocean waveguide used in simulations is a 3D version of the standard ASA wedge, which implies that the HR considered in this work is raised from multiple reflections between a horizontal sea surface and a sloping sea bottom. The results of this work shall offer some reference to DOA estimation in circumstances with strong HR effects.
In situ observation of sediment sound speed and attenuation from coarse to fine-grained sediments
Authors: Yang Jie
Published: October 2018

The long-term objective is to address the impact of spatial variability of sediment properties on sound propagation and reverberation from a few hundred hertz to 10 kHz. In this band, the frequency dependences of sound speed and attenuation are important for applications, but cannot be inferred from high-frequency data, hence direct measurement is necessary. In this talk, a summary of in situ measurements of sediment sound speed and attenuation collected from three major field experiments, i.e., Shallow Water 2006 (SW06), Target and Reverberation Experiment 2013 (TREX13), and Seabed Characterization Experiment 2017 (SCE17), are presented. Sediment sound speed and attenuation within the surficial 3 m of sediments were obtained through penetration, using the Sediment Acoustic-speed Measurement System (SAMS). In TREX13, in situ measurements were carried out at five sites along a 5-km track, with sediment types ranging from coarse sand to a mixture of soft mud over sand. SAMS was deployed at 18 sites within the 10 × 30 km SCE17 study area. Significant variation of sediment geoacoustic properties was observed in range (TREX13) and depth (SCE17), respectively. Preliminary sediment acoustic modeling work is presented, using SAMS data taken from the wide range of sediment types. [Work supported by ONR.]
On the use of conventional, adaptive beamforming and the Fourier-Transform-based algorithm for estimating seabed properties
Authors: Muzi Lanfranco , Siderius Martin , Gebbie John
Published: October 2018

Knowledge of the bottom reflection coefficient as a function of frequency and grazing angle can be used to infer seabed properties. A known passive technique for estimating the bottom reflection coefficient is based on conventional beamforming of natural marine ambient noise over a vertical line array. In this study, the extension of the technique to adaptive beamforming is formally investigated, and compared to a more recent Fourier-Transform-based algorithm. This is done by developing both a mathematical formalization of the high-resolution algorithm in the discrete space-wavenumber domain, and a mathematical proof of the original technique (based on conventional beamforming). It is shown that replacing conventional beamforming with adaptive beamforming cannot be guaranteed to provide an estimate of the bottom reflection coefficient. The conclusions are demonstrated on simulated and measured data. [Work supported by the Office of Naval Research, Ocean Acoustics Program.]
Diffuseness
Authors: Vorlaender Michael
Published: October 2018

In architectural acoustics and noise control, the diffuse sound field is the fundamental assumption. The key of its definition is isotropy and incoherence, thus infinitely many sound uncorrelated waves arrive from directions uniformly distributed over a sphere. The room shape and the amount and placement of absorbing and scattering surfaces and objects determine the isotropy of actual sound fields in rooms. Spatial and directional distributions of room sound fields are reviewed and discussed concerning the consequences on decay curves and on the homogeneity of sound energy density in rooms. Several references to Murray Hodgson illustrate his contributions to this field, particularly to applications to noise control in workrooms.
Concave surfaces and acoustics of performance spaces—Part II —Wave analysis
Authors: Ramakrishnan Ramani , Johnston-Iafelice Eva M.
Published: October 2018

Conventional wisdom states that having concave surfaces as the envelope of any occupied space does not produce good sound. The focussing effect of concave surfaces can cause high sound pressure levels, coloration, and echoes. However, throughout history there have been many enclosed rooms with large curved surfaces as envelopes that seem to produce good acoustics. Recent research suggested that wave analysis must be undertaken to establish the impact of concave surfaces. In contrast to Part I of the current investigation, evaluation of the sound pressure level distribution, in rooms with concave surfaces, was performed by solving the governing wave equation. The main reason is that the image-ray theory is valid only at frequencies greater than the Schroeder cut-off frequency. The wave theory is used for frequencies lower than 100 Hz. Finite element modelling was applied to solve for the sound pressure level distribution within rooms with concave surfaces. Three spaces, the Paul Crocker Gallery in Ryerson University, Toronto, St. Pauls Anglican Church in Toronto and Wigmore Hall in London were investigated in this study. The results for three low frequencies (25 Hz, 50 Hz, and 100 Hz) as well as their combination will be presented in this paper.
Temporal variations in humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) song in Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary, northeast Pacific
Authors: Ryan John P. , Cline Danelle E. , Joseph John E. , Margolina Tetyana , Stimpert Alison K. , Forney Karin , Black Nancy , DeVogelaere Andrew , Fischer Mark , Wahl Christopher , Chavez Francisco
Published: October 2018

Using two years of nearly continuous recordings from Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary, August 2015 through July 2017, variations in humpback whale song are examined on diel, seasonal, and interannual time scales. The cabled hydrophone is in humpback feeding and migratory habitat at 36.7128°N, 122.186°W. Diel analyses show 69% of song during night, 23% during day, and 8% during dusk or dawn. Seasonal analyses show song absence during summer (June–August), emergence during fall (September–October), peak during late fall/winter (November–January), and highly variable detection during spring (February–May). During both years >80% of song occurred during the November–January peak. Song detection within a month reached a maximum of 58% of the time during November 2016. Song length increased (p < 0.01) month-to-month from the start in fall through the end of the peak in January. The months of maximum song occurrence coincide with declining visual sighting of humpbacks within Monterey Bay, consistent with seasonal southward migration to breeding habitat and/or more offshore residence. Interannual variation in song was marked by a 51% increase between the first and second years. Habitat during the first year was strongly influenced by a prolonged regional oceanic warm anomaly and the largest toxic algal bloom ever recorded in the northeast Pacific. Alternative hypotheses for the interannual difference in song detection relate to differences in humpback regional abundance, behavior, and habitat occupancy.
Mapping the phonetic structure of humpback whale song units
Authors: Pines Howard S.
Published: October 2018

The striking similarities of time-frequency spectrograms of voiced human speech and humpback whale vocalizations suggested a common targeted frequency-modulated phonetic basis. To map the sub-unit structure of humpback whale song units, a time-frequency contour segmentation, extraction, and classification procedure was developed and tested on streaming voiced human speech. When the procedure was applied to humpback vocalizations and the tone-pairs of the two most energetic “vocal fold” harmonic frequencies were plotted in x-y coordinates, the plot exhibited properties of an optimally structured Shannon “modem symbol constellation” diagram of 14 distinct sub-regions and 60 acoustically distinct sub-unit symbols. The humpback symbol constellation is structurally comparable to the tone-pair symbol constellations of English and Asian language vowels. The information entropy and plot of the humpback sub-unit symbol set’s cumulative probability vs. ranked frequency distribution function are nearly identical to the entropy and Zipf power law profile of the English language phoneme set. The precise specification of the sub-unit structure of more than one hundred song units analyzed to date has resulted in a three-fold expansion in the number of unique units identified in previous studies, suggesting that the “lexicon” of humpback song units is potentially much larger than cited in the literature.
Temporal separation in call types found for large baleen whale species in offshore waters of the Canadian Pacific
Authors: Burnham Rianna
Published: October 2018

Populations of large whale species were severely reduced by commercial whaling. Studies of repopulation and habitat use are hindered by their use of offshore waters. Passive acoustic recordings made using stationary and mobile receivers in in- and offshore waters off the west coast of Vancouver Island are used to begin to re-establish abundance and distribution patterns of these species, while outlining habitat units that may be important for population recovery. At its simplest call presence represents whale presence. Additionally, recordings show a strong temporal separation in call type employed by fin whales. Their stereotypical 20 Hz call dominates recordings from December to late February, with presence of patterned sequences representing a doublet song also. Recordings made later in the spring (March-April) show high prevalence of the 40 Hz call, described for social and foraging behaviours. These calls were most frequently heard in recordings from along the continental shelf break and in areas of topographical complexity and possible prey aggregation, such as oceanic canyons. Change in call type suggests a change in behaviour and social context of the signaler. Similar patterns were found for blue whales in this area; more B calls in winter and D calls in spring.
Characterizing the acoustic behavior of free-ranging Risso’s dolphins (Grampus griseus) in Monterey Bay, California
Authors: Madrigal Brijonnay C. , Stimpert Alison K.
Published: October 2018

Risso’s dolphins (Grampus griseus) are a common, highly vocal odontocete species found in Monterey Bay, California, that is relatively understudied acoustically. Although several studies have focused on Risso’s echolocation, there is little research on the other social sound types for this species. Apart from echolocation clicks, the two most common sound types in Risso’s dolphin repertoires are whistles and whistle + burst pulse (whistle BP) vocalizations. In summer 2017, single C57 omnidirectional hydrophone (Cetacean Research Technology) deployments were conducted in Monterey Bay to record Risso’s sound production during periods of slow travel and social interaction at the surface. Group composition information and surface behavioral events were also recorded to provide behavioral context. Average group sizes consisted of approximately 30 animals. We completed a total of 62 h on effort and 75 deployments. Of the 5 total hours of recordings, 43% contained vocalizations. We will describe the acoustic parameters of recorded whistle and whistle BP vocalizations of Monterey Bay Risso’s dolphins, evaluate sound production rate in relationship to surface active behavior, and compare vocalizations with those of geographically isolated populations as well as sympatric odontocete species in the Bay.
Low-frequency acoustic observations with cabled observatories on the Juan de Fuca Ridge
Authors: Wilcock William S. , Tolstoy Maya , Dziak Robert , Bohnenstiehl Del , Caplan-Auerbach Jacqueline , Waldhauser Felix , Baillard Christian
Published: October 2018

In the Northeast Pacific Ocean, the NSF Ocean Observatories Initiative (OOI) and Ocean Networks Canada (ONC) operate regional cabled observatories that include a network of seismometers and hydrophones enclosing the northern half of the Juan de Fuca plate, and local observatories at two sites on the Juan de Fuca Ridge: Axial Seamount (OOI) and the Endeavour segment (ONC). At each ridge site, local networks of seismometers and hydrophones provide a tool to monitor in real time the seismic and acoustic signals associated with volcanic, tectonic, and hydrothermal processes. In 2015, Axial Seamount erupted a few months after the installation of the OOI. Following the eruption, regionally recorded T-phases were used to track a dike propagating along the Axial North Rift. Acoustic signals from impulsive sources associated with lava flows, detected eruptions in the caldera and on the North Rift. Diffuse acoustic signals were also associated with the later stages of the eruption. The low-frequency acoustic capabilities of the OOI and ONC cabled observatories are underutilized and future applications could include the reestablishment of regional acoustic earthquake monitoring, tracking eruptions in real time to guide rapid autonomous and ship-based response efforts, and enhanced studies of fin and blue whales.
The Aloha Cabled Observatory: New Insights into hurricane generation of the seismo-acoustic noise spectrum
Authors: Butler Rhett , Aucan Jérome
Published: October 2018

The close passage of Hurricane Lester near the Hawaiian Islands in September 2016 afforded an in-depth, close-up study of storm generation of the largest background vibrations observed planet wide. The observations at the ALOHA Cabled Observatory on the seafloor below the Hurricane, coupled with seismic sensors on Oahu, and ocean wave buoys off shore, present a detailed picture connecting the storm to the ocean and Earth. Wave interactions from a distant typhoon near Japan play an important role. Vibration energy levels observed on Oahu closely match those on the sea floor 100 km north of Oahu, where ALOHA Cabled Observatory is the world’s deepest seafloor observatory at 4,728 m depth. Characteristic vibrations generated radially from the Hurricane were observed, along with unexpected transverse motions perpendicular to the radial waves. This latter observation is consistent with a broad source region extending from Hurricane Lester and generating the vibrations. Evidence for substantial scattering of the vibrations in the ocean crust is inferred, due to slanting layers and directionally varying velocities, dating back nearly 80 million years ago when the sea floor was being originally being emplaced at a Pacific mid-ocean ridge. This hurricane transit yields new knowledge on how storms vibrate the planet.
In situ measurements of compressional and shear wave propagation in marine sediments and comparison to geoacoustic models
Authors: Lee Kevin M. , Ballard Megan S. , McNeese Andrew R. , Venegas Gabriel R. , Wilson Preston S.
Published: October 2018

In situ measurements of compressional and shear wave speed and attenuation provide direct characterization of marine sediment acoustic properties at ambient conditions, as opposed to measurements that are conducted on samples removed from the seabed. Sediment geoacoustic models, such as those based on fluid, viscoelastic, poroelastic, or suspension wave theories, relate physical properties of the seabed like porosity, grain size, and pore fluid viscosity to the wave speeds and attenuation. Other models can include the effects of gas bubble distributions, which can be associated with the presence of benthic biology or organic matter decomposition, on compressional and shear wave propagation. In this paper, we examine sediment geoacoustic models in comparison with in situ acoustic data from various field experiments, for sediments containing various ratios of sand, silt, clay, and organic matter. The model input parameters are partially constrained by geotechnical data obtained from core samples collected at the field experiment sites. The applicability of various models to the sediments encountered at each measurement site will be discussed. [Work supported by ONR and ARL:UT IR&D.]
Control and evaluation of liquid crystal molecules using ultrasound vibration
Authors: Harada Yuki , Koyama Daisuke , Yasui Hirokazu , Fukui Marina , Shimizu Yuki , Shibagaki Yoshiaki , Matsukawa Mami
Published: October 2018

Nematic liquid crystals are widely used in optical devices such as liquid crystal displays and controlled by electric fields through the liquid crystal layer. The authors have proposed a technique to control the orientation of liquid crystal molecules using ultrasound vibration without indium tin oxide electrodes. An ultrasound liquid crystal cell was fabricated; it consists of a liquid crystal layer sandwiched by two glass plates having two ultrasound PZT transducers. When exciting the transducers at the resonance frequencies, the flexural vibration modes were generated on the cell and the acoustic radiation force acted to the liquid crystal molecules so that the orientation direction can be changed. The relationship between the molecular orientation and the vibration distribution of the cell was investigated from the transmitted light distribution of the liquid crystal cell under the crossed Nicol condition. In addition, the orientation of liquid crystal molecules was evaluated as ultrasonic wave velocity in the GHz range by the Brillouin scattering method. The ultrasonic wave velocity in the long axis direction of the liquid crystal molecules was higher than that in the short axis direction, which indicates the uniaxial anisotropy of the liquid crystal molecules.
Ultrasound manipulation of 3D dynamic user-specified patterns of particles in air
Authors: Prisbrey Milo , Raeymaekers Bart
Published: October 2018

Ultrasound noncontact particle manipulation (NPM) employs the convergence of the acoustic radiation force associated with an ultrasound wave field to levitate and manipulate particles in a fluid medium. We use multiple phased arrays of ultrasound transducers to dynamically manipulate a 3D pattern of particles along a user-specified trajectory. We numerically simulate the ultrasound NPM method and experimentally validate it by creating dynamic 3D patterns of expanded polystyrene particles in air, and observe good quantitative agreement. The method allows manipulating an entire user-specified pattern of particles and sub-sets of a pattern to traverse a user-specified trajectory in 3D. This experimental demonstration shows that ultrasound NPM can be implemented in engineering applications such as containerless transport and measurement, and manufacturing of engineered materials.
Fast tracking of acoustic resonance frequencies in collection volumes to measure flow
Authors: Gillis Keith A. , Schmidt James W. , Pope Jodie G. , Moldover Michael
Published: October 2018

Previously, we demonstrated accurate determinations of the mass of gas in a large collection vessel of known volume from measurements of the pressure and the resonance frequencies of a few acoustic modes. We achieved accurate mass measurements even when linear temperature gradients persisted after adding or removing gas. The change in mass Δm from before and after flow and the collection time Δt may be used to calibrate mass flowmeters. Because the resonance quality factors Q are very high (up to 30000), measuring the complex-valued frequency response using a lock-in amplifier to determine the resonance frequency is slow. This static measurement of mass requires sufficient time to elapse for transient non-linear gradients to dissipate through convection and diffusion. Here, we demonstrate a method to dynamically track the resonance frequency of a large, gas-filled collection vessel while gas is flowing into or out of the vessel. We use positive feedback to excite sustained oscillations at the desired resonance frequency without a lock-in amplifier or frequency synthesizer. As the speed of sound changes, the sustained oscillations track the changing resonance frequency f with response time ~1/f. Preliminary mass flow measurements using this technique agree with a flow standard within their combined uncertainties.
Sound insulation measurement in a tube with broadband pulse secondary transmission method
Authors: Zhang Mengfei , Hou Hong , Gao Nansha
Published: October 2018

Based on time-domain pulse-separation method in a standing wave tube, a method using broadband pulse secondary transmission wave is proposed for sound insulation measurement in this paper. Two kinds of broadband pulse were generated, the incidence wave and secondary transmission wave could be obtained easily with one microphone by designing the location of microphone and sample, then acoustic parameters of sample can be calculated. An experiment was completed to verify the proposed method, when compared with time-domain pulse-separation method, a relatively good agreement between these two methods can be observed. Using the proposed method, only one microphone position and one signal are required. This method is simple and with good repetition, could be an effective method for sound insulation measurement. Meanwhile, the measurement uncertainty was done.
Do children understand adults better or themselves? A perceptual study of Polish /s, ʂ, ɕ/
Authors: Zygis Marzena , Jaskula Marek , Koenig Laura L.
Published: October 2018

Developmental studies of speech perception have typically used adult productions or synthetic speech as stimuli. Little is known about how children perceive their own speech, however. Further, few studies of sibilant fricative perception have explored complex sibilant inventories. This work assessed perception of the sibilants /s, ʂ, ɕ/ in 32 monolingual native speakers of Polish, 3–8 years of age. Children participated in a picture-naming task to identify minimal or near-minimal triplets with the fricatives in initial and medial position, e.g., [kasa] “cash point”, [kaʂa] “groats”, [kaɕa] “Cathe, prop.name.” They subsequently labeled their own word productions, and the words as produced by an adult. Children’s labeling was generally quite accurate for the adult speaker, with the lowest accuracy rating of ca. 75% seen in the youngest listeners. When labeling themselves, the children were less accurate, with average performance at about 50% in children younger than 55 months. Across all ages, reaction times decreased in the order /ʂ/ > /s/ > ɕ/. Future work will obtain perceptual judgments of the children’s productions from other listeners and obtain acoustic measures of the fricatives to explore perception-production relationships.
Suprasegmentals affecting fluency levels in elementary students’ read-speech: Focusing on pause numbers and pause duration, speech rate, and pitch range
Authors: Park Hyesook
Published: October 2018

The purpose of this study was two-fold: 1) to rate the unrated Korean elementary students read-speech (from K-SEC) 2) which and to what extend suprasegmentals—pause numbers and duration, speed rate, and pitch range—would affect the degrees of fluency. To do, 5 raters evaluated 3069 read-speech data into 5 proficiency levels and 500 data were randomly selected for analyzing pause numbers and duration, speed rate, and pitch rage with Praat. The result showed the speech rate is the most influential factor. It means the most fluent readers (5 levels) tend to have the highest speech rate. The next factor is pause duration; the more fluent, the less pause duration one has. Also, statistical regression analysis shows pause numbers and pitch range are not statistically meaningful factors to rate the fluency levels in Korean elementary students read-speech. At the end of this study, some suggestions of the pronunciation drills for Korean elementary students were discussed based on the result of the study.
Global measures of early vocalizations in infants with CP in Taiwan as references to perceptual ratings
Authors: Lee Chia-Cheng , Chen Li-mei , Liu Chin-Ting , Kent Ray D. , Lin Yung-Chieh , Chen Li-Wen , Cheng Ching-Yi
Published: October 2018

The present study investigated reliable global measures that can be used to screen/assess infants at-risk for speech problems due to cerebral palsy (CP). Three measures were used in this study: mean duration of utterances, mean duration of syllables, and vocalization rate, which are suggested as likely points of divergence from typical development in infants with CP. Recordings of 9 months and 21 months of ten infants who were at risk of CP and seventeen 9-month-old typically-developing (TD) infants were coded. Naïve listeners filled out a questionnaire about a perceptual evaluation of speech samples of these infants after listening to the first 50 utterances with little background noise in each recording. The questions included, for example, resonance, hoarseness, breathiness, loudness, and tremor. Results of the three measures did not show statistically significant differences between the groups. However, descriptive analyses showed that infants with CP at 9 months produced longer utterances and syllables than when at 21 months. Infants with CP also produced shorter utterances and syllables and fewer vocalizations per minute than TD infants. Furthermore, the correlation between the results of the three measures and perceptual ratings was examined in search for other global measures and to refine the questionnaire questions.
Quantifying the effects of background babble on preschool children’s novel word learning in a multi-session paradigm
Authors: Avivi-Reich Meital , Roberts Megan Y. , Grieco-Calub Tina M.
Published: October 2018

Common daily environments often contain background noise, such as background talkers, that may impose challenges on auditory based learning, including the learning of new words. Extant data on the effects of background noise on novel word learning, however, have shown mixed results. One possible reason for this observation is that most studies assess the effect of background noise in a single session. The present study aimed to add to this body of work by employing a multi-session paradigm to explore the effects of background babble, presented at 0 dB signal-to-noise ratio, on novel word learning in 3-year-old children (n = 8). Children were exposed to two stories presented digitally, each story containing four novel CVC words. Children were exposed to both stories, one in quiet and one in the presence of four-talker babble. After each story, receptive word learning was quantified with a four-alternative-forced-choice task, and expressive word learning was quantified by the number of novel labels correctly produced when their corresponding objects were shown to the children. Results suggested that children’s receptive and expressive word learning improved by session; however, greater improvement was observed for the words exposed in quiet. The results and their implications will be further discussed.
Children’s susceptibility to irrelevant speech on a selective attention task: What role does working memory play?
Authors: Nagaraj Naveen K. , Magimairaj Beula M.
Published: October 2018

Irrelevant speech effect (ISE) is well studied in adults; however, limited studies have explored ISE in children. We examined individual differences in working memory (WM) capacity on ISE due to proactive interference and interference from the irrelevant channel using a dichotic selective attention task. Eighty-six 7- to 11-year-old children were tested. Two streams of digits were presented (to-be-ignored and to-be-attended) to investigate both proactive and irrelevant channel interference in quiet and in speech babble. The irrelevant channel interference was estimated by tracking the response from the to-be-ignored ear. Proactive interference corresponded to participants reporting previously presented stimuli. Children’s WM capacity was measured using the Woodcock Johnson Auditory WM task and an experimental complex memory span task. Based on the attention control theory of WM, it was predicted that both irrelevant channel interference and proactive interference would be negatively related to children WM capacity. Results showed no such correlation between WM capacity and ISE, which may have been due to the inverse relation between the two types of interference. This is because proportion of total errors that corresponded to proactive interference was positively correlated with WM, whereas irrelevant channel interference was negatively correlated with children’s WM capacity.