The Wichita daily eagle., 1898-01-04
NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.
News Of Recent Science
NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.
THE MYSTERY OF SOUND

iums through which the inner man com
be defined as motion or vibra ton. in it
objective or outer manifestations and a
sensation as it effects our consciousness
through the medium Of the organs o
hearing, writes Elisha Gray in the Chi
| cago Times-Herald.
There are many avenues to the braiI
that are in touch with the outer world
through the medium of the five senses
Through all of these avenues the same
| general vehicle is used to carry intelli.
gence to the brain of the percipient, tC
wit: motion.
1t is motion of the optic nerve that cal
ries to the brain the sensation OF light
1t is motion of the gustatory nerves that
carries to the brain the sensation OF
taste. 1t is motion. of the okactory
! nerve tnat carries TO the brain the SEN
| sation OF smell 1t is motion OF the
| nerves Of feeling that carries the sense
OF touch, and il is motion Of the audi
tory nerve that gives US the sensation
of sound.
Nothing but sound car be transmitted
through the auditory nerve, and nothing
| but light through the optic nerve. The
same IS true OF other avenues to the
| brain; you cannot smell with your
| tongue or taste with your nose. Each
! special nerve mas its special use. If we
! nave lost one Of these highways bet
ween the outer world and the inner self.
by so much we are dead to physical
| things
An the phenomena of sound outside OF
! tla pointw1here we perceive it are simply
motions OF some character. The differ
ent kinds Of sound are infinite, but each
sensation OF sound that differs from an
other mas its correlative in the air out
side Of the ear as a peculiar form Of mo-
ton. For instance: il some one out Of
sight, but not out Of hearing, should
sound note on violin, you would say
that You heard a violin; but if some one
should sound note, of the same pitch
on an organ, would say that you heard
an organ. What is the difference? Sim
ply that the kind or quality of the mo-
ton made by the violin differs from that
of the organ; hence the difference Of the
sensation.
Let US now go back and follow out the
course Of single sound impulse from its
source to the ear, and through it to the
brain-the seat of sensation.
Let US fill a soap bubble with oxygen
and hydrogen gases in certain proper
ton. If we ignite ii the result will be an
explosion. When the ignition takes place
there is a sudden generation of heat
which suddenly expands the air, caus-
ing it to be highly rarified at the point of
explosion. The air Immediately surr0un-
ding it has been driven violently out
ward in every direction. The first layer
Of air particles surrounding the bubble,
has been driven against the second and
then swung back to its place, fol the
force that drove it outward is 70 longer
present. The second layer swings ag-
ainst the third and the third against the
fourth, and so on; each layer after max
ing its excursion outward returns to its
original position. The air particles are
not fired at the ear as from gur; they
simply vibrate to and fro. The sound
pulse moves outward like an expanding
globe at the ra tie of about 1,100 feet per
second, more or less, the speed depend
ing upon the medium through which 1t
travels. Some notion of themovement OF
a sound pulsatior may be had by watch
ing the expanding ring made by pebble
when dropped into pound Of smooth
water. A still clearer idea may be had !
by laying number of billiard balls In a |
V-shaped groove, SO that they are in |
close contact. Now tap one of the erd |
balls sharply and watch the effect None |
of the balls seem to have changed posi- |
ton except the end one, opposite from |
the one that received the blow This one |
has rolled away from the others. The |
first ball struck delivers its blow to the |
second, and So on to the last. This one
having nothing TO deliver its blow to
rolls away under the impetus given TO i. |
by the ball next to il. This rs precisely
what takes place in the air, only with
balls infinitely small, as compared with |
the billiard balls. Each bail has made
a pendulous milton; it has moved for
ward a short space and returned to Its
original position. The distance 1t has
moved forward and back is called the
amplitude Of its motion Or vibration, anh
other things being equal, the loudness of
a sound is proportional TO the square OF
the amplitude of the vioratory impulse.
Starting again from the point OF ex-
Dlosiop the same impulse moves in every
light from a single lumi-
nous point-tirough the air. but pro-
iuces no sensation till it strikes an ear.
The membrane Of the ear is made to vi
orate or swing back and forth. which. in
turn, moves the inner mechanism OF the
it is mechanism. and a most
wonderful one-wbich finally communi-
'ates its motion to the auditory rerve.
which reaches into the brain, where the
motion is translated into the brain.
where tha motion is translated into a sen
sation that we call siund. WHAT is this
mysterious blending between the activi-
les of the outer world ami the sense per-
'epdon OF the inner consciousness? All
he combined wisdom of philosophers
md sages has never solved The problem.
Much has been written. but no explana-
ior, only words. words. words We have
. be satisfied with studying the pheno-
nena only ot natural law. for that IS all
We can really know about it.
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