If a tree falls in the forest… the National Park Service may have recorded it, along with howling wolves, thunder crackling, and other natural sounds. That includes man-made noise like chainsaws and cannon fire at Ft. McHenry!

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Filed under: e-News, e-Videos, Environmental, Explore Engineering | Comments Off on What Does the Fox Say?

Tags: Acoustical, Environmental, microphone, National Park Service, noise, sound map, soundscape, Wilderness, wildlife

In 2000, the U.S. Navy acknowledged that loud blasts of its sonar helped cause a mass stranding of whales in the Bahamas. And in 2005, 37 whales beached themselves and died along the North Carolina shore after Navy vessels used powerful sonar as part of a training exercise.

Thus, the Office of Naval Research has awarded two three-year grants to advance research on the effects of man-made noises on marine life.

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Filed under: e-News, Environmental, Ocean | 1 Comment »

Tags: Acoustical, Bioscience, Environmental, Ocean

With mobile devices perpetually shrinking, touchscreen space is starting to become the next challenge for makers of cell phones and music players.

Luckily, Microsoft’s research lab has come up with a solution to the surface area problem: the human body. Researchers from Microsoft and Carnegie Mellon have created an interface that allows people to use their arms and fingers like touch screens. The system, called Skinput, works by recognizing a variety of acoustical (vibration) patterns that happen when you tap your arm. Video after the jump.

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Filed under: Computer, e-News | 1 Comment »

Tags: Acoustical, Computer, Technology