Timeline for Why don't choir voices destructively interfere so that we can't hear them?
Current License: CC BY-SA 3.0
10 events
| when toggle format | what | by | license | comment | |
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| Oct 27, 2015 at 15:46 | comment | added | Floris | You make some great points. | |
| Oct 26, 2015 at 19:57 | comment | added | Level River St | Actually, a tuning fork is a bad example of a sound generator. It vibrates symmetrically (hence the vibration energy is not transferred to the holder and does not dissipiate quickly.) Looking at the tuning fork down its long axis, sound is emitted in one phase at 0 and 180 degrees, in the opposite phase at 90 and 270 degrees, and is zero at four intermediate points. If you hold a tuning fork with its long axis perpendicular to the direction of your ear and turn it about its long axis (by rolling its stem between your fingers), you will clearly hear this. | |
| Oct 26, 2015 at 18:45 | comment | added | matt_black | IT might be worth adding the scale of the patterns for sound frequencies typical in voice. 440z is about 75cm so this will define the scale of a pattern for pure tone cancellation. This implies that it is unlikely that, even for pure tones, both of your ears will be in a zone where the sound cancels completely. | |
| Oct 26, 2015 at 3:01 | comment | added | ithisa | @chasly I think it's because the human brain processes incoming signals using an algorithm similar to autocorrelation, and not simply listening for certain frequencies. Even with one microphone, there are computer algorithms that can detect that somebody is singing off-key. With just one ear you can't find out who it is, though. | |
| Oct 26, 2015 at 2:30 | history | edited | anon01 | CC BY-SA 3.0 |
jesus, I'm a chronic revisionist.
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| Oct 26, 2015 at 1:35 | history | edited | anon01 | CC BY-SA 3.0 |
revised my answer. I think differing volumes factors in significantly.
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| Oct 25, 2015 at 23:19 | comment | added | anon01 | Yes, that is interesting! Actually, that as much to do with the fact that we have two ears. Each ear hears a slightly different signal, and that really aids in locating a source. You can try this: plug one of your ears at a cocktail party, and it's suddenly much harder to know exactly where people are. | |
| Oct 25, 2015 at 23:16 | comment | added | chasly - supports Monica | Perhaps the most extraordinary thing is that an experienced choral/orchestral conductor can hear if someone is singing/playing slightly off key or with an unpleasant tone and pinpoint that person. How the human brain can separate out the complete mishmash that is going on and convert it back to individual melodic lines is a real mystery to me (and I am a musician). Also we can do it in stereo. | |
| Oct 25, 2015 at 22:49 | history | edited | anon01 | CC BY-SA 3.0 |
I guess I rewrote it :)
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| Oct 25, 2015 at 20:52 | history | answered | anon01 | CC BY-SA 3.0 |