Sonic Wonderland: A Scientific Odyssey of Sound - Hardcover

Cox, Trevor

3.76

437 ratings by Goodreads

9781847922106: Sonic Wonderland: A Scientific Odyssey of Sound

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1847922104 ISBN 13: 9781847922106

Publisher: Bodley Head, 2014

View all copies of this ISBN edition:

An original and compelling tour of the world's most amazing acoustic phenomena and a passionate plea for a deeper appreciation of and respect for our shared sonic landscapes.
Creaking glaciers, whispering galleries, stalactite organs, musical roads, squeaking beaches, groaning waterwheels, frogs that croak in Mexican waves, Mayan pyramids that produce echoes that chirp like a bird -- these are just a sample of the impressive, strange and surprising sounds that the acoustic engineer Trevor Cox has tracked down in his search for the 'sonic wonders of the world'.

In The Sound Book, he uses his experiences of visiting sewers, caves, tidal bores, burial mounds, sand dunes, concert halls and more to explore how sound is made and altered by the environment, how our body hears, perceives and reacts to peculiar sounds, and how sounds and acoustics have inspired musicians, artists and writers.

Ranging across a dizzying array of realms including literature, classical music, history, archaeology, psychology, neuroscience, geology, physics, biology and ecology, the book is an original and compelling tour of the world's most amazing acoustic phenomena and the sometimes even stranger people behind them -- and a passionate plea for a deeper appreciation of and respect for our shared sonic landscapes.

"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.

About the Author:

Born in 1967, TREVOR COX is professor of acoustic engineering at the University of Salford and president of the Institute of Acoustics. He has presented numerous science radio documentaries and has written for the New Scientist. He is an associate editor for an international journal of acoustics.

Review:

� "A riveting ear-opener, Trevor Cox describes in lyrical detail a range of sonic events and new ways of listening that can only brighten our experience of the acoustic world around us. A must-read for sound-lovers of all stripes." --Bernie Krause, author of The Great Animal Orchestra

"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.