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<h2>Introduction to the Physics of Hearing</h2>
<div class="fig_container" id="navlink_id3008823"><img alt="Photograph of an old tree in a forest that had fallen some time ago." src="https://data.ulearngo.com/assets/104f9440-4f30-4a0b-b022-57e84a420806"/>
<p class="fig_caption">This tree fell some time ago. When it fell, atoms in the air were disturbed. Physicists would call this disturbance sound whether someone was around to hear it or not. (credit: B.A. Bowen Photography)</p>
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<p>If a tree falls in the forest and no one is there to hear it, does it make a sound? The answer to this old philosophical question depends on how you define sound. If sound only exists when someone is around to perceive it, then there was no sound. However, if we define sound in terms of physics; that is, a disturbance of the atoms in matter transmitted from its origin outward (in other words, a wave), then there <em>was</em> a sound, even if nobody was around to hear it.</p>
<p>Such a wave is the physical phenomenon we call <em>sound</em><em>.</em> Its perception is hearing. Both the physical phenomenon and its perception are interesting and will be considered in this text. We shall explore both sound and hearing; they are related, but are not the same thing. We will also explore the many practical uses of sound waves, such as in medical imaging.</p>
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Introduction to the Physics of Hearing

Physics is a science discipline concerned with the nature and properties of matter and energy. Physics topics include mechanics, heat, light and radiation, sound, electricity, magnetism, the structure of atoms, and so on.

Physics

Explore the principles of sound waves and how they affect our ability to hear, including the speed, frequency, intensity, and interference of sounds, as well as the use of ultrasound in medical therapy and diagnostics.


Introduction to the Physics of Hearing

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