The Physics of the Human Voice
The voice is our primary mean of communication and expression. We rarely last more than a few minutes without its use whether it is talking to someone else or humming quietly to ourselves. We can use the voice artistically in many ways. For example, singing carries the rhythm and melody of speech. It creates patterns of pitch, loudness, and duration that tie together syllables, phrases and sentences. We use the voice for survival, emotion, expression, and to reflect our personality. The loss of the voice is a severe curtailment to many professions. It is affected by general body condition which is why we need to consider the location of the larynx and how that organ produces voice. Surprisingly, this complex biological design is mechanical in function. It is mechanical to the point that when it has been excised from a cadaver and mounted on a laboratory bench, the larynx produces sounds resembling normal phonation. (Titze, Principles)
The larynx, known as the voice box, consists of an outer casing of nine cartilages that are connected to one another by muscles and ligaments. There are three unpaired cartilages and six paired. The unpaired cartilages include the thyroid, cricoid, and epiglottis. The thyroid cartilage is the largest and better known as the Adam’s apple. The cricoid cartilage is the most inferior cartilage of the larynx which forms the base of the larynx on which the other cartilages rest. Together, the thyroid and cricoid cartilages maintain an open passageway for air movement. The epiglottis and vestibular folds, or false vocal chords, prevent swallowed material from moving into the larynx. The paired cartilages, accounting for the remaining six, include the arytenoid (ladl...
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...rynx for speech. Anatomy is very important when considering the physics of the voice. Much of the head, neck, and chest play an important role in sound production. Although the larynx is biological it is very mechanical in function. Mechanical means that we study objects in motion and the associated forces that produce that motion. The same three universal laws made famous by Sir Isaac Newton apply to the voice. The larynx can then become a nonbiological sound source. When compared to other instrument made by human hands the voice is not ideal in structure. Tissues found in the human body do not vibrate as easily or as predictably as the strings of a piano or the reed of a clarinet. One can speculate that our bodies are still evolving to create a sound more conducive in structure. Considering all that we can do with our voices, I doubt we will hear much complaining.
Stethoscope functionality generally has not changed over the past few decades evolving from the monaural hollowed out wooden tube first invented in the early 1800’s by Rene Laennec to the more familiar long multi tubular version, improved upon by George Cammann 50 years later, we so typically see today. The core components of a modern stethoscope are comprised of ear tips, binaural piece, tubing and a diaphragm with a bell on the back. The bell transmits low frequency waves all the way up to the ear pieces, while the diaphragm is designed to carry the higher frequency sound. The two fathers of the stethoscope left little room for improvement on the near perfect design for just over a century until a Harvard Medical School professor by the name of David Littmann turned the simple listening device into the versatile diagnostic tool resting around almost every health care professional’s neck today.
We hear sayings everyday such as “Looks don’t matter; beauty is only skin-deep”, yet we live in a decade that contradicts this very notion. If looks don’t matter, then why are so many women harming themselves because they are not satisfied with how they look? If looks don’t matter, then why is the media using airbrushing to hide any flaws that one has? This is because with the media establishing unattainable standards for body perfection, American Women have taken drastic measures to live up to these impractical societal expectations. “The ‘body image’ construct tends to comprise a mixture of self-perceptions, ideas and feelings about one’s physical attributes. It is linked to self-esteem and to the individual’s emotional stability” (Wykes 2). As portrayed throughout all aspects of our media, whether it is through the television, Internet, or social media, we are exploited to a look that we wish we could have; a toned body, long legs, and nicely delineated six-pack abs. Our society promotes a body image that is “beautiful” and a far cry from the average woman’s size 12, not 2. The effects are overwhelming and we need to make more suitable changes as a way to help women not feel the need to live up to these unrealistic standards that have been self-imposed throughout our society.
Seikel, J. A., King, D. W., & Drumright, D. G. (2010). 12. Anatomy & physiology for speech,
...concerns was fame. He only wanted to build his name. Another way in which Gilgamesh did not demonstrate the same heroic values as Beowulf is the fact that he was not fearless. He was afraid of his own death. We witnessed this after Enkidu died, when he set out on his journey to gain immortality.
The media can impact people’s lives in many ways, whether it’s fashion, movies, literature, or hobbies. One of the impacts is how women view their bodies. Movie stars and models feel pressured to catch attention and to look good in order to have a good career in their respective field. People tend to judge how someone looks based on their body composition. The result of this “judgment” is that Hollywood is getting skinny. Since models and actresses serve as role models for people, people tend to want to look like them. The result of this seemingly harmless model of behavior is in an increase in eating disorders.
The Viking community was a diverse group of people, from Kings, Jarls, and great warriors to poets and scholars. Extended famili...
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. In our society today, people would rather see what celebrities are up to than what is going on with our health plan. Watching the news makes us aware of the latest trend, new gadget, who’s in rehab, or who has an eating disorder. In the eyes of society, women like Eva Longoria, Kim Kardashian, and Megan Fox are the epitome of perfection. What girl wouldn’t want to look like them? Unfortunately, this includes most of the girls in the US. Through TV shows, commercials, magazines or any form of advertising, the media enforces a certain body type which women emulate. The media has created a puissant social system where everyone must obtain a thin waist and large breasts. As a society, we are so image obsessed with the approval of being thin and disapproval of being overweight, that it is affecting the health of most women. Women much rather try to fit the social acceptance of being thin by focusing on unrealistic body images which causes them to have lower self esteem and are more likely to fall prey to eating disorders, The media has a dangerous influence on the women’s health in the United States.
Typically, the image of a Viking is a barbaric, bearded man plundering and destroying a neighboring village. This is actually the stereotypical viewpoint. In actuality, Vikings, have a very different image. For example, Vikings did not wear furry boots or furry armor, they did not have horned helmets, they invaded Britain, and they also were the first to discover America! They were also experts in nautical technology, crafts, trading, warfare and many other skills (Jonsson 1). With all of these traits, the Vikings seem like an unstoppable force in the European continent. But, who were the Vikings? The Vikings were actually venturesome seafarers. This means that they were travelers who were constantly exploring and looking for new areas of land. There roots can be traced all the way back to 6000 B.C. were nomadic men traveled in primitive crafts up the Denmark coast. Fast forward two millennia and these nomadic people have established permanent homes, but still using the boat for food and travel. As stated before, they were not just raiders, although they did do this frequently, but they were actually expert traders, trading all around the world. It wasn’t until around 793 A.D. that a Viking explosion took place in northern Europe (Jonsson 2). Raids began to take place on neighboring villages and their places of worship. To some this is the only type of knowledge they have about Vikings. However, their culture was something to be admired. Trading, religion, and everyday life are all important parts of a Viking culture.
The title "Viking" includes a wide description of Nordic people; Danes, Swedes, and Norwegians, who lived during a period of
In modern society there is more and more digital editing without the knowledge of consumers. Currently there are various reasons for why women develop negative body image, low-self-esteem and eating disorders. According to Naomi Wolf in her novel “Beauty Myth”, one of the many reasons women obtain concerns with their bodies is due to the universal images of young female bodies presented through advertisements in fashion magazines. Advertisements in magazines are altering and shaping the desires of men and women. Magazines sell viewers images of beautiful, skinny, flawless confident young women. When people are constantly antagonized with the magazine industry’s ideal of “perfect beauty” the viewer’s then, subconsciously believe these images to be true and begin to form biases about what they themselves should look like and what other people must also look like. People who view magazines get mislead by advertisers because they are unaware that all the images displayed are digitally altered through Photoshop and airbrushing. Today’s magazines are formed completely on false ideals of flawless beauty and unattainable body images, to prevent women and men from falling victim to the magazine’s deceitful images we as a society need to become aware and educate ourselves.
At a young age, Bell started to recreate the sound of the human voice, “At the age of 16, he built a talking machine from rubber and strips of tin. He could make the device’s tin strips vibrate and produce bl...
The External or Outer Ear - comprises of the auricle or pinna which is the fleshy part of the outer ear. It is cup-shaped and collects and amplifies sound waves which then passes along the ear canal to the ear drum or tympanic membrane. The rim of the auricle is called the helix and the inferior portion is called the lobule. The external auditory canal is a carved tube and contains a few hair and ceruminous glands which are specialized sebaceous or oil glands. These secrete ear wax or cerumen. Both the hairs and the cerumen help prevent dust and foreign objects from entering the ear. A number of people produce large amounts of cerumen, and this sometimes cause the build up to be impacted and can bri...
Many people only think that women have the pressure of being flawless; however, the study shows that is not true. Not every men in the today’s world define themselves as dangerous, exciting, powerful, wealthy, tough, no emotions, has complete self-control, loves violence, and controlling women. These word our descriptions of what men are stereotyped in media. Also not everyone woman defines themselves as motherly, kind, powerless, emotion filled, no control, patient, creative, sexy and stupid. However, the media depict women to be this way. The reality is that research suggests that one in four people with eating disorders are men. Images of Adois-like male models with six-packs and, seemingly flawless professional athletes are shown every as an example of what men are suppose to look like. Girls are forced to look the right way to the point where they 're worth is often equated with their physical beauty. In fact, women experience an average of 13 negative thoughts about their body each day for example, an “I hate my body” thought. There was a survey done on 5th to 12th grade girls that looked at the negative influence of media on the perception of body image. 47% of the girls said they want to lose weight to look like famous people because of the people shown as beautiful on magazines. 69% said that magazine pictures influenced their idea of what the “perfect body” looks like (Jennifer L &Eugene V, 2004). Body image issues are relevant in both gender
The media has promoted a dominant view of how people should perceive beauty, and what consists of perfection in beauty. According to Dr. Karin Jasper, the media have women encouraging them to be concerned with their outward appearance and how others perceive them by surrounding everyone with the ideal female beauty. (Jasper, 2000) Body image has become a particular concern for young girls and women, often females work diligently to attain the perfect body image advertised in mass media. (Gibbs, 2010) When women are not able to obtain their ideal body goal, many develop negative feelings and become self-conscious about their bodies. Conversely, it is not possible for someone to look like a model in ads, someone without blemishes, scars, or pours. Another study conducted in 2012 showed contemporary media and culture has defined a women’s social desirability in terms of their bodies. For females, this has often resulted in comparing themselves to bodies shown in advertisements, commercials, magazines, etc. however not all body
There are different types of communication (verbal, nonverbal, paralinguistic). Verbal communication is communicating with words. For instance, an individual speaks to another at a business meeting regarding profit margins. Second, nonverbal communication is communicating without the use of words but through gesture, body language, facial expression and eye contact (Baron, Branscombe, Byrne). Also these physical expressions can provide powerful and valuable information about others’ current feelings and reactions without the need of words. Lastly paralinguistic is defined as the use of emotional expression, gestures, and the location of the body in relation to the other's body, eye contact, and level of voice instead of verbally expressing these cues (Triandis). Additionally, paralinguistic is also known as paralanguage as a way to modify or nuance meaning, or convey emotion, with the use of pitch, volume, and intonation (Triandis). For instance, as described by Triandis’ article Culture and Communication, “in Bulgaria and south India a nod means "no,” and a shake of the head, means "yes".” It’s interesting how Triandis describes the amount of difficulty it was to compre...