171 Items Tagged

Sounds

The Octobass at the Musical Instrument Museum

Phoenix, Arizona

Octobass

The massive, incredibly rare instrument is over 11 feet tall with a range so deep it goes lower than humans can hear.

The bell-house.

Hajdúszoboszló, Hungary

Harangház Bell House

A beautiful display of nearly 50 bells crafted with a unique design and distinct sound.

Installation by artist Michael Thomas Hill and research scientist Dr. Richard Major.

Sydney, Australia

'Forgotten Songs' Sound Sculpture

A collaboration of art and ornithology mourns the calls of Sydney's lost birds.

St. Louis, Missouri

Whispering Arch at Union Station

Speak to a companion on the other side of the room loud and clear through this architectural anomaly.

Clearfin lionfish.

The First Step to Getting Rid of Invasive Lionfish? Listen Closely ...

Scientists have recorded the "roar" of the unwanted reef predators.

Samir S. Patel May 15, 2017

Charlotte, North Carolina

Musical Parking Garage

This nine-story building can be played like an instrument.

The Mystery Boom and the Bachelor Party in Michigan

A lot of residents got spooked.

Erik Shilling April 21, 2017

In medical shows, crime dramas, and documentaries alike, sparking sounds are almost always used to represent brain activity.

The People Who Decide What the Inside of a Human Body Sounds Like

Our brains don't really crackle and hiss, but on film and TV shows, they must.

Cara Giaimo March 28, 2017

Also known as the Lover's Bench.

Santiago de Compostela, Spain

Bench of Whispers

Thanks to an acoustic anomaly, this unassuming stone bench has heard one hundred years of secrets.

Jama Masjid in Delhi.

Listen to the Call to Prayer in Countries Around the World

A new project collects sounds from sacred places in 34 countries.

Sarah Laskow February 22, 2017

Icy ocean in Nunavut, near where the ping is causing problems.

Canada Is Sending Acousticians to Investigate a Mystery Ping in the Arctic Ocean

It's scaring animals away from an important hunting ground.

Cara Giaimo January 18, 2017

A pilot whale whistle, visualized.

military history

In the 1970s, the U.S. Navy Tried to Talk Like Whales

A recently declassified report reveals that Cold War submarines almost chirped and whistled.

Cara Giaimo January 17, 2017

A family of timber wolves.

Why Researchers Howl At Wolves—And Why Some Might Stop

For wolf experts, "elicited howling surveys" involve fearlessly imitating what they aim to study.

Cara Giaimo December 21, 2016

The ambulance siren: a classic attention-grabber.

An Alarm Designer on How to Annoy People in the Most Effective Ways

There's an art and science to making one sound seem more urgent than another.

Ella Morton November 15, 2016

<em>Friday 13th Part VI: Jason Lives</em>.

31 days of halloween

How the Hidden Sounds of Horror Movie Soundtracks Freak You Out

From altered voices to "infrasound," these audio tricks spook and unsettle.

Natalie Zarrelli October 31, 2016

Triforium in Little Tokyo

Los Angeles, California

Triforium

A visionary, futuristic sculpture in Los Angeles that never met its extraterrestrial potential.

Tulsa, Oklahoma

The Center of the Universe

An acoustic anomaly with a mysterious cause sits in the heart of Tulsa.

The Mystery Spot, hidden in plain sight.

Lake George, New York

Lake George Mystery Spot

A mysterious echo seems to defy the laws of acoustics.