This book is a practical guide for researchers and advanced graduate students in biology and biophysics who need a quantitative understanding of acoustical systems such as hearing, sound production, and vibration detection in animals at the physiological level. It begins with an introduction to physical acoustics, covering the fundamental concepts and showing how they can be applied quantitatively to understand auditory and sound-producing systems in animals. Only after the relatively simple mechanical part of the system is explained does the author focus his attention on the underlying physiological processes. The book is written on three levels. For those wanting a brief survey of the field, each chapter begins with a nonmathematical synopsis which summarizes the content and refers to the figures, all of which are designed to be understood apart from the main text. At the next level, the reader can follow the main text, but need not give close attention to anything but the
general concepts and techniques involved. At the third level, the reader should follow the mathematical arguments in detail and attempt the discussion of questions at the end of each chapter. The author has provided detailed solutions which serve to expand the discussions of particular cases.
Industry Reviews
"The author does a superb job of making his readers feel the physics underlying the mathematics of acoustics. The biological examples used throughout the book are both clear and likely to be interesting to most physic and engineering majors. I stringly recommend that this book be available to physical science students taking acoustics courses. I can guarantee . . . that acquaintance with and study of this book will prove of exceptional value to biologists and
audiologists active in hearing and sound-production research." --Physics Today
"Long-awaited and needed. The reader is never too far away from a biological example of an acoustic principle. The text is written in a lucid and "reader-friendly" fashion. . . . a well written text that admirably meets the goals of its author. I would recommend the volume for any biologist who is seriously interested in getting a solid appreciation of acoustics as applied to hearing and sound production." --American Zoologist
"The book...does systematically cover all aspects of sound in mechanical structures....The author sets out to cover the material at three levels, and to this reviewer, he succeeds almost totally....Will certainly be extremely valuable for biologists or others who study the physiology of motion sensing, hearing, and sound production in animals. The clarity of the explanations will also make it useful for anyone who wishes to understand the behaviour of sound in
small spaces and in mechanical structures, whatever the application may be."--Australian and New Zealand Physicist
