Across Acoustics

In this episode, find out what the next generation of acousticians is researching! In this episode, we talk to the latest round of POMA Student Paper Competition winners, from the joint 189th meeting of the ASA and the Acoustical Society of Japan, held in Honolulu in December 2025. Their topics include: - Perception of the PIN/PEN merger in speakers from the US South (Irene Smith, McGill University) - Using distance to better inform models for multi-channel sources separation (Rajesh Rameshba...

Anybody who's been in a noisy restaurant can tell you how the acoustics of a built environment can impact individuals in the space. In particular, absorption and diffusion of sounds can greatly affect the acoustics. This episode, the editors of the Special Issue on Sound Absorption and Diffusion: Modeling, Measurement, and Application, Mélanie Nolan (Universidad Politecnica de Madrid), Peter D’Antonio (RPG Acoustical Systems), and Ning Xiang (Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute), share current r...

The sport of pickleball has become more than a passing fad. The equipment involved in the game, which include a hollow plastic ball perforated with holes, create some pretty unique sounds. In this episode we talk with Kathleen Romito and Jamie Banks (Quiet Communities) about their research into how pickleball noise affects bystanders. Associated paper: Kathleen M. Romito and Jamie Banks. "A survey of the community impact of pickleball noise: A pilot study." Proc. Mtgs. Acoust. 60, 040...

As the study of acoustic metamaterials has progressed over the past couple of decades, research has shifted from focusing on the creation of materials with fixed structures to ones that are active or tunable. In this episode, we talk to the guest editors of the recent special issue on Active and Tunable Acoustic Metamaterials, Michael Haberman (University of Texas at Austin), Christina Naify (University of Texas at Austin), Bogdan Popa (University of Michigan), and Serife Tol (University of M...

One of the key components of soundscape research is the focus on the perspective of the listener. However, that perspective may shift depending on the listener's personal characteristics, their cultural background, and other factors. In this episode, Katie Chatburn (Manchester Metropolitan University), Kirsten Van Den Bosch (University of Groningen), and Arezoo Talebzadeh (Ghent University) discuss perspectives that may be overlooked in standard soundscape research practice, as well as share ...