Acoustics is generally defined as the science that deals with the production, transmission, and reception of sound and the understanding and control of its effects. In fact, the fields of acoustics cover an especially broad range of subjects and domains, and comprehensive acoustics textbooks are usually quite thick as a consequence. While they are valuable resources for researchers, these books might appear a little daunting for a young audience or for people who are new to acoustics. This paper is an example of how educational comics can be designed and used to introduce one of the most commonly discussed topics when the basics of acoustics are taught: decibel level. Seven drawn pages constitute a visual support to explain the origin and history of the decibel, together with examples from acoustics and other domains on the use of logarithmic scales and classical decibel calculations. Several comments and comprehensive bibliographical references are also provided for each drawn page to enlarge the range of subjects or exercises that can be discussed in courses and foster further readings.
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November 2022
November 10 2022
An illustrated tutorial for logarithmic scales and decibels in acousticsa)
Special Collection:
Education in Acoustics
Olivier Robin
;
Olivier Robin
b)
1
Centre de Recherche Acoustique-Signal-Humain, Université de Sherbrooke
, 2500 Boulevard de l'Université, Sherbrooke J1K 2R1, Québec, Canada
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Catherine Plante
Catherine Plante
2
Independent comics writer
, 4528 Rue Saint-Denis, Montréal H2J 2L3, Québec, Canada
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b)
Electronic mail: [email protected]
a)
This paper is part of a special issue on Education in Acoustics.
J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 152, 2880–2892 (2022)
Article history
Received:
February 18 2022
Accepted:
October 27 2022
Citation
Olivier Robin, Catherine Plante; An illustrated tutorial for logarithmic scales and decibels in acoustics. J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 1 November 2022; 152 (5): 2880–2892. https://doi.org/10.1121/10.0015144
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