Page 52 - Volume 9, Issue 3

13. Microphones
14. Loudspeakers
15. Sound recording
16. Acoustical measurements
17. Underwater sound
18. Ultrasound – Excitation, detection, and application 19. Aeroacoustics – generation of sound by flow
20. Numerical methods – computational acoustics
21. Practical examples in numerical acoustics
22. Numerical procedures in aeroacoustics
If this reviewer were to compare this to any one book, the best analogy that comes to mind is Skudrzyk’s Die Grundlagen der Akustik, published by Springer in 1954, and which had 1024 pages. It is, of course, long out of print. This book is comparable in scope to Skudrzyk’s, equally attractive, and, of course, more modern.
Given the huge scope and the limited number of pages, it is
inevitable that some readers with greater familiarity may judge some passages superficial. Critical readers learning the subject for the first time may sometimes feel they are missing the “why’s” (Warum’s). Detailed explanations of fundamental phys- ical concepts are often lacking. For example, the first equation in the book, giving a “sound flux” as the vector product of a fluid velocity and an area element seems inexplicable to the present reviewer. The second equation, which defines the sound inten- sity as a product of pressure and fluid velocity, is familiar, of course, but it just pops onto the page with no explanation or mathematical preamble. Nevertheless, there is a lot in the book which makes it a respectable introduction to a wide variety of acoustical concepts. Furthermore, the authors exhibit an acquaintance with much of the fundamental literature, and one finds explicit references to 190 books and 325 research papers. The book includes extensive illustrations and figures, many of which are in color. It is here recommended as a book that would be useful to have.
Collected Works of Isadore Rudnick
The Acoustical Society is pleased to make a special offering of a three disc
set of the collected works of Isadore Rudnick (May 8, 1917 – August 22,
1997), one of the Society’s most eminent members. This is the first of a
projected series, Collected Works of Distinguished Acousticians, that is being
developed by the ASA’s Committee on Archives and History. Future titles in
development include the works of Harvey Fletcher and of Leo Beranek.
There are three discs in the Rudnick set. The first disc contains reprints of Rudnick's papers from scientific journals. The second disc includes a montage of photographs of Rudnick with colleagues and family, Rudnick's prize-winning film “The Unusual Properties of Liquid Helium,” and a video of the Plenary session at the ASA's 100th meeting. The third disc is a video recording of the Memorial Session held at the 135th meeting of the ASA.
Orders can be placed directly with the Acoustical Society of America [Suite 1NO1, 2 Huntington Quadrangle,
Melville, NY 11747-4502, Tel.: 516-576-2377; Fax: 516-576 -2377; Email asa@aip.org]. Price is $50 each for members and $60.00 for nonmembers. An additional $5 for shipping and handling is required.
Books and Publications 51