Page 21 - Fall2013

“Classroom photo” of the ASA School in Kansas City
The response to this new ASA initiative was remarkable as it drew more applicants than spaces available. The 40 applicants who were selected to participate formed a deeply diverse student body, whose acoustical interests covered the full range of ASA’s subdisciplines, with the largest numbers from Speech Communication and Architectural Acoustics. Participants included students from six countries who were enrolled in Ph.D. or Master’s degree programs in architectur- al acoustics, speech and hearing, linguistics, engineering fields, and several other disciplines such as physics, oceanog- raphy, and neuroscience. Two early-career participants were from acoustical consulting firms.
ASA School 2012 took place on 20-21 October 2012, the weekend immediately preceding the ASA fall meeting in Kansas City. Instructors in Engineering Acoustics (Michael Vorländer and Paul Schomer) focused on acoustic measure- ments and standards, which are prerequisites for scientific research and practical applications in acoustics. Instructors in Noise (Bennett Brooks and Brigitte Schulte-Fortkamp) discussed criteria and metrics for the outdoor environment and how to use “soundscape” to rethink the evaluation of noise for a “sensitive environment” and its effects on quality of life. In Architectural Acoustics, instructors (Gary Siebein and Erica Ryherd) focused on communication in education- al spaces by verbal, multi‐media, artistic, musical, and man- ual means, and on soundscapes for healthcare environments to enhance healing and reduce environmental stressors for staff, patients, and families. Instructors in Psychological and Physiological Acoustics (Dan Tollin and Chris Stecker) illus- trated how our auditory system determines the spatial loca- tion of sound sources, with examples of why our sense of sound location has important consequences in daily life. Continuing this theme, Speech Communication instructors (Ann Bradlow and Christine Shadle) showed how human lis- teners use localization and segregation to perceive and pro- duce sounds and interact with objects in the environment. To conclude, instructors in Musical Acoustics (Tom Rossing and Jonas Braasch) described the production and transmis- sion of musical sound from the source to the listener and
explained the scientific study of musical performance. Sharing meal and break times and social events, includ- ing a Friday evening welcome reception and Saturday evening dinner, provided informal settings for further dis- cussion and social exchange. At the closing session, each par- ticipant received a certificate of attendance and a USB drive containing all course materials. Participants also attended the ASA meeting immediately following the School, to deep- en their understanding of a specific field of acoustics and become better acquainted with scientific work in other fields. All ASA School attendees were authors on lecture or poster
presentations at the ASA meeting.
ASA School 2012 received funding from several sponsors,
including the Acoustical Society of America (www.acousticalso- ciety.org), the Acoustical Society Foundation Fund (www.acousticalsociety.org/ membership/ as_foundation_ fund), HEAD acoustics, Inc. (www.head-acoustics.de/eng/), and Scantek, Inc. (http://www.scantekinc.com/). The Chair and members of the local organizing committee for the fall 2012 meeting in Kansas City also provided assistance by identifying the venue for the School and by arranging for the audio-visual equipment without cost. This support, which enabled the School to offer the scientific program and other amenities to students at a reasonable cost, is gratefully acknowledged.
Following ASA School 2012, each student attendee and instructor completed an evaluation to provide feedback and suggestions for the next ASA School. The general consensus was that students found ASA School 2012 to be highly bene- ficial and a positive experience; 100% of attendees recom-
Logo for the ASA School 2012
20 Acoustics Today, October 2013