Page 10 - 2017Winter

From the Editor | Arthur N. Popper
This issue of Acoustics To- day (AT) has, as usual, a wide range of topics, although with a slight focus on bats. The first article, by Steven Garrett, Ju- lian Maynard, and Seth Putter-
man, celebrates the amazing contributions of Isadore Rud- nick on the 100th anniversary of his birth. Rudnick made contributions to physical acoustics that very much helped the field move the discipline forward in the second half of the 20th century. I must admit that after reading about Rud- nick’s life and contributions and his impact on colleagues and students, I regret never having known him.
This is followed by an article by Elisa Konofagou who dis- cusses a potential path to the treatment of many diseases in the brain using ultrasound to overcome the blood-brain bar- rier, a protective mechanism in the brain so effective that it keeps medications from reaching any part of the brain.
The third article is by Jim Lynch. Not only is Jim an under- water acoustician and editor in chief of the Acoustical So- ciety of America (ASA) publications, he is also an amateur astronomer. In his article, Jim merges his expertise as acous- tician with his astronomical interests to write about the uses of acoustics in astronomical research.
We have two articles about bats in this issue of AT. In the first, Dan Russell shares a fascinating story of the acoustics of baseball bats. Although the focus of the article is on bats used in the US national sport of baseball, Dan points out that the general ideas he discusses also have applicability to other sports where a ball is hit, including golf, cricket, tennis, and hurling. Dan has put together a number of fascinating videos, and I particularly recommend his rendition of “Take Me Out to the Ballgame.” (For non-United States readers, this song is the “national anthem” of baseball.) The only thing Dan leaves out of his article is mention of my childhood hero and (ar- guably) the greatest baseball player of all time, Willie Mays. And so I am mentioning the “Say Hey Kid” here just to honor my hero (and also the hero of the AT copyeditor).
The second bat article, by Jim Simmons, is about the amazing echolocating mammal, the bat. Jim focuses on one aspect of the history of bat echolocation research, target ranging, an area where he made fundamental contributions as the first
person to train a bat to do psychophysical tasks.
8 | Acoustics Today | Winter 2017
The final article returns to the use of ultrasound in the treat- ment of a medical problem in a noninvasive way. Julianna Simon, Adam Maxwell, and Michael Bailey describe a num- ber of different uses of ultrasound in managing and treating kidney stones. I should point out that this article updates a 2008 AT article on use of ultrasound for lithotripsy (http:// acousticstoday.org/lr), one of the techniques described by Julianna and her colleagues.
Continuing our new section called Sound Perspectives, this issue of AT has a number of interesting essays that I encour- age all to read. In particular, we introduce a new continu- ing feature of Sound Perspectives, “Ask an Acoustician,” that will be organized and written by AT Associate Editor Mi- cheal Dent. The purpose of “Ask an Acoustician” is to have members of the ASA from various acoustics disciplines talk about their careers and how they evolved. Although most essays will introduce younger members, we will also include, from time to time, ASA members who are more senior and whose career paths can be instructive. Articles are presented as questions and answers and will highlight some of the ways people got their start, what their jobs entail, and some of the ups and downs of their careers.
Sound Perspectives also includes continuing articles by L. Keeta Jones on educational and outreach programs of the ASA, a report on the Underwater Acoustics Technical Com- mittee (TC) by TC Chair Megan Ballard, a fascinating histo- ry on the Women in Acoustics Committee by Lauren Ronsse and Tracianne Neilsen, and an introduction to the ASA use of social media by Dan Farrell (ASA web office manager and AT web guru) and L. Keeta Jones.
Finally, please make sure to read “From the President” by Marcia Isakson. Marcia not only introduces herself as the new ASA president but talks about her interests in increas- ing awareness of acoustics as part of the ongoing and very effective ASA strategic planning process.
Of course, if any of you have thoughts about AT, please do not hesitate to drop me a note. And, in particular, if you have comments and ideas about “Ask an Acoustician,” please contact either Micheal Dent (mdent@buffalo.edu) or me (apopper@umd.edu). Of course, feel free to suggest the name of a person whom we might consider for future essays.