The Hearing Sciences

From The Critics

Reviewer: Ryan McCreery, M.S.(Boys Town National Research Hospital)
Description: This is a broad introduction to a variety of essential topics in hearing science and psychoacoustics. Beginning with a foundation of acoustics and anatomy and physiology and moving into complex topics in the perception of sound, the chapters are arranged in a hierarchical pattern to build from basic to advanced topics.
Purpose: The purpose is to provide a single book to lead students from the most elementary introduction to acoustics and hearing to some of the most complex topics related to the perception of sound. However, adequate coverage of such a range of topics in a single book is difficult to achieve. On certain topics, a more detailed perspective of previous studies and research would have been appropriate.
Audience: The book was written with few assumptions about readers' previous knowledge and is well suited for doctoral students in hearing science and audiology. Clinicians will also find the review of these fundamental concepts helpful. The authors present some complicated material using simple language that is easy to understand and reflects experience teaching these concepts to students.
Features: A range of topics essential to the understanding of hearing science are covered, ranging from basic signal processing and anatomy and physiology of hearing to physiological acoustics and psychoacoustics. The most comprehensive section of the book is on the anatomy and physiology of the auditory system. An excellent overview from periphery to central auditory system is provided. The section on psychoacoustics includes a broad survey of topics, but does not provide as detailed an approach as books dedicated solely to psychoacoustics. Additional references in this section in particular would have been helpful.
Assessment: This book manages to adequately cover a broad range of related topics effectively. While it does not offer the same depth as books dedicated solely to the various subjects covered in this one, no other single book includes the breadth of information this one does.