Acoustical Society of America
138th Meeting Press Luncheon News Release


ULTRASOUND DIAGNOSIS OF BURNS,
PERFECT PITCH IN TONE LANGUAGE SPEAKERS, AND
SOUNDING OUT THE CONTENTS OF DANGEROUS CHEMICAL DRUMS
AT ASA PRESS LUNCHEON IN COLUMBUS

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Melville, New York, October 26, 1999

Is the coveted musical talent known as "perfect pitch" actually something that can be picked up by any infant? How can ultrasound pictures of burns potentially speed up the healing of burn wounds? Can workers inspect sealed chemical drums by listening to them rather than having to open them up?

These and other questions will be addressed at a press luncheon sponsored by the Acoustical Society of America (ASA) on Tuesday, November 2 at 11:30 AM at the Hyatt Regency Columbus in Columbus, OH. Those reporters wishing to attend should contact Ben Stein at 301-209-3091, or bstein@aip.org.

The luncheon will take place at the 138th Meeting of the ASA which occurs in Columbus from November 1-5, With nearly 7000 members, ASA is the largest scientific organization in the United States devoted to acoustics. The Columbus meeting will be the largest conference devoted to acoustics in the US this year.

Here are the speakers and topics for the luncheon:

ASA PRESS LUNCHEON
November 2, 11:30 AM
Columbus, Ohio

INTRODUCTION

Patricia Kuhl
University of Washington
President of the Acoustical Society of America

ULTRASOUND DIAGNOSIS OF BURNS

Joie Jones
UC-Irvine
(949-824-6147, jpjones@uci.edu)

Evaluating serious burns is truly an unmet medical need. At the present time, burns are often assessed by simple visual observation. Current technologies for diagnosing burns are either not sufficiently accurate or unsuitable for use in an emergency room or remote location. Conventional ultrasound--requiring direct contact with the skin--is difficult and time-consuming to use, as well as extremely painful for the patient. Joie Jones of UC-Irvine will present an ultrasound method--which does not require contact with the skin--for evaluating the depth and severity of burns. Such a technique can lead to more customized and aggressive burn treatment programs for victims, potentially reducing the danger of infection and shortening hospital stays as well as the duration of burn wounds.

SPEAKERS OF TONE LANGUAGES POSSESS ABSOLUTE PITCH

Diana Deutsch
UC-San Diego
(858-453-1558, ddeutsch@ucsd.edu)

Through End of October Call: 858-453-1558 or 858-534-4615 email: ( ddeutsch@ucsd.edu )
During ASA Meeting (2-5 Nov) Call: 614-228-3200 ( Courtyard by Marriott )

Absolute pitch, or "perfect pitch," is the ability to produce or identify the pitch of a tone without first hearing a note whose pitch is known. It is considered an extremely rare ability, with an estimated incidence in the U.S. population of less than one in ten thousand. Diana Deutsch of UC-San Diego will present evidence that native speakers of two tone languages - Vietnamese and Mandarin - show remarkably precise absolute pitch in reading lists of words. With this evidence, Deutsch and her colleagues propose that the potential for acquiring absolute pitch may be universal, and that it can possibly be attained by associating pitches with meaningful words very early in life. (See lay language paper at http://www.acoustics.org/138th/deutsch.htm)

SOUNDING OUT THE CONTENTS OF DANGEROUS CHEMICAL DRUMS

Dan Costley
University of Mississippi
(601-324-2479, dcostley@mil-tec.com)

Inside the 55-gallon sealed drums at many nuclear and chemical waste sites, gases may build up to dangerously high levels as the result of processes such as radiolysis, in which radioactive emissions break down chemicals inside the drum. In efforts to increase the safety of workers who must handle these drums, R. Daniel Costley of the University of Mississippi will describe a noninvasive acoustical technique for detecting dangerously high pressures in such drums. He and a colleague have discovered that the natural frequencies of vibration of a tapped drum lid increase as the pressure inside the drum increases. He will present experimental evidence and plans to incorporate this system in a simple handheld device.

ELEMENTS OF SUB SAHARAN AFRICAN MUSIC IN JAZZ

Ted McDaniel
Ohio State
(614-292-4657, McDaniel.2@osu.edu)

Many musical and performance traditions from sub-Saharan African societies are retained in various ways in jazz music. With numerous recorded examples, Professor McDaniel will explain such practices as collective improvisation, the acoustic phenomenon of pitch-bending, and texture. At his meeting lecture following the press luncheon (2:15-3:00 PM, McKinley Room), musicians drawn from the Ohio State Jazz Division will perform specific musical elements that further illustrate the absorption of sub-Saharan music into 20th century jazz.

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