ASA PRESSROOM

Acoustical Society of America
140th Meeting Special Events

[ SESSIONS | LECTURES | WORKSHOPS | COLLOQUIA | COURSES ]
[ EXHIBITS | CONCERTS | COMPETITIONS | TOURS | LISTENING SPACES ]


SPECIAL SESSIONS


ASA PLENARY SESSION


A plenary session will be held Wednesday afternoon at 3:30 p.m. in the Pacific Ballroom. The Silver Medal in Physical Acoustics will be presented to Gregory W. Swift and the Pioneers of Underwater Acoustics Medal will be presented to Darrell R. Jackson. Distinguished Service Citations will be presented to Avril Brenig and John V. Bouyoucos.


The Science Writing Award for Professionals in Acoustics will be presented to William M. Hartmann for his article in the November 1999 issue of Physics Today titled How We Localize Sound." The Science Writing Award in Acoustics for Journalists will be presented to Kathryn Brown for a series of articles published in New Scientist and to Roland Pease and Radek Boschetty for their audio program "Soundworks" aired by BBC World Radio Service.

Certificates will be presented to the Fellows elected at the Atlanta Meeting of the Society.


NOISE-CON PLENARY SESSIONS


There will be three NOISE-CON plenary sessions. The first will be presented on Sunday afternoon in session 0pNSe by Klaus Brinkman; the second on Monday morning in Session 1aNSa by Glenn Frommer and the third on Monday afternoon in Session 1pNSc by Richard H. Lyon.

SPECIAL LECTURES


HOT TOPICS SESSION


On Wednesday afternoon, 6 December, a Hot Topics session (3pID) will be held in the Pacific Ballroom starting at 1:55 p.m. and ending just before the start of the Plenary Session. Papers will be presented on current topics in the fields of acoustical oceanography, animal bioacoustics and musical acoustics.


SPECIAL HISTORY LECTURES


The Committee on Archives and History will jointly sponsor two special lectures on the history of acoustics. Leo Beranek will present "Acoustical Society's Role in Noise Control," jointly sponsored by the Technical Committee on Noise, at 2:00 p.m. on Wednesday, 6 December, in California Ballroom Salon 3. Peter Ladefoged will present "Speech Communication within the Acoustical Society of America,'' jointly sponsored by the Technical Committee on Speech Communication, at 11:10 a.m. on Thursday, 7 December, in Pacific Ballroom Salons A, B and C.


In 1997, the ASA Committee on Archives and History conceived a plan for a series of invited lectures on each of the technical areas of the Society which would document the significant achievements and milestones of each of its twelve technical committees and one interdisciplinary technical group during the Society's first 75 years. With the cooperation of the technical committees, distinguished individuals are selected to review the history of their particular technical specialty and present a lecture which shows how that activity has developed and has contributed to the Society at large and to the broad field of acoustics as well. To date a total of four history lectures have been presented, two each at the 138th and 139th meetings. At each subsequent meeting two additional lectures will be scheduled including those in Noise and Speech Communication at this meeting in Newport Beach.


The invited lecturers have been asked to prepare a written manuscript of their lectures which will be published in a commemorative book for the 75th Anniversary of the Society to be celebrated in 2004. The Archives and History Committee and the individual technical committees/group welcome comments and suggestions on both the History Lecture Series and on the proposed ASA Diamond Anniversary Book. Volunteers to assist the committees would be most welcome too. Contact Henry Bass, Chair, Committee on Archives and History, pabass@sunset.backbone.olemiss.edu


TUTORIAL LECTURE


A tutorial presentation on Virtual Musical Instruments will be given by Julius O. Smith, III, of the Center for Computer Research in Music and Acoustics, Department of Music, Stanford University, Stanford, California, at 7:00 p.m. on Monday, 4 December in Pacific Ballroom Salons C and D. This is the twenty-eighth in a series of Tutorial Lectures intended to provide attendees with some understanding and appreciation of areas of acoustical research other than their own specialties.


A registration fee is charged to defray partially the lecture expenses; $15 if paid in advance by check, money order, or MasterCard, Visa or American Express credit card received no later than 6 November by the Acoustical Society of America, Tutorial Session Registration, Suite 1NO1, 2 Huntington Quadrangle, Melville, NY 11747-4502; or $25 if paid after 6 November or at the meeting. Note: A registration form that can be downloaded is available here.

Students with current IDs may preregister for $7.00 for registration before 6 November and $12.00 afterwards. Pre-registrants are assured of receiving copies of the lecture notes at the meeting.


DISTINGUISHED LECTURES


A Distinguished Lecture on "Ultrasonic Eyeglasses for the Blind" will be presented by Leslie Kay of New Zealand in Session 2pABa on Tuesday afternoon.


A Vern O. Knudsen lecture, sponsored by the Technical Committee on Architectural Acoustics, will be presented by Paul Scarbrough of Norwalk, Connecticut in Session 4pAAa on Thursday afternoon.

SPECIAL WORKSHOPS



TUTORIAL WORKSHOP ON OCEANOGRAPHY


The Oceanography Workshop/Mini-Tutorial" series will continue, featuring two lectures on fish and zooplankton acoustics. The lecturers will be George A. Rose of the Fisheries and Marine Institute of Memorial University Newfoundland, Canada and Peter H. Wiebe of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, Massachusetts. This mini-tutorial lecture format, which was well received at the Columbus and Atlanta meetings, will again provide overviews of oceanographic science, and how acoustics is used as a vital tool in carrying out that science. The lectures will be presented as part of an Acoustical Oceanography special session. Specifically, each of the one-hour lectures, will be the first talks in the special sessions 1aAO and 1pAO titled Bioacoustics I and II.'' Each tutorial should provide a good foundation for these sessions, and be of great interest to those concerned with bioacoustics.

SPECIAL COLLOQUIA



TOPICAL MEETING ON THE PHYSICS OF ECHO-CONTRAST AGENTS


A one-day colloquium and discussion on the topic "The Physics of Echo-Contrast Agents" will be held on Monday, 4 December (Sessions 1aBB and 1pBB). Six subtopic sessions will focus on: modeling of contrast agents, imaging techniques using echo-contrast agents, in-vitro use of contrast agents, bioeffects of contrast agents, novel contrast agents, and future directions. Each subtopic session will begin with a 15-minute overview invited paper, followed by a moderated panel discussion.

SPECIAL COURSES



SHORT COURSE ON APPLIED DIGITAL SIGNAL PROCESSING IN ACOUSTICS


A short course on applied digital signal processing in acoustics will be held Friday, 8 December, 1:00 to 5:00 p.m. and Saturday, 9 December, 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. in Pacific Ballroom Salon F.


This short course is designed to develop digital signal processing (DSP) techniques that are applicable to acoustical signal processing problems. The discussions range from basic digital signal processing techniques such as digital filtering and the fast Fourier transform (FFT), to more advanced approaches such as spectral estimation and adaptive processing, to some of the even more sophisticated adaptive and model-based techniques. The intent is to provide an overview which will provide the participant with additional details of a particular approach to investigate them further. At each stop along the way various DSP techniques will be applied to acoustical applications. Participants will obtain a basic understanding of the approaches and their applicability discussed from the practitioner's perspective, rather than that of a DSP expert.


The course instructor will be Dr. James V. Candy, Chief Scientist for Engineering and Director of the Center for Advanced Signal and Image Sciences at the University of California, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. He has published over 125 journal articles, book chapters, and technical reports as well as written two texts in signal processing, Signal Processing: the Model-Based Approach, (McGraw-Hill, 1986) and Signal Processing: the Modern Approach, (McGraw-Hill, 1988).


The registration fee is $250.00 and covers attendance, instructional materials and coffee breaks. Only those who have registered by 6 November will be guaranteed receipt of instructional materials. Any cancellation after 6 November will be charged a $50 processing fee. Registration at the meeting will be on a space-available basis but notes may not be available for at-meeting registrants.

SPECIAL EXHIBITS



JOINT INSTRUMENT AND EQUIPMENT EXPOSITION


The joint instrument and equipment exposition for the two meetings will open in the California Ballroom at the Newport Beach Marriott on Sunday evening, 3 December, at 5:30 p.m. and close about noon on Tuesday, 5 December. The exposition will include computer-based instrumentation, sound level meters, sound intensity systems, signal processing systems, devices for noise control and acoustical materials, active noise control systems and other exhibits on acoustics. Contact the Exhibit Manager, Richard Peppin, Tel.: (301) 495-7738; FAX: (301) 495-7739; peppinr@asme.org for additional information.


GALLERY OF ACOUSTICS


The Interdisciplinary Technical Group on Signal Processing in Acoustics will sponsor its fifth Gallery of Acoustics at the Newport Beach meeting. The objective of the Gallery is to enhance ASA meetings by providing a compact and free-format setting for researchers to display their work to all meeting attendees in a forum emphasizing the diversity and interdisciplinary nature of acoustics. The Gallery will consist of posters, videos, and audio clips of images and/or sounds generated by acoustic processes or resulting from signal processing of acoustic data. A panel of referees will judge entries and a cash prize of $350 will be awarded to the winning entry. The Gallery will be open Monday to Friday in the ASA Registration area at the Marriott.


MOBILE SCIENCE MUSEUM AT THE NEWPORT BEACH MARRIOTT


In conjunction with the special session on informal education in acoustics, the California State University, Long Beach, Mobile Science Museum will be on display Tuesday afternoon from 1:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. in the parking area of the hotel (near the North Tower of the Marriott). This converted 27-ft. recreation vehicle brings a variety of hands-on science exhibits and activities to local schools and public events. Many of the popular exhibits involve the visitor's senses and a seawater touch-tank containing local intertidal animals. The topics of vibrations and waves work well, especially with musical applications. Drop by and have some fun with these informal experiments, brought to you courtesy of the College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics at California State University, Long Beach.

SPECIAL CONCERTS



CONCERT PERFORMANCE BY THE AMERICUS BRASS BAND


A performance technical session featuring the Americus Brass Band will be held on Thursday from 5:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. in the California Ballroom just prior to the Social Hour. The band recreates the historical town band of Americus, Georgia, which became the regimental band of the 4th Georgia Volunteers in the Confederate Army. The Americus Brass Band has toured nationally for eight years, appearing at major Civil War battle reenactments, balls, and other related "living-history" events. They have produced three critically acclaimed CDs and recorded sound-track music for and/or appeared on-screen in a dozen major motion pictures and television shows. Playing their antique instruments and dressed in period costume, the Americus Brass Band will offer a rousing concert of music from the Civil War to the Buffalo Bill Wild West Show, demonstrating how brass instruments and brass music evolved in the United States during the last half of the nineteenth century. Visit them at: www.csulb.edu/~birkemei/abbweb/abb.htm.

SPECIAL COMPETITIONS



STUDENT DESIGN COMPETITION


The Technical Committees on Engineering Acoustics and Architectural Acoustics of the Acoustical Society of America, in association with the American Loudspeaker Association, JBL Professional, JBL Consumer, Infinity and Revel, are sponsoring a Student Design Competition, which will be professionally judged at the Newport Beach meeting. The competition involves the design of a loudspeaker system that may be placed on a pedestal or surface mounted to a room surface with physical and performance characteristics that were defined in the design specification for the competition.


The submitted designs will be displayed at the Newport Beach meeting and judged by a panel consisting of professional loudspeaker designers, design consultants and university professors.


An award of $1,000 US will be made to the submitter(s) of the entry judged "First Honors." Four awards of $500 US each will be made to submitters of entries judged "Commendation."


Entries will be on display in the Newport South Room on Tuesday morning, 4 December, in session 2aAA.

SPECIAL TOURS



TECHNICAL TOURS


Three technical tours will be offered during the week. Sign up for these tours at the ASA Registration Desk. The pick-up and drop-off location for all buses will be posted at the meeting.


Tuesday Morning: Orange County Performing Arts Center. Depart the hotel at 9:30 a.m. and return at approximately 12:30 p.m. The tour will begin at The Center at 10:00 a.m. and is scheduled to last about 1 1/2 hours. Jerald Hyde will lead a tour of the facility which features the 3000-seat Segerstrom Hall. There will be a walk-through of the main hall, stage, backstage and orchestra shell with a discussion of the main acoustical features and pertinent objective measurement data. A visit to the Founder's Hall and to the central mechanical room will also be included. Preliminary estimate of the cost of transportation is $20 to $25 per person.


Wednesday Morning: John Wayne Airport Access and Noise Office. Depart the hotel at 8:45 a.m. and return at 11:30 a.m. See and experience the newest, state of the art, aircraft operations and noise monitoring system. John Wayne Airport is distinguished as one of the most stringently regulated commercial airports in the world. The tour will led by John S. Leyerle, Manager, Access and Noise. He and his staff will be available for questions during the tour. Transportation cost for this tour is expected to be about $20. For advance registration (recommended), contact John S. Leyerle [jleyerle@ocair.com].


Friday Morning/Afternoon: Fiske Museum of Musical Instruments at The Claremont Colleges. Depart the hotel at 9:00 a.m. and return at 2:30 p.m., allowing for 2-hours for travel and 2-hours at the museum and 1 1/2 hours for lunch. The tour will focus on the brasses, which make up the largest collection. To preview the instruments in this museum, visit their website at [www.cuc.claremont.edu/fiskei]. A preliminary estimate of the charge for transportation (not including lunch) is about $20 to $25 per person.

SPECIAL LISTENING SPACES



LISTENING SPACES IN THE GREATER LOS ANGELES AREA


The Technical Committee on Architectural Acoustics (TCAA) has a new subcommittee exploring the feasibility of establishing a formal registry of "acoustical places" along the lines of the National Registry of Historic Theaters and others. One activity the subcommittee has begun is assembling lists of places of acoustical interest worth visiting in the general vicinity of our regular ASA meeting sites. A list of listening places for the greater Newport Beach area is provided below. ASA members and guests interested in helping to develop a Registry of Acoustical Places (RAP) are welcome to attend the meeting of the Technical Committee on Architectural Acoustics on Tuesday evening, 5 December (see schedule for location and starting time).


A wide selection of music spaces is available in the Greater Los Angeles area. Consult the current theater listings for events occurring during the ASA meeting week, but keep in mind that distances and travel times can be substantial. Music facilities in the South Coast area include: Orange County Performing Arts Centre, Costa Mesa (714) 556-2787 (about 15 min. from Newport Beach); Cerritos Centre for Performing Arts, Cerritos (562) 916-8500 (40 min.); Irvine Barclay Theater at UC Irvine (949) 854-4646 (15 min); Salmon Hall, Chapman University, City of Orange (714) 997-2400 (35 min); Newport Harbor Lutheran Church (949)548-8004; St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church, Newport Beach (949) 631-2880.