source file: mills2.txt Date: Wed, 18 Oct 1995 05:51:06 -0700 Subject: Brian vs. Fourier From: bf250@freenet.carleton.ca (John Sankey) I agree that Brian's polemic against Fourier analysis methods went a bit overboard. A proper Fourier transform uses complex numbers - an imaginary sine is an exponential i.e. a transient. When the inherent (thermal) noise due to the finite number of air molecules that can impinge on an ear drum are taken into account, a finite transform can indeed recreate its effective motion from an information perspective. And, our sound detection system consists of some 3000 sensors, each with a bandwidth limit in the region of a kilohertz and a collective bandwidth of a maximum of 50 kHz - again very finite. His basic point is correct though - a Fourier transform only permits an alternative view of the input to the ear system, it isn't the ear itself. I've always assumed that the cilial gross bandwidth of 3 MHz is the real upper limit to what our ears can figure out. -- John Sankey bf250@freenet.carleton.ca Music is Beauty, Beauty is Truth, Truth is Freedom Received: from eartha.mills.edu [144.91.3.20] by vbv40.ezh.nl with SMTP-OpenVMS via TCP/IP; Wed, 18 Oct 1995 14:55 +0100 Received: from by eartha.mills.edu via SMTP (940816.SGI.8.6.9/930416.SGI) for id FAA04455; Wed, 18 Oct 1995 05:55:00 -0700 Date: Wed, 18 Oct 1995 05:55:00 -0700 Message-Id: <951018075414.202002c8@SKSOID.DSEG.TI.COM> Errors-To: madole@ella.mills.edu Reply-To: tuning@eartha.mills.edu Originator: tuning@eartha.mills.edu Sender: tuning@eartha.mills.edu