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Authors

• Mikko Kylliäinen

Abstract

History of acoustics from the antiquity to the modernity

Sound has always interested philosophers and scientists. Since the 17th century, the science of sound has been known as acoustics. Today, the results of acoustics as science and technology concern practically all aspects of our everyday life.
As a physical phenomenon, sound is quite complex to be described mathematically. This was one of the two problems concerning the development of acoustics. Based on the work of the great scientists of the 17th and 18th centuries, these mathematical problems could be resolved during the 19th century. In the second half of the 19th century, it was possible to formulate mathematical expressions for the most important acoustical phenomena. However, it was impossible to test these theories empirically. There were no means for measuring sound or for reproducing it accurately. This had been the second problem in the development of acoustics. The development of electricity made it possible to measure, produce and reproduce sound in such a way that the theories could be tested.
In the beginning of the 1930s, acoustics had given birth to industry producing acoustical materials, standardized measurement methods and acoustical testing, as well as regulation dealing with noise and sound insulation. Engineers specialized in planning of sound reinforcement systems and acoustics for different kinds of buildings. Acoustical phenomena were utilized also in telecommunications, radio, sound recording, sound reproduction and sound films.