Science sounds of the week

Since my list of “sound things to blog about” is only growing and never shrinking, I’ve started sharing some of my favorites with you all each week. Here are the coolest sound related stories I came across this week (and last, since I forgot to post this last week).

– Researchers have finally (finally!) figured out why some people can’t stand the oontz oontz of techno.

– Acoustics finally helps us answer the question: who shot first, Han Solo or Greedo? (Even though everybody knows it was Han, despite the despicable remake.)

– It’s loud out there for animals – and a recent study in PLoS ONE suggests that different types of noise pollution can actually shape the ecology of birds all over the world.

– Okay this one’s not really science sounds, but if you want better sound on your cell phone, why not try a handset?

– Okay one other thing that’s not really science sounds, but is still cool. This radio is powered by water! Christmas is coming up, just sayin’.*

– Remember when we talked about space sounds? Well some ham radio operators are hearing them down on Earth. They’re picking up signals from the newly launched Curiosity rover, on its way to Mars.*

– What does a chair leg sound like? One artist, featured at the TERRA exhibition in London, explores using woodwork as an instrument.

* Thanks to the fabulous Madeleine Johnson for sending those my way via Twitter. If you see cool sound stuff, Tweet at me!