What Good is Statistical Energy Analysis Anyway

It is now seven years since papers first appeared that were said to use statistical energy analysis (SEA) in solving problems of sound structural interactions. SEA has been described as a point of view in dealing with vibration of complex structures and, as such, it employs a series of analytical and experimental “methods,” most of which predate the identification of SEA. This viewpoint is statistical because the systems under analysis are presumed drawn from populations with random parameters; energy is the independent dynamical variable chosen because distinctions between acoustical and mechanical systems disappear; analysis emphasizes that there is an approach to a problem rather than a set of techniques, as such. At present, there are at least 10 university groups and a similar number of industrial and government groups that identify themselves as working on SEA problems. Workers in these groups are generally intrigued by the apparent power of some of the techniques, but they also ask searching questi...