Listening to the turbulence: an example of scientific audiolization

The problem we examine in this paper is: how can one enhance, or even replace, scientific visualization with sound. We call this enhancement scientific audiolization. The problem we selected was that of turbulence in fluid flow. Turbulence is one of the most difficult subjects to understand in physics and engineering. Most fluid flow is turbulent and turbulence is not understood from first principles. For this reason, the visualization of turbulent behavior on the part of fluids is of great use to the scientist. However, there is information associated with turbulence that is not easily visualized. As such, the problem of accurately depicting turbulence lends itself well to a combination of graphic and sonic elements. Sound may also be used to represent data or messages. A message may be displayed in text or voice, but it may also be communicated through a signal we call earcons. One of the goals of this paper is to suggest a model for the simultaneous us of both representational sounds and sound messages (earcons) in a computer/user interface. The audio and graphical representation can be presented to the user in a single multimedia interface (audiovisualization). The first use of sound is the representation turbulent behavior,more » such as rushing water or the sound of jet engines. The second use of sound is in the transmission of messages pertaining to turbulence. Aspects of turbulence might all be communicated via sound messages, i.e., earcons, such as mathematical singularities, the rate of dissapation of energy, or the handedness of a vortex. 16 refs.« less