About This Video

How soft is a pin drop? How loud is an explosion? The human ear can handle sound at both very large and very small intensities. Here, physicist and auditory physiologist Christopher Shera illustrates the vast range of human hearing. Because of this difference in sound energies, we use a logarithmic scale—the decibel scale—to discuss the dynamic range of human hearing.

Recorded June 2010; Posted October 2010