Optimal design for acoustic unobservability in water

Until now, it was only possible to optimize an acoustic cloaking structure for the air environment. However, with this latest research, "Acoustic cloak designed by topology optimization for acoustic-elastic coupled systems," ...

Using sound and light to generate ultra-fast data transfer

Researchers have made a breakthrough in the control of terahertz quantum cascade lasers, which could lead to the transmission of data at the rate of 100 gigabits per second—around one thousand times quicker than a fast ...

A whale with a distinctly human-like voice

For the first time, researchers have been able to show by acoustic analysis that whales—or at least one very special white whale—can imitate the voices of humans. That's a surprise, because whales typically produce sounds ...

Decoding the long calls of the orangutan

Research into the long calls of male Orangutans in Borneo has given scientists new insight into how these solitary apes communicate through dense jungle. An acoustic analysis of the calls, published today in Ethology, reveals ...

When a whistle beats a tweet

Biologists have discovered that a species of Australian pigeon has a secret way of alerting fellow birds to predators -- a "whistle" emitted by flapping wings when the bird takes off in alarm.