From prior activities, you will recall that the frequency of a sound generally corresponds to its pitch. It is interesting to note that pitch is, in fact, a perceptual quantity, which means that different individuals may perceive pitches of sounds in a slightly different manner. Frequency, by contrast, is a physical quantity, whose value does not depend on the observer. In psychoacoustics, we often find that things we can measure have both a perceptual and a physical quantity associated with them.
In this lab, the extended activity will focus on a well-known perceptual quantity, loudness. This is a concept with which you should be familiar, especially if you have been scolded by parents to keep your music volume down. Loudness is a perceptual quantity, whose corresponding physical quantity is sound intensity.
