Human audible frequency range narrows dramatically with age
Evidence
Humans perceive sound frequency as pitch (a subjective perception of an objective frequency), with differences according to age: infants have a full range of perception from 20 to 20,000 Hz, adult humans can hear sounds between 20 and 16,000 Hz, and in the aged human the high frequencies are dramatically reduced. We consider infrasound and ultrasound sounds those with frequencies below and above human audibility. For instance, whales and other marine mammals are sensitive to infrared frequency from 20 Hz down to 0.001 Hz. This type of energy covers long distances and passes over obstacles with little dissipation. This frequency range is generally used for monitoring earthquakes and in oil prospecting. — Almo Farina, Soundscape Ecology, 1887
Categorization
- XREF: Age-dependent audibility is why ‘intact’ versus worn hearing changes what any two listeners report of the same soundscape — relevant to perceptual soundscape surveys. — connects to: Human upper hearing range collapses above 16 kHz during the twenties; Aging and loud sound exposure both erode hearing from high frequencies downward — David M. Howard, Jamie Angus, Acoustics and Psychoacoustics, 2679; Age-normal hearing still involves high-frequency loss that dulls intensity sensitivity (+5 more)
- QUESTION: The text mislabels whale low-frequency sensitivity as ‘infrared’; worth pinning that the range below human hearing is infrasound.
Broader Connections
- Human upper hearing range collapses above 16 kHz during the twenties
#exemplifies(0.95) - Age-related presbycusis limits high-frequency hearing by the mid-twenties
#corroborates(0.92) - Aging and loud sound exposure both erode hearing from high frequencies downward
#expands(0.88) — David M. Howard, Jamie Angus, Acoustics and Psychoacoustics, 2679 - Age-normal hearing still involves high-frequency loss that dulls intensity sensitivity
#qualifies(0.85) - Hearing sensitivity within clinically normal range still declines measurably with age
#corroborates(0.85) — Dijk, Pim van, Physiology, Psychoacoustics and…, 1140 - Age-related hearing decline in noise begins while thresholds remain normal
#corroborates(0.80) — Dijk, Pim van, Physiology, Psychoacoustics and…, 1140 - Age-related temporal and level sensitivity decline precedes measurable hearing loss
#corroborates(0.75) — Dijk, Pim van, Physiology, Psychoacoustics and…, 1138