Sensation grows with the logarithm of stimulus strength rather than the strength itself

Evidence

The solution, for graphing and for our senses, is to use logarithms. Gustav Theodor Fechner (1801-1887) was a contemporary of Helmholtz, and like him a physicist, physiologist, and philosopher. After a series of innovative experiments, he concluded in 1860 that our sensation of a stimulus is proportional to the logarithm of the strength of the stimulus, and not proportional to the strength itself. Fechner’s famous law governing the sensation S is where R is the stimulus. — Eric J. Heller, Why You Hear What You Hear- An…, 1997

Categorization

• DEFINE: Fechner’s law is the foundational statement that sensation scales logarithmically with stimulus.
• QUESTION: Worth chasing: why does log scaling emerge in hearing specifically across species?
• corroborated: 2 independent passages support this claim — Eric J. Heller, Why You Hear What You Hear- An…, 1997
• XREF: connects to: Loudness perception is essentially logarithmic — David M. Howard, Jamie Angus, Acoustics and Psychoacoustics, 611; Loudness grows as a power law of physical intensity so relative changes match — Professor Dr.-Ing. Hugo Fastl, Professor Dr.-Ing. Eberhard, Psychoacoustics- Facts and Models, 1262; Perceptual response cannot be proportional to stimulus over its huge dynamic range (+4 more)

Broader Connections

• Loudness perception is essentially logarithmic #exemplifies (0.95) — David M. Howard, Jamie Angus, Acoustics and Psychoacoustics, 611
• Perceptual response cannot be proportional to stimulus over its huge dynamic range #corroborates (0.90)
• Loudness grows as a power law of physical intensity so relative changes match #qualifies (0.85) — Professor Dr.-Ing. Hugo Fastl, Professor Dr.-Ing. Eberhard, Psychoacoustics- Facts and Models, 1262