Show How FACES Are NOW M Translated Into MUSIC HAT T kind of a face have bave you 1 Is it jazz II WHA ragtime or classical Is it a jumble of discords or a symphony of sounds Surely Surely Suret Sure- Sure t ly these questions will lead you yon to think the writer has bas confused his subjects and has bas in mind I I t J music not faces laces However r such is not the case caso rr Eve Everything thing i is perfectly cle clear r and nd the above questions ques- ques f. f tio as are logical and to be expected in view of the recent recent remarkable discovery made by an American scientist For the curves that make a profile car can be bew bew w w translated into sound which in turn can be caught by the camera camera actually actually photographed and and the fr fit result is a reproduction of the lines of the profile I Such an experiment was recently performed by Prof Dayton C. C Miller of the Case Caso School chool of Applied Science Cleveland who is well known in the scientific world as an aut on the physical nature of sounds To the average person Dr Millers Miller's experiment experiment experiment ment which Harry A. A Mount describes in Popular Popular lar lax Mechanics may seem to have little littIe of practical cal value in it ft but to the scientist it is rich in ini i t possibilities It suggests the reply to an age- age old question for which there has never been found an adequate answer what is beauty t There are almost as many answers to the question as there these are arc persons in the world for each sees beauty a a. little differently To the astronomer astronomer astronomer as- as the most beautiful thing might be some particular star to the musician the tone of some particular instrument to the poet some bit of sentiment J The experiment proves that there is a unity 1 in b which have heretofore little beauty auty we suspected sus sus- peeled says Mr Mount donne For Fox instance we take the beautiful profile of a girl translate it into a form understandable to the ear and we again have beauty Con Conclusive ive proof that the thing we have done is not just jUt an accident lies in the fact y th that t the beautiful sound Bound can be again turned back into the lines of the profile 1 A Away way back in 1822 Baron Daron Fourier of Paris published The Analytical Theory of Heat in 0 Left to J Right The Right The Selected P Profile Its Synthetic Curve the 14 Simple Components a and d the Profile Reproduced Again by Combining Them Them with the x Harmonic Synthesizer i of the which he gave a theoretical explanation transmission of heat as from one end of an iron poker i k b the fire to the handle In doing so he developed a new mathematical process known as Fourier's Theorem which was VM destined to become become be be- come of very great importance in other Tines rind od scientific investigation This theorem theo has been most elaborately developed in the study of the complicated wave motions which constitute t har harmonious lIar lIar- armonious ar- ar sounds of music and hence bence it is often called harmonic analysis In 1844 Ohm of Munich definitely announced the principle that beautiful musical sounds are complexes made up of separate simple component component com com- waves and he asserted that the trained musical ear could hear the separate components that is that sound can be analyzed by ear By such sucha a method as that now used in making phonograph phonograph phonograph graph records and better still by the photographic photographic photo photo- graphic method of the an instrument instrument instrument ment devised by Prof Miller it is possible to obtain obtain ob ob- tain records of t the e shapes of these complex musical musical musi musi- cal waves The trained ear can analyze the sounds but the eye cannot analyze the curves By Bythe the application of Fourier's theorem however however however how how- ever th the curves can be analyzed in a manner corresponding exactly to analysis of the sounds by the ear Such investigations show that all sounds sounds' which are musical as distinguished from noise M Marvelous MACHINE That RENDERS PORTRAITS in J a r rz z 1 r i Tone Record of a French Horn Which Su Suggested 00 ested the Test of a 00 Human Haman Profile are always made up of simple tones which when represented by curves curves' can be analyzed into composite curves which seem to flow smoothly with rounded bends and symmetrical groupings The richer the tone the more complex its wave form but it is always beautiful in outline and smoothly y flowing The discordant discordant discordant dis dis- dis- dis musical so sounds and noises on other haa hang are represented by Iy waves which have kinks sharp points zigzags and other irregularities Mr Mount explains that when that when an investigator wishes to study a sound he first obtains a photograph photograph photograph photo photo- graph of the sound by the use of the This instrument is a like box-like arrangement from which projects a phonograph horn In fact at first glance it appears to be a sort of crude graph The phonograph horn however is for forthe forthe forthe the purpose of collecting sound waves not sends send ing them and at its tip is a simple diaphragm To the centre of this diaphragm i is attached a avery avery avery very fine piece o of oi silk fibre wound once around an upright spindle spind e and held by a spring Each vibration of the diaphragm therefore pulls the fibre back and forth and causes the spindle to turn from side to side A mirror of almost microscopic proportions is attached to this spindle spindle spindle spin spin- dle and of from admitted admitted admitted ad- ad a spot light an arc lamp through a pinhole falls on this mirror and is is reflected by it When the diaphragm is in motion therefore the light dances from side to side This spot of light falls on a wheel which has its outer rim lined with a series of little flat fiat mir mir- This wheel is js revolved by an electric motor The result is that the spot of light is reflected from the wheel to a ground glass screen as a series serles of dots of light ight that pass from the top to the bottom and again to the top of the screen and so forth at the same time oscillating with the movement of the sound diaphragm The dots of light follow fonow each other across the screen in such rapid succession that they appear to be be bea r ra a solid line of light that curves and writhes about over the screen like a thing alive aliye In fact it reproduces exactly the wave form of the original sound To photograph the wave waveform waveform waveform form it is only necessary to allow the reflected dot of light to fall on a revolving film instead of f the mirror wheel A fA tuning-fork tuning device electrically electrically electrically elec elec- operated throws dashes of light on the film to indicate the tie time duration of the recorded waves Once the photograph is secured it is analyzed by the application of Fourier's theorem to determine determine determine de de- termine the component tones present and to learn how harmoniously they blend The numerical application of Fourier's theorem involves difficult difficult difficult cult calculations ba based ed on integral calculus But just as there are adding machines to solve problems pro problems lems in n simple arithmetic so there are machines to do calculus problems find and nd the equation of a curve may be found by the easy mechanical operation op op- operation of a harmonic analyzer If we wish to learn leam the effect that will be 4 S ry y i l l. l L' L Ac The Successive Composite Wave Ware of Harmony at atthe atthe atthe the Right I Is the Musical Counterpart of the Bc Beautiful Sea of Faces Depicted at the Left produced by the combination of certain simple tones says Mr Mount the natural method would be to sound the several components and listen to the result But this method is not al always always always al- al ways convenient and for purposes of a preliminary preliminary preliminary nary study it is is more suitable in the laboratory to draw a composite I curve made up of the sim simple sim sim- pIe curves curves in combination The first machine of this kind was made in 1876 by Lord Kelvin to predict the tides of the ocean Later Prof Michelson of the University of Chicago devi devised d a similar machine for studying composite waves of light More recently Dr Miller has constructed the most elaborate machine of the kind yet made for studying musical sounds which may contain as high as 32 components This machine is called the harmonic synthesizer Here we have then the instruments used in making the experiments ments referred to It is a rather curious fact that the experiment experiment experiment ment of turning a profile into a sound and then i or CLASI CLASH back again into a profile was ins inspirer inspired pI discovery of the photograph of a ce cea certain I a French horn which bore a very elos blance to a human profile Mr Mount J o othe the progress of the experiment as follow Y YA A photographic negative of a l d J was placed in a projecting lantern and t Y was thrown on a sheet of paper Th Tho niJ was Vas accurately traced The curve was by the harmonic analyzer and r tt consist of 14 components The d proved by setting up the 14 simple comP c co J Jori t toil oil ori the harmonic synthesizer The cut actually drawn by the machine is shown t Ii of the a accompanying illustrations Musical sound waves are often rep by waves o of this general character s say say- sayi J bd i Mount but the word wave is gene generally IY ered as a succession of similar forms an nn and l repeated is es shown hown in one instance it r ra re rea a way ward motion similar to the sustained sop 80 y ya a musical tone If all the details of the theare 5 9 rare r rare are repeated we should have bave a verita t of faces Op N If according to Mr Mount upon looking looking such a sea of faces we should 1 J What are the wild waves saying i Dr would insist that these waves are by n no Ei tai wild but that they are in truth most harms and are singing a gentle song to the theis eye is as sweet and mellow as the tone of a aj 1 horn to the ear car The composite curve j profile is to to the eye just what a 3 rich harmony is to the carAnd car ear r rAnd And riot not ot only is this analysis possible Mount continues but the harmonious notes which the Hie component curves in m the 11 represent can be combined to produce a alp form in the air which when photographed photograph d be a reproduction of the photograph T f J done by selecting 1 11 i organ pipes d deli delie Ji voiced and accurately toned These are areg l areja-l a I up in m a miniature organ and connected w source source of compressed air When all are sounded suit is a chord in perfect harmony If this mony is photographed the face is ill seen seen ill is waveform If we add a sharp chin or n the profile and reproduce i it in sound there once noticeable a discord Similarly a disco discoe note added to the profile music at once dM M Mures ures urea the beauty of the curve Mr Mount concludes that it is not atal at-al likely that very similar methods will plied to practical advantage in the stud study voices language and the like and which h undoubtedly be used in the perfection of m in m instruments and in the elimination of all of noises |