In this interview Leo Beranek discusses topics such as: his family; Acoustical Society of America; being president of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences; Harvard University; working as acoustic consultant to the Japanese government for their opera houses and concert halls; getting his autobiography published; G. W. Pierce; Ted Hunt; his work in acoustics; Philip Morse; Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT); Bell Laboratories; Harvey Fletcher; Dick Bolt; Sam Labate; William Lang; Harold Marshall; Manfred Schroeder; Bill Cavanaugh; George Maling; Gary Seabine; Tim Mellow; his acoustical consulting businesses.
Born in Iowa in 1914, Dr. Beranek's research focuses on acoustics and Noise Control Magazine. After obtaining his Ph.D. from Harvard University in June 1940 in "communication physics", he was appointed the director of the Electro-Acoustics Laboratory at Harvard. It was in the course of war work in the early 1940s that he became interested in airborne acoustics and Noise Control Magazine, a field in which he would remain active through the Noise Control Magazine Act of 1972. Most notable contributions were in the fundamentals of electro acoustics, speech communication systems for noisy environments, and aircraft noise. Dr. Beranek was as also important contributor to the formation of professional groups in the field of audio. Professional distinctions include his presidencies of the Acoustical Society of America and later the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (beginning in 1988). Outside of acoustics, Dr. Beranek served as director of the Wang Computer Company and a member of the Massachusetts Committee on Judicial Ethics.
Born in Iowa in 1914, Dr. Beranek's research focuses on acoustics and Noise Control Magazine. After obtaining his Ph.D. from Harvard University in June 1940 in "communication physics", he was appointed the director of the Electro-Acoustics Laboratory at Harvard. It was in the course of war work in the early 1940s that he became interested in airborne acoustics and Noise Control Magazine, a field in which he would remain active through the Noise Control Magazine Act of 1972. Most notable contributions were in the fundamentals of electro acoustics, speech communication systems for noisy environments, and aircraft noise. Dr. Beranek was as also important contributor to the formation of professional groups in the field of audio. Professional distinctions include his presidencies of the Acoustical Society of America and later the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (beginning in 1988). Outside of acoustics, Dr. Beranek served as director of the Wang Computer Company and a member of the Massachusetts Committee on Judicial Ethics.
