Bio-sonification

"Nature is not mute - it is man who is deaf"
- Terence McKenna -

The experience of life on earth, thus, the perceived reality of any biological living organism, creature, or being, depends for the greater part on the sensitivity or physical receptive capabilities of the organism’s sensory structures (e.g. sensory organelles, simple sensory hairs, sense organs, etc.).

Although much of our Universe is too distant for anyone to observe directly or even visit in person for example, we can still explore it through the “tools” (technology) that we have created. As an example: telescopes give us a chance to understand what objects in our Universe are like in different types of light. By translating the inherently digital data (in the form of ones and zeroes) captured by telescopes in space into images, astronomers can create visual representations of what would otherwise be invisible to us.

Similarly, other technological “tools” such as microscopes can enable us to visually observe or perceive microscopic biological structures that would otherwise not be perceivable by our sense of vision.

But what about experiencing these data with other senses, like hearing?
This is where the process of “sonification” (known as “bio-sonification” in the case of biological applications), becomes a magical “tool” to enhance our experience and perception of our “world”.

In order to define the concept "bio-sonification", we first need to clarify or define the term "sonification

Definition of “sonification”

The expression “sonification” comes from the Latin syllable “sonus” which means “sound” and according to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, sonification is defined as: “the act or process of producing sound (such as the stridulation of insects)”.

Sonification is also defined as the use of non-speech audio to convey information or perceptualize data. To “sonify” data is therefore the transmission of information via sound.

The Geiger counter (an electronic instrument used for detecting and measuring ionizing radiation.), invented in 1908, is one of the earliest and most successful applications of sonification.

Enhancement of our perception via sound

Like all other living creatures, we as humans use all our senses to perceive the world. Thus, sonification can play a significant role in the enhancement of our perception in this era of computers by using the neglected modality of sound.

Auditory perception has advantages in temporal, spatial, amplitude, and frequency resolution that open possibilities as an alternative or complement to visualization techniques.

The use of sonification by NASA

As a NASA research project, the Hubble Space Telescope brings us cosmic sights via visual images, but these astronomical marvels can be experienced with other senses as well.

Through data sonification, the same digital data that gets translated into images is transformed into sound.

Through the process of sonification that translates data into sound, parts of our Milky Way galaxy, and of the greater Universe beyond it, are brought to listeners for the first time.

Elements of the image, like brightness and position, are assigned pitches and volumes. Each translation below begins on the left side of the image and moves to the right. No sound can travel in space, but sonifications provide a new way of experiencing and conceptualizing data. Sonifications allow the audience, including blind and visually impaired communities, to “listen” to astronomical images and explore their data.

Sonification in Biological Applications

When the process of “sonification” is used in biological applications, it is known as “bio-sonification” and becomes an excellent “tool” to enhance our experience and perception of our biological reality.

In short: “bio-sonification” basically means using technology to turn the bio-electrical responses or signals (i.e. “bio-data”) of living organisms into sound.

Sonification can play a significant role in the enhancement of our perception in this era of computers by using the neglected modality of sound.
Dr. Thomas Hermann – a computer scientist working in the field of Cognitive Interaction Technology where his research focuses on sonification, data mining, human-computer interaction, and ambient intelligence, has given a relatively modern definition of sonification as a technique:
“Sonification is the process that uses a data set as input and produces sound signals, if it meets the following conditions:
(1) the sound should reflect objective properties or relations in the input data,
(2) the transformation is systematic,
(3) the sonification is reproducible, and
(4) the system can be used with different data sets.”

In the field of biology and biomedicine, bio-sonification” algorithms are used to enhance our understanding and interpretation of various biological and biomedical research data.

The range of applications includes, for example, the representation of nucleic acid and protein sequences and structures, and the analysis of electrophysiological, ecological, epigenetic, or gene expression data. Furthermore, this research area offers an interesting example of the connection of science and art, insofar as the sounds generated by the bio-sonification algorithms can certainly bear the character of real music.

When focusing on bio-acoustics and bio-sonification in plants – it has scientifically been proven that plants can not only perceive sound but can also produce sound and with the aid of modern human technology, changes in a plant’s bioelectrical energy can via the process of biosonification, be amplified and translated into sound/”music” audible to the human ear.

By connecting two electrodes to a plant, the bioelectrical signals are collected and sent from the plant to the sonification device where the biodata is processed (amplified, filtered, etc.), and transformed into sonic data that is then translated into music by either build-in or external computer software.

In short: The bioelectric changes in a plant trigger notes in an electronic instrument (synthesizer) – similar to a human playing a MIDI keyboard.

"If you want to know the secrets of the Universe, 
think in terms of Energy, Frequency, and Vibration."
- Nikola Tesla -

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