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Reddit mentions of This Is Your Brain on Music: The Science of a Human Obsession

Sentiment score: 18
Reddit mentions: 28

We found 28 Reddit mentions of This Is Your Brain on Music: The Science of a Human Obsession. Here are the top ones.

This Is Your Brain on Music: The Science of a Human Obsession
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Found 28 comments on This Is Your Brain on Music: The Science of a Human Obsession:

u/TheBishopsBane · 39 pointsr/Music

Everyone has perfect pitch. Our brains have receptors that match the frequency of what we're hearing. If you hear an A at 440Hz, your brain fires a receptor at 440Hz. There's a great book called This Is Your Brain On Music by Daniel J Levitin that explains it much better than I could.
Still cool, though.

u/xuol · 14 pointsr/musictheory

Octave equivalence is universal among humans, barring neural damage or problems. However, there are no universal preferences for any other intervals. For example, some scales in the folk music of places such as Java don't have a fifth in them... although they do have an interval that is (I believe) 17 cents sharper than a sharp. I'm not 100% sure if that's the exact value, but it's between a fifth and a quarter tone above a fifth.

The smallest interval that can be discriminated by the ear when the two pitches are not played at the same time is about 50 cents (a quarter tone). Because of this, the upward limit for number of scale tones per octave is 24.

If you want to read a good book that gives a lot more information than I can on the subject than I can, I highly recommend The Social Psychology of Music by Paul R. Farnsworth. Daniel Levitin's book This Is Your Brain on Music also discusses pitch, and I believe that's where I read that the limit is 24 tones.

And, more bonus information just because I feel like you might appreciate it. When we listen to two intervals at the same time, we can discern differences much smaller. Starting with two tones that are at the same pitch, if one of the tone rises, different things happen as the interval gets wider and wider.

While the tones are the same pitch, the sounds' amplitudes are added, which (in most situations) just makes it twice as loud. As the second tone rises to 15 Hz above the first tone, the average of the two tones is heard with a beating noise with a frequency of the difference in tone. Thus if one tone is at 440 and the other is at 450, the ear will hear 445 with a "beating" sound that happens 10 times per second. Above 15Hz, there is an unpleasant sound until the difference between the tones' pitches reaches a point called the Limit of Discrimination. This point is arbitrary and depends on things like the absolute values of the two pitches (for example, lower pitches are harder to discriminate between) and the listener theirself. Above the Limit of Discrimination, though, there is a sensation of hearing two pitches instead of just one. From there upwards, it reaches what's called the critical band, which is a continuum of decreasing dissonance. Above that point, most of the effects have more to do with culture than how the ear works.

Also, about scales. Traditionally, pentatonic scales come from Europe and West Asia, but heptatonic (7-note) scales were used primarily in the Middle East and India. You might also check out Temperament: How Music Became a Great Battlefield for the Great Minds of Western Civilization, because it points out how arbitrary our decisions of pitch in Western music are.

TL;DR: The octave is the only interval that's universal

u/breaks365 · 8 pointsr/askscience

If you want to learn more about this, I would recommend a book called This Is Your Brain On Music. It's an amazing breakdown of the brain's ability to process music by a neuro scientist who had been previously been employed as a sound engineer for many prominent bands during the 70's.

http://www.amazon.com/This-Your-Brain-Music-Obsession/dp/0525949690

u/Shawn_of_the_Redd · 7 pointsr/technology

That's fascinating; is your hearing impairment neurological in nature, or due to mechanical impairment of something in your ears?

I'm curious to know, because I read a really awesome book from which I learned that for most people, there is an area in the brain associated with sound processing where the neurons fire with literally the same exact frequency as the sound in the environment. E.g. a 440Hz perfect A note will produce a 440Hz firing of the neurons. Sound is thus a kind of direct perceptual access to the environment in a way that sight isn't, because sight involves a number of higher-order functions.

u/cymbalrush · 3 pointsr/AskReddit

This is Your Brain on Music has a chapter on this. Essentially, its learned.

u/themusicgod1 · 3 pointsr/science

Firstly, this isn't the start, nor the end of this debate. Depending what you call a 'computer' and what point you draw the line towards something being a 'brain' will determine how you answer the question of whether a computer is a brain, or how similar they are. In general there is a spectrum of ways to look at it; of four positions I'm somewhat familiar with include Mindhacks, Andy Clark which would tend to come to conclusions close to the headline, and Levitin and Hofstadter might come to different ones. And their different conclusions, and the conclusions of the author really don't contradict eachother; they merely depend on the initial construction of the problem; what is a brain? What is a computer?

Secondly, computers do change what they are connected to quite often. Actually the computers themselves don't tend to make the change...but I have yet to see a reason to believe that neurons change themselves in this way, too. Since the 2000s it is quite normal for computers to be connected to various different networks(ie, other computers) within their lifetime. So in this sense a computer isn't the same thing as a brain...but might be closer in character to a collection of neurons. A small, somewhat discrete unit of mind could occur at both low, but not neuron levels of the brain and computers, properly programmed.

> To put this in perspective, the entire archived contents of the Internet fill just three petabytes.

Citation needed. Google alone must have more than that, and it's on the internet. Also, these numbers might seem impressive but keep in mind; back in the 80's, a 100mb hard drive was a Big Deal; a large, energy intensive, slow thing that cost a lot of money. Nowadays, a fairly highspeed 1gb device can fit into the size of a dime, for basically free, and we're starting to see >1TB drives; that's 4 orders of magnitude. If the rate of technological development continues at this pace, we will hit singularity level tech at some point.

> This projection overlooks the dark, hot underbelly of Moore’s law: power consumption per chip

If you actually read kurzweil, he doesn't overlook this. He provides plausible technological ways around it, and also predicts that when the heat/power becomes a problem we will start using some other way of getting the exponential increase, by dna computing or whatever---but some other paradigm will take over. I think we're starting to see this with parallel architectures, imho.

I'm reminded of something I read earlier (from the 70's? 60's?) who suggested that by now, computers would be so hot that they'd boil the oceans instantly, and there'd be only a few dozen of them. Technology has gotten more heat-efficient, computers have gotten smaller, and in general, we don't have that problem. Sure heat is a problem, but we're dealing with it, just as we're dealing with the problems inherent in any large, complex, parallel system.

> which often requires fast responses to complex situations.

Which if you're not adapted for, you aren't going to be able to act meaningful towards. That's the thing; biological systems fail ALL THE TIME. Only sometimes do they succeed---on evolutionary timescales, we have done miracles with computers. Given another billion years? We'll have fast responses to complex situations, too.

u/manaiish · 3 pointsr/neuroscience

Yeah, there aren't too many of us. Hell, this is the direction I'm going now, who knows what I'll end up being.
I ordered Your Brain on Music the other day after hearing a lot of reccomendations. I'll let you know how it is when I get it

u/cameronm · 3 pointsr/Music

I'm really enjoying This Is Your Brain On Music at the moment. Really easy to read for non-sciency and non-musiciany but goes in to a lot of depth too!

u/i_love_younicorns · 3 pointsr/askscience

This book also explains this phenomenon in great detail.

u/JeremyEye · 3 pointsr/fffffffuuuuuuuuuuuu

It's not just where you live, but just because someone doesn't have much technical knowledge doesn't mean they're not good musicians.

Now, I'm not trying to be a douche, but just try to look beyond that, it might help you enjoy music a little bit more - I used to have a similar mentality but when I stopped that I enjoyed listening so much more.

But since you're a musician and into the technical side, check out This book =) Currently reading it, it's outstanding.

u/nuzzle · 3 pointsr/Music

That is because you acquire your primary musical taste usually before you finish with puberty. This acquisition is apparently also dependent on social factors, such as peer group. There is a book that discusses this and similar things in a non-eggheaded way, namely this

u/jkb83 · 3 pointsr/askscience

Dan Levitin, a psych prof in my department, has a pretty good book on music and the brain, and he discusses this issue a little bit.

I'd recommend you check it out if you are generally interested in music - why it is important to us, how it is processed in the brain, etc.

u/Huge_Metal_Fan · 2 pointsr/mentalhealth

Disclaimer: This post is in reference to thatCrazyGuitarGuy's post, but not a direct response


Metal is not solely about the music. Theres a part in A Headbanger's Journey where the guy interviews a adolescent bass player that explains his reasons for listening to metal (not-so-nice home life, sense of belonging, etc) and it was something that resonated with me to this day.

Yes, i love metal music, but i also love the metal community. Its a place where its alright to run around screaming at the top of your lungs and letting everyone know
exactly* how much you feel. Where you can hop into a mosh pit, into the maw of hell (at the good shows at least), get thrown flat on your back, and be helped up immediately. Its a place where respect is paramount and necessary, but is defined by every negative emotion that the majority of society tells us to ignore.

Well, i dont want to fucking ignore it. I want to scream it to the world from an inch in front of your face. And its perfectly alright, even encouraged, in that kind of atmosphere. Its exhilarating and is, in my opinion, a major source of the psychological comfort that extreme music povides.

I whole-heartedly recommend Sam Dunn's documentary, but also if you haven't read it check out Your Brain On Music

u/Jose_Monteverde · 2 pointsr/CollaborativePsych

This is your brain on music

or this

Musician here, I hear music all the time. Post your thoughts when you're done reading the book

u/agency_panic · 2 pointsr/Music

Read this and this

Edit: Additionally, everyone has a natural frequency they resonate at. When you wake up in the morning, hum a note. What comes naturally is usually your natural resonance. Due to sympathetic vibrations in the harmonic series, certain harmonies and sympathetic tones can physically interact with your "personal frequency"

In other words, music fucking rules

u/toastspork · 2 pointsr/science

The best book I've read recently on understanding music is This Is Your Brain on Music, by Dan Levitin. It is a fairly comprehensive look at how we perceive music, both physically and psychologically, and how our tastes form. And it's got references to lots of great examples that let you hear what he's describing.

He gets a bit into Western vs. non-Western perceptions, but mostly he admits to writing from what he know, which is Western.

u/kilowatt · 2 pointsr/reddit.com

+1 on the DNA through the eyes of a code article, that was the shit.

Semi related, I just bought a book for a class called This Is Your Brain on Music that (I think) is going to try to explain the neuroscience behind why people have loved music for as long as there have been people. Music theory grounded in biology—it looks fun.

u/clockradio · 2 pointsr/bestof

This idea is certainly not new. Though OP concentrates more on predictability and short-changes its tension with novelty.

Dan Levitin goes into considerable detail about it in his book from a decade ago, This Is Your Brain on Music, particularly interesting to me was the portion where he discusses why only some people like Jazz.

u/sandhouse · 2 pointsr/askscience

I read a book that had some science of music in it. "This is Your Brain on Music". I don't remember the specifics of it so I won't try to repeat it here because I'll probably say something inaccurate. That book isn't the only one of it's kind (good book by the way). If you are really interested in the subject I'm sure you can find some interesting information.

http://www.amazon.com/This-Your-Brain-Music-Obsession/dp/0525949690

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1400033535/ref=pd_lpo_k2_dp_sr_2?pf_rd_p=486539851&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe-1&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=0525949690&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=02HTPTSMBADCZZE5BDMV

u/CallerNumber4 · 2 pointsr/IAmA

How large is your music library? (In songs and GBs)

What traits or habits of songs, that come up often, do you like the least that the less trained ear might not notice?

Have you ever read this book? (I personally really enjoyed it, it's a great introduction to the terms of music for the beginner, and very indepth and interesting observations of other aspects of how it reacts with your brain. Like if a piece of music is memorized bit by bit in your brain like a recording, or if it has ways that it fills in the gaps. Or how modern society doesn't associate singing and listening to music as akin as highly undeveloped ones do.)

Do you believe that over time the overall quality of music has increased/decreased/stayed roughly the same. (the size on which you are basing this is up to you, early chamber orchestral pieces of the middle ages, or within the last century/decade).

u/Goat_man436 · 1 pointr/Music

I love how you used the word, "brain hack". I think that sums it up perfectly. Your brain interprets different changes in pitch and rhythm as emotional cues, and music is an exploit of that.

There's a book called This is Your Brain on Music that delves into the neuroscience and psychological explanations for music. Very interesting stuff.

u/bluecalx2 · 1 pointr/AskReddit

Nope. It was This Is Your Brain On Music actually. But that one looks interesting too.

u/acScience · 1 pointr/cogsci

For anyone interested in this subject, I suggest reading This Is Your Brain on Music: The Science of a Human Obsession by Daniel J. Levitin.

u/pjgeorgejr · 1 pointr/Music

As a guitarist and parent of three musicians (piano, piano and guitar) I really feel for you!! I almost cried watching you sit there and take that crap from your mother. Hey mom! Did you know that studies have shown music improves mathematical abilities? It improves creativity and cognitive development across the board!

http://www.vh1savethemusic.com/benefits
http://serendip.brynmawr.edu/exchange/node/1869

Get this book!
http://www.amazon.com/This-Your-Brain-Music-Obsession/dp/0525949690

u/dragonbuttons · 1 pointr/books

If you're a musician or like music and science a lot, I'd recommend this book, which I read this summer. Levitin is a decent author and he's changed the way I understand music. I might not know what a perfect fifth is but I do know why I enjoy certain songs more than others now.

u/Fearan · 1 pointr/philosophy

You may be interested in the book This is your Brain on Music

It discusses in depth the implications of music on the brain and its link to language. I loved reading it.

u/marbles24 · 1 pointr/AskReddit

Posted already in this thread, but you seem like you would be more interested than the op, so I am reposting this link to make sure you see it: Read this book!