Cows talk, and a new study has been listening

What is it about "moo" that you don't understand?

Image source: Bildagentur Zoonar GmbH/Shutterstock
  • 333 cow recordings reveal rich communications and unique individual voices.
  • Cows do more than vocalize to their calves — they share emotions with each other.
  • A better understanding of what cows are saying and feeling can help in the formulation of humane cattle-care standards.
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communication language emotions farming sound discovery cows animals

Spotify will now create playlists for your pet

Your cat thinks your taste stinks. Also that you're mingy with the laser pointer.

Image source: Spotify/Big Think
  • Spotify has just announced a free playlist-creation site for pets.
  • Research suggests that animals have their own music preferences.
  • Hedgehogs possibly don't get enough respect.
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music neuroscience internet sound art emotions. pet playlist

Why we love big, blood-curdling screams

Among the variety of human screams, it is screams of terror that stand out most vividly.

John Springer Collection/CORBIS/Corbis via Getty Images

Of all the sounds humans produce, nothing captures our attention quite like a good scream.

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fear film emotions pain sound psychology

Treatable brain inflammation may be behind tinnitus

Scientists may have seen a way to cure a maddening symptom of hearing loss.

Image source: Alex Iby/Unsplash/Big Think
  • A treatment for tinnitus – a constant ringing in the ears – has been frustratingly elusive.
  • Out-of-control inflammation, the brain's response to damage, may be the cause of long-term ringing in the ears.
  • A study that examined mice with noise-induced hearing loss seems to have found the neural trigger for tinnitus.
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sound senses physiology medicine discovery human body hearing medical research

Has a black hole made of sound confirmed Hawking radiation?

One of Stephen Hawking's predictions seems to have been borne out in a man-made "black hole."

Image source: NASA/JPL-Caltech
  • Stephen Hawking predicted virtual particles splitting in two from the gravitational pull of black holes.
  • Black holes, he also said, would eventually evaporate due to the absorption of negatively charged virtual particles.
  • A scientist has built a black hole analogue based on sound instead of light.
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sound space physics cosmos prediction astronomy stephen hawking hawking radiation