How does my radio work?

CrowdScience

BBC

Science

4.8 • 985 Ratings

🗓️ 28 January 2022

⏱️ 30 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

How is a small budget pocket radio able to recreate all the atmosphere and sounds of a football match? CrowdScience listener Andy wants to know about the science enabling his radio listening, so presenter CrowdScience Geoff Marsh sets off - microphone in hand - to follow the journey of sound on the radio.

Starting with the microphone, Geoff learns how acoustic energy is converted into electrical signals. Then BBC World Service presenter Gareth takes Geoff to a little-known room in the BBC called the Radio Shack. Gareth demonstrates how these electrical signals are attached to radio waves before being sent over the airwaves and they take a radio kit apart to understand how these waves are received and converted back into sound waves. Geoff talks to a speech and hearing specialist who, through the use of auditory illusions, shows Geoff that our brains are often filling in the gaps of lower quality audio.

Finally, Geoff visits an acoustic lab at Salford University where he hears a demonstration of ‘object based audio’. This technology could enable us to create our own bespoke mix of dramas and sports, such as heightening the commentary sound or choosing to hear just the crowd, just by using the everyday speakers many have lying around them, such as mobile phones.

Tune in and join us! Presented by Geoff Marsh Produced by Melanie Brown

[Image Credit: Getty Images]

Transcript

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0:00.0	Take some time for yourself with soothing classical music from the mindful mix, the Science of
0:07.0	Happiness Podcast.
0:08.0	For the last 20 years I've dedicated my career to exploring the science of living a happier more meaningful life and I want
0:14.4	to share that science with you.
0:16.1	And just one thing, deep calm with Michael Mosley.
0:19.4	I want to help you tap in to your hidden relaxation response system and open the door to that
0:25.4	calmer place within. Listen on BBC Sounds. When I'm listening to a football match on the World Service, how are the various sounds of the game,
0:48.0	commentators the sound of the crowd, individual shouts from the crowd, individual shouts from the crowd. How are they recorded at the game? Transmitted to my
0:57.9	radio, converted to a signal which reaches my pocket radio in Sydney and converted into sound waves which reach my ear with all of those layers of sound and complexity contained within them
1:11.0	so I hear every aspect of the commentary and the game.
1:15.0	When did you have the spark and think, oh, actually, I want to know how that works?
1:19.0	I really just use a very inexpensive pocket radio with plug-in headphones and I'm always amazed at the
1:25.3	clarity of what I'm listening to. I'm a footy fan, I'm a scouser originally.
1:29.7	I'm from Manchester but I'll let that slide. Okay, you're forgiven.
1:34.0	So yes, you're listening back on these tiny little headphones,
1:37.0	but you're actually able to hear these essentially complex layers of sound.
1:41.0	I never really understood how such a basic mechanism can achieve all that, you know,
1:46.4	accuracy and complexity and that really strikes me often when I listen to the radio what's what's actually going on inside.
1:54.0	Well do you know what I feel like I'm very grateful to you for this question because I feel like
1:58.6	I almost fit in that band as well you know I take these things for granted as someone who works in radio,
2:04.6	you know, I speak into this microphone all the time and then people just hear it all over the
2:08.8	world in their headphones and I don't think I've ever really sat back to properly delve into the magic, you know, that's going on behind the scenes there.
	...

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