SSI Final Exam Questions With
Answers Graded A+
The frequency of the first formant is determined by the volume of the _______ cavity.
The frequency of the first formant is determined by the volume of the pharyngeal cavity
Explain how tongue/jaw height has an influence on the volume of this cavity.
· If the vocal tract is tightly constricted as in a high vowel the pharyngeal cavity is large.
o Tongue root/body are pulled clear of pharyngeal space.
If the jaw/tongue are low the tongue root is forced back into the pharyngeal cavity, creating a smaller
volume
State the relationship between tongue/jaw height and F1 frequency. Give examples of two vowels
with a high F1 frequency and two vowels with a low F1 frequency.
· When the volume of the pharyngeal cavity is small it resonated at high frequency.
· Therefore, a low tongue/jaw position is associated with F1 frequency
The lower the vowel the higher the F1 frequency
The frequency of the second formant is determined by the volume of the ________ cavity (which is
the space ____________________________).
oral or front cavity
which is the space in front of the point of maximum constriction between the tongue and the palate
Explain how anterior/posterior placement of the tongue affects the volume of the oral or front cavity
· When the cavity is small, it resonates at a high frequency
Therefore, a more anterior tongue position is associated with a higher F2 frequency
State the relationship between tongue backness and F2 frequency. Give examples of two vowels with
a high F2 frequency and two vowels with a low F2 frequency.
· Low front vowels have a lower F2 frequency then high front vowels.
· The tongue body is displaced back into the pharynx in low vowels
o This increases the volume of the front cavity.
· If the front cavity is smaller F2 is larger.
. How does lip rounding influence F2 frequency?
· Rounding of the lips makes the front cavity longer and F2 even lower.
. Give two reasons nasal sounds have a lower intensity than vowels.
Nasal cavities are lined with mucous which absorbs sounds.
The oral cavity is occluded during nasal production, so some aire gets trapped in the oral cavity and
doesn't resonate through the nasal cavity.
. What is the nasal murmur?
· A sound that is generated because of the extra resonances caused by sound being filtered through
both the sides of the nasal cavity and the nostrils.
, How Identify whether the nasal murmur consists of high- or low-frequency energy and relate this to
the configuration of the vocal tract during nasal sound production. Does hypernasal voice quality
appear in a spectrogram?
· Concentrated in low frequencies
· Because of the closure of the oral cavity, a nasal murmur is also characterized by the presence of
anti-formants and a nasal formant.
. Name two ways the acoustic signal of a glide can be distinguished from that of a vowel.
· Visible formants
· Voiced Energy
· Shorter duration of format transitions
Acoustically, the glide /w/ resembles the vowel _____________. The glide /j/ resembles the vowel
___________.
/w/ ----> /u/
/j/ ----> /i./
What is the distinguishing acoustic characteristic of a rhotic (r-like) sound?
· A lowering of F3, bringing it closer to F2.
· Compare it to /l/
You want to conduct acoustic biofeedback therapy with a child client with /r/ misarticulation. What is
important to consider when creating a template for the child to match? What is not important?
· Use a template that more closely matches the ideal sound for your client, as children have smaller
vocal tracts, among other features.
· Having different pitch would not matter, because pitch is property of the source (vocal folds),
whereas the measured formants are a property of the filter (tract).
Describe two differences in the acoustic signal of strident versus nonstrident fricatives. (You should be
able to distinguish between a strident and a nonstrident fricative in a side-by-side comparison.)
· stridency - describes energy of fricative
· The non-strident fricatives /f/ and /th/ have low intensity energy that is evenly distributed across
frequencies
· The strident fricatives /s/ and /sh/ have more intense energy concentrated at higher frequencies.
Define VOT.
· Duration of interval from release of stop to onset of periodic vocal fold vibration (voicing) for the
following vowel.
· Zero VOT =
onset of vocal fold vibrations is roughly simultaneous with stop release. AKA simultaneous VOT
(usually with voiced)
· Positive VOT =
there is period of delay between stop release and onset of vocal fold vibrations AKA as lag VOT
(usually with voiceless)
Answers Graded A+
The frequency of the first formant is determined by the volume of the _______ cavity.
The frequency of the first formant is determined by the volume of the pharyngeal cavity
Explain how tongue/jaw height has an influence on the volume of this cavity.
· If the vocal tract is tightly constricted as in a high vowel the pharyngeal cavity is large.
o Tongue root/body are pulled clear of pharyngeal space.
If the jaw/tongue are low the tongue root is forced back into the pharyngeal cavity, creating a smaller
volume
State the relationship between tongue/jaw height and F1 frequency. Give examples of two vowels
with a high F1 frequency and two vowels with a low F1 frequency.
· When the volume of the pharyngeal cavity is small it resonated at high frequency.
· Therefore, a low tongue/jaw position is associated with F1 frequency
The lower the vowel the higher the F1 frequency
The frequency of the second formant is determined by the volume of the ________ cavity (which is
the space ____________________________).
oral or front cavity
which is the space in front of the point of maximum constriction between the tongue and the palate
Explain how anterior/posterior placement of the tongue affects the volume of the oral or front cavity
· When the cavity is small, it resonates at a high frequency
Therefore, a more anterior tongue position is associated with a higher F2 frequency
State the relationship between tongue backness and F2 frequency. Give examples of two vowels with
a high F2 frequency and two vowels with a low F2 frequency.
· Low front vowels have a lower F2 frequency then high front vowels.
· The tongue body is displaced back into the pharynx in low vowels
o This increases the volume of the front cavity.
· If the front cavity is smaller F2 is larger.
. How does lip rounding influence F2 frequency?
· Rounding of the lips makes the front cavity longer and F2 even lower.
. Give two reasons nasal sounds have a lower intensity than vowels.
Nasal cavities are lined with mucous which absorbs sounds.
The oral cavity is occluded during nasal production, so some aire gets trapped in the oral cavity and
doesn't resonate through the nasal cavity.
. What is the nasal murmur?
· A sound that is generated because of the extra resonances caused by sound being filtered through
both the sides of the nasal cavity and the nostrils.
, How Identify whether the nasal murmur consists of high- or low-frequency energy and relate this to
the configuration of the vocal tract during nasal sound production. Does hypernasal voice quality
appear in a spectrogram?
· Concentrated in low frequencies
· Because of the closure of the oral cavity, a nasal murmur is also characterized by the presence of
anti-formants and a nasal formant.
. Name two ways the acoustic signal of a glide can be distinguished from that of a vowel.
· Visible formants
· Voiced Energy
· Shorter duration of format transitions
Acoustically, the glide /w/ resembles the vowel _____________. The glide /j/ resembles the vowel
___________.
/w/ ----> /u/
/j/ ----> /i./
What is the distinguishing acoustic characteristic of a rhotic (r-like) sound?
· A lowering of F3, bringing it closer to F2.
· Compare it to /l/
You want to conduct acoustic biofeedback therapy with a child client with /r/ misarticulation. What is
important to consider when creating a template for the child to match? What is not important?
· Use a template that more closely matches the ideal sound for your client, as children have smaller
vocal tracts, among other features.
· Having different pitch would not matter, because pitch is property of the source (vocal folds),
whereas the measured formants are a property of the filter (tract).
Describe two differences in the acoustic signal of strident versus nonstrident fricatives. (You should be
able to distinguish between a strident and a nonstrident fricative in a side-by-side comparison.)
· stridency - describes energy of fricative
· The non-strident fricatives /f/ and /th/ have low intensity energy that is evenly distributed across
frequencies
· The strident fricatives /s/ and /sh/ have more intense energy concentrated at higher frequencies.
Define VOT.
· Duration of interval from release of stop to onset of periodic vocal fold vibration (voicing) for the
following vowel.
· Zero VOT =
onset of vocal fold vibrations is roughly simultaneous with stop release. AKA simultaneous VOT
(usually with voiced)
· Positive VOT =
there is period of delay between stop release and onset of vocal fold vibrations AKA as lag VOT
(usually with voiceless)
