Apple Final Cut Pro 5 - Manual (Page 824)

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Audio Fundamentals
To successfully create your movie soundtrack, it’s
important to learn about the basic properties of sound
and digital audio.
This chapter covers the following:
 What Is Sound? (p. 37)
 Digital Audio (p. 46)
What Is Sound?
All sounds are vibrations traveling through the air as sound waves. Sound waves are
caused by the vibrations of objects, and radiate outward from their source in all
directions. A vibrating object compresses the surrounding air molecules (squeezing them
closer together), and then rarefies them (pulling them further apart). Although the
fluctuations in air pressure travel outward from the object, the air molecules themselves
stay in the same average position. As sound travels, it reflects off objects in its path,
creating further disturbances in the surrounding air. When these changes in air pressure
vibrate your eardrum, nerve signals are sent to your brain and are interpreted as sound.