In a room about 30 yards long and 20 yards wide, one pair of people is sitting at one end, another pair is sitting in the middle, and the third pair is sitting at the opposite end.When they are all talking, the two people in each pair have a difficult time hearing each other, even though they are sitting not more than two feet apart.This situation is most likely caused by ______.
A)a short reverberation time
B)a long reverberation time
C)a short interaural level difference
D)a long interaural level difference

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The difficulty in hearing each other despite being close could be due to a long reverberation time, which means that sound waves are bouncing off surfaces in the room and taking a long time to die down. This can create a "muddy" or "echoey" sound that makes it hard for people to understand each other, especially when there are multiple conversations happening in the same space. Shorter reverberation times usually create clearer sound and better speech intelligibility. Inter-aural level differences (ILDs) refer to differences in volume between the two ears, and are not likely to be a factor in this situation, as both people in each pair are experiencing the same volume.

In a Room About 30 Yards Long and 20 Yards