Durand Begault: “Obscure and Important” topics in Forensic Audio

In collaboration with AES and McGill Sound Recording

ABSTRACT

Audio forensic experts are typically involved with issues of media authentication, voice identification or processing of noisy recordings to achieve improved intelligibility. Research and publications in these areas are relatively extensive. Comparatively, less information or research is available regarding forensic musicology, audibility, or acoustics that can be useful in a legal setting. This talk will review issues and case studies on these more obscure topics, including copyright infringement, gunshot analysis, audibility of screams, and “room prints”. Suggestions for further research directions will be offered.

 

ABOUT DURAND BEGAULT

Durand R. Begault Ph.D. (AES Fellow, 2002) is Director of Audio Forensic Center, a subsidiary of Charles M Salter Associates (consultants in acoustics), San Francisco. He has testified over fifty times in court or depositions, in U.S. Federal and State courts including the United States International Trade Commission (USITC), and courts in Canada and International arbitration panels (ICSID) on a variety of forensic audio subjects, not limited to audio and video authentication, voice analysis, patent and intellectual property analysis, forensic musicology, gunshot analysis, earwitness testimony and signal audibility. He has also worked since 1988 at NASA Ames Research Center as a research scientist for new audio and multi-modal technologies for aeronautic and space applications, including psychoacoustic research, human factors evaluation, sound quality, acoustical modeling and communications engineering.  His activities at AES have included publications, organization of workshops and paper sessions, chairing of Technical Committees on Perception and Subjective Evaluation of Audio Signals and Forensic Audio, membership on the AES Journal’s review board since 1993, work as an Associate  Technical Editor of the Journal, and membership on the Board of Governors.

 

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