Book excerpt: This first edition text provides readers with a comprehensive look at hearing science and a broad coverage of auditory mechanisms and functions. The ideal tool for building knowledge in the area, Hearing Science: A Foundational Approach by Durrant and Feth covers such topics as the capacities of the auditory system; basic concepts of quantification and physics; the decibel; peripheral and central auditory systems; auditory physiology and neurophysiology; and hearing capacities and proclivity. It also presents the fundamental concepts of physics, acoustics, anatomy, physiology, and sensory psychology to help readers comprehend the complex auditory processes presented.