Underwater Acoustics: Brief Historical Overview Through WWII

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Discussion Overview

The discussion centers on the historical development of underwater acoustics, particularly during World War I and World War II, and its implications for naval warfare and oceanographic research. Participants explore various narratives, including a fictitious account of a cook developing an acoustic dampening system, and reference literature that details submarine operations and espionage during the Cold War.

Discussion Character

  • Historical
  • Exploratory
  • Meta-discussion

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants note that naval warfare has significantly driven advancements in underwater acoustics, leading to discoveries in sonar and geophysical exploration.
  • There is mention of a fictitious narrative about a merchant ship cook who allegedly created an 'acoustic dampening system', which some believe to be a product of AI-generated historical fiction.
  • One participant references the book "Blind Man's Bluff," which discusses U.S. Navy submarine operations and espionage during the Cold War, highlighting specific operations and incidents.
  • Another participant shares a story from the book about a collision between a Russian and an American submarine, emphasizing the emotional impact on the American captain who believed he had caused the deaths of the Russian crew.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants do not appear to reach a consensus on the validity of the fictitious narrative regarding the cook or the broader implications of underwater acoustics. Multiple perspectives on the historical context and narratives remain present.

Contextual Notes

The discussion includes references to specific historical events and literature but does not resolve the accuracy or implications of the narratives presented. There is an acknowledgment of the fictional nature of some claims, but no definitive conclusions are drawn.

Astronuc
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Naval warfare and the threat it poses have been the greatest motivation for underwater acoustics, starting with World War I (WWI) and reaching remarkable levels of achievement during and after World War II (WWII). These efforts led to basic discoveries in oceanography and acoustic science and engineering, including sonar and geophysical exploration.

The history of underwater acoustics over the first half of the 20th century includes its initial development, followed by a myriad of accomplishments through two world wars. This is a very broad and voluminous topic, for which only highlights can be given in this brief sketch. The material covered is largely derived from three special sessions on the topic, chaired by the authors at the 169th meeting of the Acoustical Society of America (ASA) held in Pittsburgh, PA. . . .
https://acousticstoday.org/wp-conte...rview-Through-World-War-II-Thomas-G.-Muir.pdf

This topic relates to a discussion about a fictitious narrative regarding a cook on a merchant ship who purportedly developed an 'acoustic dampening system'. The story appears to be 'historical fiction' generated by AI (LLM).

Ref: https://www.physicsforums.com/threads/random-thoughts-7.1056780/post-7293577

Edit/update (original post about a merchant marine cook and an 'insane' idea about acoustical damping):
Astronuc

History Post in thread 'For WW2 buffs!'

An interesting story - How One Cook's "INSANE" Idea Stopped U-Boats From Acoustically Detecting Convoys



The story apparently involves "historical fiction" by combining historical facts interwoven into a fictional narrative. WWII Rising Stories appear to be mostly fictional.

How this content was made
Altered or synthetic content
Sound or visuals were significantly edited or digitally generated.
The disclaimer/caveat indicates the video is generated by AI.

Some of the persons mentioned in the video are actual people.

Vice-Admiral Sir Peter William Gretton...
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Astronuc said:
https://acousticstoday.org/wp-conte...rview-Through-World-War-II-Thomas-G.-Muir.pdf

This topic relates to a discussion about a fictitious narrative regarding a cook on a merchant ship who purportedly developed an 'acoustic dampening system'. The story appears to be 'historical fiction' generated by AI (LLM).

Ref: https://www.physicsforums.com/threads/random-thoughts-7.1056780/post-7293577
And this is just one we noticed. Edit. How about the times they've been used for general, applied research?
 
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There's a great book on this called Blind Man's Bluff:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blind_Man's_Bluff:_The_Untold_Story_of_American_Submarine_Espionage

Blind Man's Bluff: The Untold Story of American Submarine Espionage (ISBN 0-06-103004-X) by Sherry Sontag, Christopher Drew, and Annette Lawrence Drew, published in 1998 by PublicAffairs, is a non-fiction book about U.S. Navy submarine operations during the Cold War. Several operations are described in the book, such as the use of USS Parche to tap Soviet undersea communications cables and USS Halibut to do the same in Operation Ivy Bells.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blind...Espionage?wprov=srpw1_6#cite_note-NYTreview-1"><span>[</span>1<span>]</span></a>

The book also contains an extensive list of collisions between Western and Soviet submarines and U.S. submarine awards.
 
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There is one story in there about a Russian sub and American sub grazing one another. Somehow the Russian sub lost its propeller stuck in the sail of the American sub.

The American sub waited around hoping the Russians would surface for a rescue but they never did. The American captain felt they had perished at sea and it bothered him until he died.

Many years after the incident when Russia opened up. The Russian captain went to visit the American captain but sadly he had passed away believing he had killed his fellow submariners in a shadow war that no one wanted to fight.

Check out the Wikipedia USS Tautog and K-108 collision circa 1970.
 
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