Phonetics Lab History
Phonetics research at the Stockholm University (University College at the time) started in 1952, when two new departments were established – the Phonetic Research Laboratory and the Phonetic Training Laboratory. With equipment like tape recorders, a sound fitted studio, listening places for language recordings, a mingograf and a sound spectrograph, the laboratories were very advanced at that time. In 1965, the Department of Linguistics was formed with Professor Björn Lindblom as head of the Section for Phonetics.
In the early 1970s, The Department of Linguistics moved into the newly built Campus at Frescati. At about the same time, Björn Lindblom received a professorship in Speech Physiology and Speech Perception, financed by the Swedish Research Council for Humanities and Social Sciences. The Section for Phonetics rapidly grew along with some groundbreaking research development in speech physiology. New methods like speech synthesis, spectral analysis and EMG, resulted in mapping the speech apparatus’ articulatory movements and their acoustical consequences.
In 1977, the Phonetics Laboratory was established in its present location at Stockholm University. The Section for Phonetics outgrew their old premises, which resulted in a relocation of the Department of Linguistics and the Phonetics Lab. A full-scale rebuild of the basement of the C-building at Södra huset, resulted in a specially built phonetic laboratory with advanced technical equipment and an anechoic chamber.
In 1997, the Phonetics Lab was again updated with, among other things, the installation of two electrically shielded rooms and three soundproof experiment rooms, along with a spacious subject’s waiting room. In 2006 – 2009, a grant from The Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation enabled, among other things, the installation of an EEG-system, several Eye-tracking systems and a Wave-system. The Lab is continuously being upgraded to hold a state-of-the-art level of standard. A closer description of our current equipment and facilities can be found in the left menu.
The excellent lab equipment of the Phonetics Lab at Stockholm University opens up for advanced experimental research well over the boundaries of Phonetics as a discipline. The Lab is a valuable asset for all researchers at the Department of Linguistics and it also attracts researchers and students from all over the world. Throughout the years, the Section for Phonetics has had close collaboration with the Department of Speech, Music and Hearing at KTH Royal Institute of Technology. There are currently several research projects active in collaboration with, for instance, Karolinska Institutet and Karolinska University Hostpital. Find out more about our research projects at the Department of Linguistics home page:
