Sonification maps non-audio data to sound parameters to convey information through the ear in SuperCollider

Chapter 13 presents completed sonification works mapping geographic and historical data to sound. The Magellan piece maps ship navigation data (latitude, wind, ocean currents) to pitch, spatial position, and texture. The juggle examples map physical simulation data to sound events. The mapping strategy determines what is conveyed: linear mappings communicate ordinal relationships; exponential mappings match perceptual logarithmic scaling (e.g., frequency). Reading CSV data and loading it into Pbind streams is the standard SC pattern. Key design challenge: which data dimensions are perceptually salient and which mapping preserves them.

Examples

// Map data to MIDI pitch range: \midinote, Pfunc({ |ev| ev[\latitude].linlin(minLat, maxLat, 40, 90) })

Assessment

Design a sonification of 50 data points (e.g., daily temperatures). Choose 3 sound parameters and justify each mapping. Implement in SC using Pbind and Pfunc. Evaluate: what patterns in the data become audible?