Harvey Fletcher | |
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Born | Provo, Utah, U.S. | September 11, 1884
Died | July 23, 1981 Provo, Utah, U.S. | (aged 96)
Alma mater | Brigham Young University University of Chicago |
Known for | Invention of the hearing aid The father of stereophonic sound Oil drop experiment measuring the charge of the electron |
Awards | Presidential Citation Louis E. Levy Medal (1924) ASA Gold Medal (1957) Audio Engineering Society Gold Medal Award (1958) IEEE Founders Medal (1967) Grammy Award (2016) |
Scientific career | |
Fields | Physics |
Institutions | Western Electric Bell Laboratories Columbia University |
Doctoral advisor | Robert A. Millikan |
Harvey Fletcher (September 11, 1884 – July 23, 1981) was an American physicist.[1] Known as the "father of stereophonic sound", he is credited with the invention of the 2-A audiometer[2] and an early electronic hearing aid.[3][4] He was an investigator into the nature of speech and hearing, and made contributions in acoustics, electrical engineering, speech, medicine, music, atomic physics, sound pictures, and education. Following his death, he was credited with collaborating with his doctoral advisor, Robert Millikan, on the Nobel-prize winning oil drop experiment which first determined the charge of the electron.[5]