Would Headphones Work In Space Vacuum?

[Spacescifi]

 

https://www.reddit.com/r/Supergirl/comments/1e09g7h/reposted_supermansupergirls_comic_book_dynamic_i/#lightbox

 

I thought it was really cool that DC comics of the 2005-2011 era sought to include a scifi theme to the Supergirl comics of the same era. Including real world science on occasion that effected the story in small or larger ways.

The linked comic pictures portray Supergirl and Superman talking in space above Earth with the aid of headphone devices.

Since there is no air in space to convey sound would such a device actually transmit any sound that a human wearing it in vacuum could actually hear?

Or my headcanon can just assume Superman being the brilliant engineer he is when necessity calls for it made headphones that shoot out compressed gas into the ears as people wearing  them talk in space vacuum.

Perhaps THAT is how he can hear what Supergirl is saying?

And let's disregard the times Superman heard stuff on Earth all the way from the moon without any hearing device lol... because we both know superhero powers can be all over the place in powerscaling from time to time.

Edited July 13 by Spacescifi

[kerbiloid]

The skull bones are good in sound conduction.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bone_conduction

Even the soft flesh of the neck is.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Throat_microphone

[Spacescifi]

56 minutes ago, kerbiloid said:

The skull bones are good in sound conduction.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bone_conduction

Even the soft flesh of the neck is.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Throat_microphone

Wow. So DC comics was science accurate here?

[kerbiloid]

6 hours ago, Spacescifi said:

So DC comics was science accurate here?

Unless they use a telepathic remote connection instead.

Edited July 13 by kerbiloid

[darthgently]

Let's fact check fantasy.  Slippery subject

[Nuke]

3 hours ago, kerbiloid said:

Unless they use a telepatic remote connection instead.

radio augmented telepathy. brain chip, meet esp32.

[Codraroll]

22 hours ago, darthgently said:

Let's fact check fantasy.  Slippery subject

Literally the only thing Spacescifi posts about, almost making a thread a day in some periods.

[darthgently]

1 hour ago, Codraroll said:

Literally the only thing Spacescifi posts about, almost making a thread a day in some periods.

What if anything was possible? 

I started reading a sci-fi series awhile back.  I think it was The Substrate Wars.  I quickly lost interest because the so-called protagonists literally gained god-like powers over reality.  With that the potential for a real relatable story completely evaporated.  Basically the main characters seemed to be a barely concealed rendition of the authors desire to control everything and everyone.  Boring and adolescent.  No moral struggle, nothing.  Just glee at putting others "in their place"

Lord of the Flies did a much better job exploring the realities of  control and boundary  issues

[Nuke]

to be fair i believe he is mostly exploring sci-fi possibilities. hence his name. i have no problem with this. just know what you are getting into. you might be wanting scifi to be hard and as close to realistic as possible, but we all watch star wars/trek/gate/etc. and none of those are going to win any realism awards. scifi is the gateway drug to the relm of science, engineering, etc. this is a good thing.

Edited July 15 by Nuke

[K^2]

I use bone conduction headphones as my daily driver, because I don't like earbuds that sit in my ear canal, and over-the-heads tend to have somewhat uncomfortable (for me) bands. Bone conductors are light, weather proof, and don't get in the way of me having a conversation with somebody at the same time as wearing them. Sound's a little different, but unless you're very particular about something like music, it's more than good enough.

In theory, yeah, they should work even in vacuum, but I'm not sure if they'd do me much good if my ears are exposed to the vacuum. I can't think of any scenario where I don't lose consciousness within 15 seconds at the very best.

[kerbiloid]

Throat phones in stylish fancy caps.

Spoiler

Also could be modded with ear-cut helmets.

 

Edited July 15 by kerbiloid

[tomf]

Bone conducting headphones should work in a vacuum. Making sounds to be picked up by a throat mike would be more of a problem. I think without air to vibrate vocal chords, and be shaped in the mouth there isn't going to be any sound to pick up.

[Spacescifi]

7 hours ago, K^2 said:

I use bone conduction headphones as my daily driver, because I don't like earbuds that sit in my ear canal, and over-the-heads tend to have somewhat uncomfortable (for me) bands. Bone conductors are light, weather proof, and don't get in the way of me having a conversation with somebody at the same time as wearing them. Sound's a little different, but unless you're very particular about something like music, it's more than good enough.

In theory, yeah, they should work even in vacuum, but I'm not sure if they'd do me much good if my ears are exposed to the vacuum. I can't think of any scenario where I don't lose consciousness within 15 seconds at the very best.

 

Yeah but if vacuum would not bother you for hours because you were kryptonian... for folks like that who want privacy where no one else can hear them, it's perfect.

 

I really enjoyed how the writers of the period sought to include real science. They even had a comic where they used a fancy scifi telescope to view Krypton in real time since light is old, allowing Supergirl to see her younger self and family and even baby Superman barf on her beore she left the planet (combining X-ray and super telecopic vision can do that). There was also another issue where Supergirl was in space for hours chasing a spaceship, so long her eyes began to redden (no oxygen so boiling really) and she nearly lost consciousness before using a teleportation device to go back to Earth.

2 hours ago, tomf said:

Bone conducting headphones should work in a vacuum. Making sounds to be picked up by a throat mike would be more of a problem. I think without air to vibrate vocal chords, and be shaped in the mouth there isn't going to be any sound to pick up.

So Superman would have put a bit of air into the device then lol.

Edited July 15 by Spacescifi

[K^2]

12 minutes ago, Spacescifi said:

Yeah but if vacuum would not bother you for hours because you were kryptonian... for folks like that who want privacy where no one else can hear them, it's perfect.

Yeah, if we have a hypothetical super-hero that doesn't mind a bit of vacuum exposure, but otherwise have a human-like anatomy, bone-conducting headphones should be fine.

Microphones are a bit of a problem, though. Laryngophone would pick up vibrations from your throat, but the vibrations are normally produced by air passing through your vocal chords, and even if your super-hero can hold their breath in a vacuum, this is going to be a very limited resource.

[darthgently]

If both super heroes have x-ray vision they could see each others' internals and read the throat, tongue, facial and lip muscles and decode language

Edited July 15 by darthgently

[kerbiloid]

4 hours ago, tomf said:

Bone conducting headphones should work in a vacuum. Making sounds to be picked up by a throat mike would be more of a problem.

No more than breathing. If the thing is breathing, then it can speak in throat phones.

[Codraroll]

43 minutes ago, kerbiloid said:

No more than breathing. If the thing is breathing, then it can speak in throat phones.

Breathing what? If nothing passes through the vocal chords, no vibrations would be made, hence no sound.

[kerbiloid]

3 minutes ago, Codraroll said:

Breathing what? If nothing passes through the vocal chords, no vibrations would be made, hence no sound.

As the Superman is breathing, it can speak.

Wait... is this... being even breathing?..

[Spacescifi]

2 hours ago, K^2 said:

Yeah, if we have a hypothetical super-hero that doesn't mind a bit of vacuum exposure, but otherwise have a human-like anatomy, bone-conducting headphones should be fine.

Microphones are a bit of a problem, though. Laryngophone would pick up vibrations from your throat, but the vibrations are normally produced by air passing through your vocal chords, and even if your super-hero can hold their breath in a vacuum, this is going to be a very limited resource.

They have an air supply that can last about 2 hours. Not too big of a deal lol.

Considering the fact that they don't need to suck in a bunch of air first to blow people literally away with their breath, I'd say they can breathe in space for a good while before suffocation sets in.

 

That... and I doubt they spend hours chatting in space. Just a quick chat.

Edited July 15 by Spacescifi