NSF giving UMaine Engineer More Than $500K For Voice Study

ORONO, Maine - A mechanical engineer at the University of Maine will receive more than a half million dollars to study human voice production.
 
The National Science Foundation is giving Xudong Zheng the grant, which will help him lead a project to use computer models to look at sound production.
 
The university says Zheng's long-term goal is to understand the mechanism responsible for the range, complexity and uniqueness of the human voice. That will aid in personalized voice care.
 
The National Institutes of Health says nearly 18 million people in the country reported having a problem with their voice in the past year.
 
Zheng says better understanding of vocal function can improve diagnosis and surgical procedures, as well as help people such as singers, telemarketers and broadcasters.