§11.7Διὰ τί αἱ νεηλιφεῖς οἰκίαι μᾶλλον ἠχοῦσιν;
Why do newly plastered houses echo more?
ἢ ὅτι μᾶλλον ἀνάκλασις γίνεται διὰ τὴν λειότητα;
Is it because more reflection occurs due to their smoothness?
λειότεραι δὲ διὰ τὸ ἀρραγὲς καὶ τὸ συνεχές.
And they are smoother because of being unbroken and continuous.
δεῖ δὲ μὴ παντελῶς ὑγρὰν ἀλλ’ ἤδη ξηρὰν λαμβάνειν· ἀπὸ πηλοῦ γὰρ οὐκ ἔστιν ἀνάκλασις.
But one must assume them to be not completely wet but already dry; for there is no reflection from mud.
διὰ ταῦτα δὲ καὶ τὰ κονιάματα μᾶλλον ἠχεῖ.
And for these reasons plasterings also echo more.
συμβάλλεται δὲ ἴσως καὶ ἡ ἀκινησία τοῦ ἀέρος· ἀθρόος γὰρ ἰὼν μᾶλλον ἀποπλήττεται τὸν προσπίπτοντα.
Perhaps the stillness of the air also contributes; for moving in a mass it strikes back more against what falls upon it.
§11.8Διὰ τί, ἐάν τις πίθον καὶ κεράμια κενὰ κατορύξῃ καὶ πωμάσῃ, μᾶλλον ἠχεῖ τὰ οἰκήματα, καὶ ἐὰν φρέαρ ἢ λάκκος ᾖ ἐν τῇ οἰκίᾳ; 〈ἢ〉 ὅτι ἐπεὶ ἀνάκλασις ἡ ἠχώ, δεῖ περιειλημμένον ἀθρόον εἶναι τὸν ἀέρα, καὶ ἔχειν πρὸς ὃ ἀνακλασθήσεται, προσπῖπτον πυκνὸν καὶ λεῖον;
Why is it that, if one buries large jars and empty earthen vessels and covers them with lids, the rooms echo more, and also if there is a well or a cistern in the house? <Or> is it because, since an echo is a reflection, the air must be enclosed and concentrated, and must have something against which it will be reflected, being dense and smooth when it strikes?
οὕτω γὰρ μάλιστα ἦχος γίνεται.
For in this way a sound is most produced.
τὸ μὲν οὖν φρέαρ καὶ ὁ λάκκος ἔχει τὴν στενότητα καὶ τὴν ἄθροισιν, οἱ δὲ πίθοι καὶ τὰ κεράμια καὶ τὴν πυκνότητα τῶν περιεχόντων, ὥστε ἐξ ἀμφοτέρων τὸ συμβαῖνον.
Now the well and the cistern have narrowness and concentration, while the jars and the earthen vessels have also the density of what surrounds them, so that what happens results from both.
καὶ γὰρ τὰ κοῖλα μᾶλλον ἠχεῖ· διὰ τοῦτο καὶ ὁ χαλκὸς μάλιστα τῶν ἄλλων.
For indeed hollow things echo more; for this reason bronze also does so most of all.
ὅτι δὲ κατορωρυγμένα, οὐθὲν ἄτοπον· ἡ γὰρ φωνὴ φέρεται κάτω οὐχ ἧττον.
And the fact that they are buried is nothing strange; for the voice is carried downward no less.
ὅλως δὲ πανταχῇ δοκεῖ καὶ κύκλῳ φέρεσθαι.
In general, it seems to be carried everywhere and in a circle.
§11.9Διὰ τί δὲ μᾶλλον, ἐὰν κατορύξῃ τις, ἠχεῖ, ἢ ἐὰν μή;
But why does it echo more if one buries them than if one does not?
ἢ ὅτι περιστεγόμενα μᾶλλον εἰς αὑτὰ δέχεται καὶ κατέχει τὸν ἀέρα;
Is it because, being covered all around, they receive and hold the air more within themselves?
συμβαίνει δὲ καὶ τὴν πληγὴν σφοδροτέραν γίνεσθαι.
And it happens also that the impact becomes more violent.
§11.10Διὰ τί τὸ ὕδωρ τὸ ψυχρὸν ἐκ τοῦ αὐτοῦ ἀγγείου ἐκχεόμενον ὀξύτερον ποιεῖ τὸν ψόφον;
Why does cold water, when poured out from the same vessel, make a higher-pitched sound?
ἢ ὅτι θάττων ἡ φορά;
Is it because its movement is quicker?
βαρύτερον γάρ.
For it is heavier.
ἡ δὲ θάττων ὀξύτερον ποιεῖ τὸν ψόφον.
And a quicker movement makes a higher-pitched sound.
τὸ δὲ θερμὸν καὶ τῇ μανότητι καὶ τῇ ἀναφορᾷ κουφίζει.
But hot water, both by its rarity and by its upward tendency, makes it lighter.
παρόμοιον δὲ ὅτι καὶ αἱ δᾷδες καιόμεναι ἀσθενεστέραν τὴν πληγὴν ποιοῦσιν.
And it is similar that burning torches also make their impact weaker.
§11.11Διὰ τί τοῖς ἠγρυπνηκόσιν ἡ φωνὴ τραχυτέρα;
Why is the voice harsher in those who have stayed awake?
ἢ διότι ὑγρότερον τὸ σῶμα διὰ τὴν ἀπεψίαν, καὶ οὐχ ἥκιστα περὶ τὸν ἄνω τόπον, διὸ καὶ βάρος ἐν τῇ κεφαλῇ·
Is it because the body is wetter owing to indigestion, and not least around the upper region, which is why there is also heaviness in the head?
ὑγρότητός τε περὶ τὸν βρόγχον οὔσης ἀνάγκη καὶ τραχυτέραν εἶναι τὴν φωνήν.
And since there is moisture around the windpipe, it is necessary that the voice also be harsher.
ἡ μὲν γὰρ τραχύτης διὰ τὴν ἀνωμαλίαν, ἡ δὲ βαρύτης διὰ τὴν ἔμφραξιν· βραδυτέρα γὰρ ἡ φορά.
For harshness is due to unevenness, and deepness is due to obstruction; for the movement is slower.
§11.12Διὰ τί μετὰ τὰ σιτία τάχιστα ἀπορρήγνυται ἡ φωνή;
Why is it that after food the voice is very quickly broken?
ἢ ὅτι κοπτόμενος μὲν ὁ τόπος ἐκθερμαίνεται, θερμαινόμενος δὲ ἕλκει τὴν ὑγρότητα;
Is it because the region, being strained, becomes hot, and by becoming hot draws moisture?
πλείων δὲ αὕτη καὶ ἑτοιμοτέρα διὰ τὴν προσφοράν.
And this moisture is more abundant and more ready because of the food taken.
§11.13Διὰ τί οἱ κλαίοντες ὀξὺ φθέγγονται, οἱ δὲ γελῶντες βαρύ;
Why do those who weep speak with a high pitch, while those who laugh speak with a low pitch?
ἢ ὅτι οἱ μὲν ὀλίγον κινοῦσι πνεῦμα δι’ ἀσθένειαν, οἱ δὲ σφοδρῶς, ὃ ποιεῖ ταχὺ φέρεσθαι τὸ πνεῦμα;
Is it because the former, owing to weakness, move only a little breath, while the latter do so violently, which makes the breath travel quickly?
τὸ δὲ ταχὺ ὀξύ· καὶ γὰρ ἀπὸ συντόνου τοῦ σώματος ῥιπτούμενον ταχὺ φέρεται.
And the quick is high-pitched; for indeed what is thrown from a tense body travels quickly.
ὁ δὲ γελῶν τοὐναντίον διαλελυμένως· οἱ δὲ ἀσθενεῖς ὀξύ· ὀλίγον γὰρ ἀέρα κινοῦσιν· οἱ δὲ ἐπιπολῆς.
But he who laughs, on the contrary, does so in a relaxed manner; and the weak speak with a high pitch; for they move only a little air, and that superficially.
ἔτι οἱ μὲν γελῶντες θερμὸν τὸ πνεῦμα ἀφιᾶσιν, οἱ δὲ κλαίοντες, ὥσπερ καὶ ἡ λύπη κατάψυξίς ἐστι τοῦ τόπου τοῦ περὶ τὰ στήθη, καὶ τὸ πνεῦμα ψυχρότερον ἀφιᾶσιν.
Furthermore, is it because those who laugh emit hot breath, whereas those who weep—just as grief is a cooling of the region around the chest—emit colder breath?
τὸ μὲν οὖν θερμὸν πολὺν ἀέρα κινεῖ, ὥστε βραδέως φέρεσθαι, τὸ δὲ ψυχρὸν ὀλίγον.
Now the hot moves much air, so that it travels slowly, while the cold moves only a little.
συμβαίνει δὲ τοῦτο καὶ ἐπὶ τῶν αὐλῶν· οἱ γὰρ θερμοτέρῳ τῷ πνεύματι αὐλοῦντες πολὺ βαρύτερον αὐλοῦσιν.
And this happens also in the case of flutes; for those who play flutes with hotter breath play in a much lower pitch.