member societies

The French Acoustical Society (S.F.A.)
Prepared for Noise/News International, 2001 March

Created in 1948 as the Group of French-speaking Acousticians (G.A.L.F.), the French Acoustical Society (S.F.A.) has the following objectives:

To develop and circulate scientific and technical information,
to foster the interdisciplinary character of acoustics,
and to act as a focal point for all French-speaking acousticians.
The S.F.A. has a membership of about 1000, drawn from varying backgrounds with different interests (engineers, researchers, teachers, biologists, architects, lawyers, psychologists, physicians, etc.) and from all kinds of professional activity (government, industry, academia, consultants, etc.). Its members, who come from many other countries as well as France, are organized in specialized groups according to their interests within the broad field of acoustics: musical acoustics, hearing, speech communication, ultrasonics, underwater acoustics, measurement and signal processing, architectural acoustics, electrodynamics, industrial and environmental acoustics, and aeroacoustics.

The means by which S.F.A. attempts to achieve its objectives are three-fold:

Acoustics is promoted by the dissemination of information, including the publication of papers, articles, and books describing the research work of its members, and the encouragement of working relationships between acousticians and others interested in the field of acoustics, in France and elsewhere.
Training is offered which will enable students to benefit from the most recent advances in acoustical research. For this purpose, the S.F.A. fosters many kinds of teaching, including fundamental courses as well as continuing education.
Enhancement of the dissemination of knowledge and research results through sponsorship of scientific meetings and conferences, carrying out investigations and supporting publications (recently, books have been published in a Collection of Acoustics), as well as by taking part in standardization activities.
International exchanges are encouraged, and foreign researchers are honored for their work. The S.F.A. has established working relationships with national acoustical societies-including those of Belgium, Poland, Italy, Great Britain, Germany, Spain, U.S.A., Latin America, Switzerland, China, etc. These relationships have facilitated many types of exchange: joint sponsorship of conferences, exchanges of articles in national publications, invitations to leading acousticians, etc.

The S.F.A. took an active role in the creation of the New European Acoustics Association (EAA), which, in 2000, had member societies from 27 countries and every three years organizes a European Congress: Forum Acusticum. The EAA also produces several other products such as Documenta Acustica, Fenestra Acustica, and Symposia Acustica.

SFA organized, for the second time, the INTER-NOISE Congress (29th) held in 2000 in Nice (with 1300 participants). The French Congresses on Acoustics are in their 5th version: Lausanne, Switzerland, in 2000, in close collaboration with the Swiss Acoustical Society (SSA). The next will be in Lille, in 2002, and the next again in Strasbourg in 2004, in collaboration with the German Acoustical Society (DEGA).

For more information on the French Acoustical Society, contact the Secretariat de la SFA, 23 Avenue Brunetiere, 75017 PARIS, France. FAX: +33 148 88 90 60; e-mail: sfa@loa.espci.fr; Internet: http://www.loa.espci.fr/sfa.

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