Selective power of human ear studied

People at noisy parties are often able to catch the sound of their own names or mention of a topic that interests them from across a room in the midst of conversational din. In the world of science, this is known as the “cocktail party effect.” At Stanford Research Institute, a psychologist interested in this strange phenomenon has completed exploratory research making use of it in a way that could drastically affect communications systems. Dr. Maurice Rappaport believes that the ability to “zero in” on a key phrase or conversation amid the tinkle of glasses and laughter is possibly the stereo effect given by two ears and the human brain's capability for selectively listening to one of several simultaneous messages.