If sounds are distal events that do not pass through the medium, what is the role of the medium? Is the medium a necessary condition on the existence of a sound, or is it merely a necessary condition on the perceptibility of a sound (as light is a necessary condition for the perceptibility, but not the existence, of a color instance)? This chapter contends that sounds require a medium by arguing that certain audible qualities are medium-relative. An important distinction between normative standards for perceiving visible versus audible qualities allows us to draw the stronger conclusion that...

If sounds are distal events that do not pass through the medium, what is the role of the medium? Is the medium a necessary condition on the existence of a sound, or is it merely a necessary condition on the perceptibility of a sound (as light is a necessary condition for the perceptibility, but not the existence, of a color instance)? This chapter contends that sounds require a medium by arguing that certain audible qualities are medium-relative. An important distinction between normative standards for perceiving visible versus audible qualities allows us to draw the stronger conclusion that no sounds exist in vacuums.