The Science and Technology Council occasionally uncovers, and makes available at no charge, publications of historical interest to researchers and moving image enthusiasts. Motion Picture Sound Engineering is the first of these free downloadable publications.

Originally published in 1938, in the decade during which the sound motion picture evolved from a novelty into the theatrical standard, Motion Picture Sound Engineering is considered by many to be a classic reference work on the subject of sound technology. The book is a compilation of papers on studio sound recording techniques and theater sound reproducing equipment and practice; the papers, in turn, originated as a series of lectures presented by the Research Council of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in the fall of 1936 and spring of 1937. Topics include the nature of sound, microphone and speaker types, equalization and filtering, and electromagnetic principles as they relate to sound recording and reproduction.