The sound of impending failure

Sound is an incredibly valuable means of communicating information. Most motorists are familiar with the alarming noise of a slipping belt drive. And many other experts can detect problems with common machines in their respective fields just by listening to the sounds they make. If we can find a way to automate listening itself, we would be able to more intelligently monitor our world and its machines day and night. We could predict the failure of engines, rail infrastructure, oil drills and power plants in real time -- notifying humans the moment of an acoustical anomaly.