Final answer:
Music is of interest to cognitive science due to its universal capacity to convey emotions and its ability to cross cultural boundaries, making it a powerful medium for understanding human cognition and group dynamics.
Step-by-step explanation:
The interest in music within cognitive science stems from its universal ability to convey emotions across different cultures, which was evidenced by a study led by Thomas Fritz. By conducting research with the Mafa tribe in Cameroon, Fritz's team observed that members were able to recognize emotions such as happiness, sadness, and fear in Western music despite having no prior exposure to it. This suggests that music might be a universal language.
Furthermore, music is considered to be an integral part of our evolutionary past, sharing a connection with language. The nonverbal nature of music allows it to cross societal boundaries, fostering a sense of unity within groups and facilitating connections where language barriers exist.
Moreover, the study of music within the context of cognitive science can also explain the science behind why music can be pleasing or irritating, by examining concepts such as the superposition of waves and the resulting constructive or destructive interference created by the mixture of different frequencies.