Delta modulation

Delta modulation is a way to turn sounds or pictures into numbers that can be saved on a computer or sent over the internet. It works by looking at little pieces of the sound or picture, and deciding whether they are going up or down. Delta modulation is like a teacher asking a student to guess whether the next number is higher or lower than the last number.

For example, imagine you and your friends are playing a game where you have to guess whether the next number is going to be higher or lower than the previous number in a sequence. The first number is 10, and the next number is 12, so you all say "higher". The next number is 11, so you all say "lower". That's how delta modulation works – it looks at changes in numbers, and tries to guess whether they're increasing or decreasing.

In the same way, delta modulation looks at the sounds or pictures we want to save or send, and tries to guess whether they're getting louder or quieter, or whether the colors are getting brighter or dimmer. It does this by measuring the difference between the current sound or picture and the previous one, and turning that difference into a number.

Using numbers to represent sounds and pictures makes them much easier to work with and store on computers. Delta modulation is one way to do that, by making educated guesses about how things are changing over time.