Whistle register
I don't recall how I came about it, but I ended up perusing info on Mariah Carey about a week ago. Whatever I was reading (IMDb?) eventually led me to something called the whistle register on Wikipedia. See, I'm of the opinion that if you're going to sing, you should make it sound good. Those really high notes Mariah sings typically don't. Upon reading the article, I discovered that those notes aren't supposed to. Who knew? Honestly, I didn't realize there was a name for those really high, airy notes. I have a whistle register--I imagine most people do--but mine starts a lot lower than a soprano's. This would be why I'm an alto.
Other related musical pages, in case you're as dorky about music as I am:
Scientific pitch notation
Five-octave vocal range (Aha! The mystery of how someone could sing a full five octaves is explained)
The seventh octave
Voice types (For the record, my voice has spanned A2 to D6, though it doesn't go quite that low anymore and my upper notes are whistle tones)
Vocal registration (I have multiple registers that come in at different points, meaning I have multiple "breaks" or notes that cause me issues when I sing. If you're not familiar with what the different registers sound like, listen to Jewel on "Who Will Save Your Soul"--she switches registers multiple times.)
Other related musical pages, in case you're as dorky about music as I am:
Scientific pitch notation
Five-octave vocal range (Aha! The mystery of how someone could sing a full five octaves is explained)
The seventh octave
Voice types (For the record, my voice has spanned A2 to D6, though it doesn't go quite that low anymore and my upper notes are whistle tones)
Vocal registration (I have multiple registers that come in at different points, meaning I have multiple "breaks" or notes that cause me issues when I sing. If you're not familiar with what the different registers sound like, listen to Jewel on "Who Will Save Your Soul"--she switches registers multiple times.)