Wave Basics
What is frequency?
a measure of the number of wave crests that pass a fixed point per second
How do sound waves transfer energy?
By vibrating particles in the medium they travel through, and colliding with one another.
Can you give an example of how sound is used in medical imaging?
Ultrasound uses sound waves to create images of the inside of the body.
Solid, liquid, or gas? And WHY?
SOLID: Travels faster due to closely packed particles.
What did we figure out in the stick vibration experiment with the motion detector?
Longer sticks vibrate slower, producing lower-pitched sounds.
What is amplitude?
how high a wave goes up or how low it goes down
Does amplitude have anything to do with energy? If so, how?
Higher amplitude means more energy transfer, lower amplitude means less energy transfer.
Can you give an example of sound absorption?
Acoustic panels in a musical studio, band room, orchestra room, choir room, that absorb sound to reduce echoes.
Compare speed that sound moves through in liquids versus gases.
Sound travels faster in liquids than gases due to particle density.
Tuning fork demonstration?
Showed how sound waves are produced and transmitted.
What is the amplitude and frequency of this wave? (low, medium, high...)
(Your teacher will show you)
Low amplitude, high frequency
Force must be applied, which makes it vibrate.
Can you give an example of an application of sound reflection? (echoes)
Echolocation in bats and submarines.
Explain how particle collisions cause sound?
Sound travels through particle collisions in the medium.
What was the sealed Ziploc bag experiment conclusion?
That sound needs a medium to travel, and it can travel through solids (the bag).
What is the amplitude and frequency of this sound wave? (low, medium, high...)
(Your teacher will show you)
High amplitude, low frequency
Give one example of where energy transfer takes place when the speaker makes the window move.
(Just need one)
1. Speaker vibrates, transferring energy to the air particles, making them vibrate.
2. Air particles crash into each other, transferring energy.
3. Air particles crash into the window, transferring energy to the window.
Can you give an example of when architecture designs keep sound waves in mind?
Designing concert halls for optimal sound quality.
What is a medium's effect on sound speed?
The denser the medium, the faster the sound travels.
What is one reason why humans can lose their hearing?
The hairs in their ears get damaged or worn down by loud or high pitch sounds.
How is wave speed calculated?
Wave speed equals frequency times wavelength.
Explain how sound is heard by our ears.
Sound source has force applied to it, which causes it to vibrate.
Then, the sound source causes the air particles to vibrate, crashing into one another, transferring energy.
Then, the air particles transfer energy to each other as they crash into each other.
Then, the air particles eventually crash into the ear drum, transferring energy to the ear drum, causing us to hear the sound.
When are sound waves used in communication?
Using sound waves in devices like phones for transmitting voice.
Can you hear sound in a vacuum? Why or why not?
Sound cannot travel in a vacuum as there are no particles to transmit it.
What is the membrane called that vibrates and also causes some of the hairs in our ears to vibrate, which is the final step in hearing sound?
The basilar membrane