SOUND STATIONS

I. STRINGS 1. Arrange the equipment as shown in the diagram below.

table

mass

2. Place a mass hanger on the string that is draped over the pulley. Use the total mass hanging from the string to determine the tension force in newtons (F = mg) pulling down on the string.

3. Pluck the string and listen to the sound while watching the string vibrate. The string is vibrating in the lowest fundamental mode. That corresponds to the jump rope shape from the standing wave section of the slinky lab. Determine the wavelength of the vibration. One wavelength

4. Use a pencil to press down on the string to change its length. Pluck the string on the side of the pencil near the pulley and listen to the vibration. Measure the new wavelength and explain how the sound is different from #3.

5. Explore the vibrational sounds from other lengths of string. Make a general statement about the relationship between wavelength and the frequency/pitch of the sound that is made.

6. In the equation v = f, v is the velocity of the wave along the string which will remain constant unless the tension in the string is changed. Use this equation to support your conclusion in #5.

7. By adding more mass to the hanger you can increase the tension on the string. Explore how tension in the string affects the frequency of vibration with different masses. Make a general statement about the pitch you hear and the tension in the string. Keep the wavelength constant for each added mass.

II. STRAWS AND TUBES 1. Get 2 straws and cut one in half. Cut one of the halves into two quarters, and one of the quarters into two eighths. 2. Gently blow across the top of the different pieces of straw. Listen carefully to the change in frequency/pitch between the various lengths of straw. Write a general relationship between the length of the straw and the frequency that is heard.

3. When you blow across the top of the tube, you are making the air vibrate in a standing wave (longitudinal) pattern. The loudest frequency that you hear corresponds to the longest wavelength standing wave that will fit in the tube. Read the handout to see a diagram of the standing wave pattern. Using the information in the handout, determine the longest wavelength (in cm) that will be vibrating in each length of straw. Straw length (cm) 1. 2. 3. 4. 4. Use the equation v = f, determine the frequency of vibration produced by each straw piece. The speed of sound in air is approximately 343 m/s. (Watch the units.) open bottom wavelength (cm)

5. Cover the bottom of the straw and blow into it again. How does the sound compare to the same straw with the bottom uncovered? Write a general statement about the sound heard from two straws of the same length one of which is uncovered, and the other covered on the bottom.

6. Write a general statement about the pitch heard from a covered straw as the length of the straw changes.

7. Why do you think the pitch of the straw changes when the bottom of the straw is covered? Give a plausible explanation.

III. BOTTLES In this activity you will measure the frequency made by the sound of blowing across the top of a bottle. You will use a microphone connected to a LabQuest to measure the frequency. Hold the microphone very close to the sound source and complete multiple trials to get an accurate reading. 1. Fill a glass bottle about 1/4 full with water*. Practice blowing across the top until you get a nice, clear tone. 2. Hold the microphone as close to the bottle top as possible without actually touching it. The LabQuest will only record for 2 seconds, so begin recording after the tone is already being made. (Use a sample rate of 1000 sample/sec and length of 2 seconds) 3. When you get a uniform graph on the computer, determine the frequency of the tone using the technique showed in class (Analyze, FFT). Record the frequency below under F1. 4. For each water level below, complete 3 trials (runs) and find the average frequency. Then use the chart to find the closest musical note. Each time you complete a run and have determined the frequency, you can choose Clear Run from the Experiment drop down menu. * As measured from the shoulder of the bottle. Amount of Water* Empty 1/3 full full full 5. Explain the general relationship between the water level in the bottle and the frequency of the sound made by the vibrating air column Height of Water (cm) F1 (Hz) F2 (Hz) F3 (Hz) Ave Frequency (Hz) Closest Musical Note (see table below)

Notes A A# B C C# D D# E F F# G A flat

55 58 62 64 69 73 78 82 87 93 98 104

Approximate Frequency (octaves) 110 220 117 233 123 247 131 262 139 277 147 294 156 311 164 330 175 349 185 370 196 392 208 415

440 466 494 523 554 587 622 659 698 740 784 831

880 932 988 1047 1109 1175 1244 1319 1397 1480 1568 1661

IV. AUDACITY In this activity you will use the sound recording and editing program called Audacity on a laptop. Follow the instructions below to enhance your understanding of sound waves and the meaning of different terms like frequency, amplitude, superposition etc. 1. Open Audacity 2. Choose Generate/Tone from the main menu. 3. Fill in the pop-up menu with the following values: Waveform=Sine Frequency = 440 Hz Amplitude = 0.5 Duration = 2 seconds. 4. Click OK. Then listen to the tone by clicking on the green arrow at the top of the page. 5. You wont be able to see the shape of the wave on the screen because it has such a high frequency. Highlight a short section of the wave and choose View/Zoom In several times until you see the shape of the wave. 6. Experiment by changing each of the variables in the pop-up menu and listening to the new tone. Explain below how the variable effects the sound you hear. Be specific about the change you hear. Amplitude:

Frequency:

7. Change the waveform (keeping the frequency and amplitude constant) and listen to the different shapes. Sketch the shape below (after zooming in several times) and try to describe how the sound is different for each. Sine Square Sawtooth

8. Experiment with the tone generator to determine the range of frequencies that YOU can hear. The general range for human hearing is 20 20,000 Hz. Lowest frequency = ______________ Highest Frequency = ___________

9. Follow these steps: a. With a new Audacity file, generate a 4 second 100 Hz tone with Generate/Tone. b. Add a new track below the first using Tracks/Add New/Audio. c. Create another 4 second 100 Hz tone with Generate/Tone. d. Choose Effect/Invert. This will cause the lower track to reflect over the horizontal axis. Choose a section to zoom in on to see the relationship between the two waves. Sketch the two waves here showing the inversion:

10. There is a Mute button on the left hand side of each track. Play each track alone. Then play them together. Explain what happens.