Waves and Sound Problems

Open Pipe Harmonic Series: fn = nv/2L Closed Pipe Harmonic Series: fn = nv/4L

v=f

Period = 1/frequency

Harmonic Series Vibrating String: fn = nv/2L

1. A wave travels through a spring with a velocity of 2.5 m/s and a frequency of 1700 Hz. What is the wavelength of the wave?

2. The following diagram shows a snapshot of a wave frozen in time. The horizontal axis is measured in meters. a. If you can, give the wavelength of the wave.

b.

How many complete cycles are shown?

c.

What is the amplitude of the wave?

d.

If this graph represents a wave moving through a string at 115 m/s, give the frequency of the wave.

3. The strings on the inside of a piano are shown below. Assuming that the thickness of the strings are all the same (which they are not on a real piano), explain which strings correspond to the high notes on the piano. Use the equation v = f to explain your answer.

4. Renee and Hector are off on an outing club trip at the Grand Canyon. While standing on the rim looking down at the Colorado River, Kala barks! Renee records that it takes 32 seconds to hear the echo from Kalas bark. So it takes 10.6 seconds for the sound to travel to the bottom of the canyon and back. If the speed of sound in air is 340 m/s, how deep is the canyon? Name an everyday object or distance that is approximately the same at the depth of the Grand Canyon. (Hintyou will not use v = f)

5. A guitar has strings of equal length but different thickness. Explain how the strings of a guitar give different pitches (frequencies) when plucked without changing the length of the string. Think about how the speed of the wave along the string might change.

6. Light waves travel nearly 1 million times faster than sound waves in air. Explain how the distance to a lightning bolt can be determined by counting the seconds between the flash and the sound of the thunder. About how many seconds do you need to count for each mile away of the lightning?

7. Sound pulses emitted by a dolphin travel through 20 degree Celsius ocean water at a rate of 1450 m/s. In 20 degree Celsius air, these pulses would travel 342.9 m/s. Why are these speeds different?

8. A flute is essentially a pipe open at both ends. The length of a flute is approximately 66.0 cm. What are the first three harmonics of a flute when all keys are closed, making the vibrating air column approximately equal to the length of the flute? The speed of sound in the flute is 340 m/s.

9.

Fourier Transform IntegralCompute the following two integrals