Sounds and Waves

Waves
● A wiggle that travels through space and matter
● Carries energy from one place to another
● https://youtu.be/7cDAYFTXq3E

● Density matters!
Types of waves: Mechanical Waves
● Can see them or their effects
● Example: sound waves, water waves
● Need material or “medium” to go through
What is a medium?
● Anything that has matter
● Can be metal, rock, water, air, ect.
● Particles of a medium vibrate as the wave passes
Types of waves: Electromagnetic Waves
● Can’t see all of them
● Don’t need a medium to go through, but can go through a
medium
● Examples: light, radio waves, x-rays
 Waves

Mechanical Electromagnetic
 Waves

Mechanical Electromagnetic
Transverse Wave
● waves that move perpendicular to the direction energy is
traveling
● https://youtu.be/7cDAYFTXq3E?t=12s
Longitudinal Wave
● waves that move in the same direction as energy is traveling
● https://youtu.be/7cDAYFTXq3E
Parts of a wave
Parts of a wave
Sound
● Sound is a type of wave!
● Longitudinal
● Sounds are produced by vibrations
“Loudness” of Sounds
● Loudness or volume is determined by the AMPLITUDE of the
sound wave
“Loudness” of Sounds
● Sound level is determined
by the Decibel Scale
Pitch of Sounds
● The pitch of sounds is determined by the wavelength of its
wave
Pitch of Sounds
● Generally, humans can hear frequencies between 20 Hertz
to 20,000 Hertz
● When you get older you generally lose the ability to hear
higher frequencies
● Exposure to loud noises can also cause loss of ability to hear
high frequencies
Sound Interference
● Sound waves can interfere with other sound waves.
● Two sound waves that are identical can constructively
interfere and get louder.
● Two sound waves that are not identical will sometimes
destructively interfere and get quieter.
Beats
● Beats are the periodic and
repeating fluctuations
heard in the intensity of a
sound when two or more
sound waves of very similar
frequencies interfere with
one another.
Doppler’s effect
● If a source is producing a frequency and approaching you,
the frequency will appear higher to the detector
● If a source is producing a frequency and moving away from
you, the frequency will appear lower to the detector.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h4OnBYrbCjY stop at 1:47