Students will, using an oscilloscope and a sinusoidal wave generator, determine
the wavelength and frequency of a particular on-screen wave form.
Students will, using a slinky, determine the relationship between wave
speed and tension for both transverse and longitudinal waves.
Students will, using an appropriate sensor and Fourier analysis, determine
the primary frequencies and relative amplitudes of a wire vibrating at several
harmonics.
Students will, using a wave table and hand strobes, determine the relationship
between wavelength, frequency, and wave speed.
Students will, using a wave table, show that when a wave passes over a submersible
barrier (representative of another medium), the wave speed and direction changes
in a certain way relative to the normal.
Students will, using a wave table and appropriate barriers, establish the
law of reflection.
Students will, using a wave table, a stroboscope, submersible barriers,
and appropriate measuring instruments, determine the speed of a wave in both
shallow and deep water.
Students will, using a wave table and submersible barriers, establish the
law of refraction.
Students will, using the above configuration, determine what changes occur
in wavelength, wave speed, and frequency, in the refraction process.
Students will, using two barriers, determine principles of diffraction
as they relate to aperture and wavelength.
Students will, using two point sources to create circular waveforms, determine
the relationship between source separation and patterns of constructive or
destructive interference (nodal or anti-nodal lines).
Students will, using plane waves and a suitable barrier, attempt to establish
the conditions required for standing waves.
Students will, using a wave table, show that two points vibrating in phase
generate an interference pattern according to the relationship n*lambda=d*sin(theta).
6.2 Sound
Students will, using a signal generator and speaker, determine the qualitative
relationship between frequency and pitch.
Students will, using a signal generator, speaker and oscilloscope, determine
the qualitative relationship between amplitude and loudness for a range of
frequencies.
Students will, using various mechanical sources of sound (violin or guitar,
flute or recorder, tuning forks, pan pipes, induced resonance in soda bottles,
vibrating rulers, singing glasses, etc.) establish the relationship between
pitch and length of the matter vibrating to produce sound.
Students will, using adjustable tuning forks, determine the conditions
required for sympathetic vibration.
Students will, using two identical sources of sound, show that constructive
and destructive interference occur in air as well as in water.
Students will, using a keyboard, xylophone, or similar source of musical
notes, determine the relationship between harmonics of the note.
Students will, using a keyboard, xylophone, or similar source of musical
notes, determine the relationship between the notes of a scale and determine
if that scale is chromatic or diatonic.
Students will, using a sensor and a computer-based Fast Fourier Transform
(FFT), determine the relationship between the "clang" frequency
of a tuning fork and its fundamental frequency.
Students will, using a air in a standing tube (length of column adjustable
with water), determine the speed of sound in air using a knowledge of the
fundamental frequency of a tuning fork, and a quarter-wavelength of a wave
at resonance.
Students will, using the Vernier microphone:
analyze the sound of a turning fork
analyze the sound of your voice
analyze the overtones produced with a tuning fork
examine how a touch-tone phone works (using FFT (Fast Fourier Transform graph) determine patterns for the individual numbers).
6.3 Transmission of Sound
Students will, using a tuning fork, and resonance tube, and the relationship
between frequency and wavelength, determine the speed of sound in air.
Students will demonstrate with the use of various sources of sound and suitable
barriers that sound demonstrates interference, reflection, refraction, and
diffraction.
6.4 Frequency and Wavelength of Sound
Students will, using a stringed instrument, determine the qualitative relationships
between fundamental frequency and tension, frequency and length, and frequency
and linear density of the plucked string.
Students will, using a monochord, determine the quantitative relationships
between fundamental frequency and tension, frequency and length, and frequency
and linear density of the plucked string (Mersenne’s laws).
Students will use Mersenne’s laws and dimensional analysis to determine
a hypothetical form of the above relationships co-joined.
Students will experimentally verify the co-joined relationship.
Students will qualitatively establish the Doppler relationship.
6.5 Wave Properties of Sound
Student will, using two sources of sound of known frequency, determine
the relationship between these frequencies and the beat frequency produced
by interference.
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