6.1 sound waves Flashcards
define particles
smallest parts of a substance
define sound wave
vibrations of particles parallel to the direction of transfer of sound energy
medium meaning
a substance that a wave passes through
backwards and forwards meaning
repeated movement in a straight line and opposite direction
loudness meaning
measure of how easy a sound could be heard
define pitch
the highness and lowness of the tone of a sound
speed of sound meaning
measure of how fast sound waves travel
write an example of sound waves
hitting a drum, playing a speaker, vibration from vocal chords
how does sound wave travel?
when an object vibrates, it moves back and forth.
the air particles in front of the object gets pushed forward and starts to vibrate back and forth too.
these particles then make other air particles in front of them vibrate.
the process continues and sound waves are produced.
why do people working near aeroplanes wear ear protection?
they protect their ears because the loud vibrations from the aeroplanes can damage your ears
sounds can vary in both loudness and pitch. give an example of each
loud - baby crying
high pitch - violin
low pitch - thunder
sound can travel through thesee 3 mediums
solid (fastest speed)
liquid (average speed)
gas (slowest speed - 343m/s for oxygen)
why does sound travel the fastest through solids?
- particles in solid are closer
- can transmit the vibrations faster
why does sound travel slowly in liquid and gas?
- particles are further apart
- longer time to transmit vibrations
why can’t sound travel in a vacuum?
there are no particles to vibrate
