Sound, vibration, and motion are all inextricably linked. In this BBC video, physicist Helen Czerski shows how an object’s sound and vibrations relate through the classic Chladni experiment. She vibrates Keep reading
Tag: acoustics
Tracking Tonga’s Boom
When the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai volcano erupted in January 2022, its effects were felt — and heard — thousands of kilometers away. A new study analyzes crowdsourced data (largely from Keep reading
Dry Plants Warn Away Moths
Drought-stressed plants let out ultrasonic distress cries that moths use to avoid plants that can’t support their offspring. In ideal circumstances, a plant is constantly pulling water up from the Keep reading
Inside a Big Cat’s Roar
The roars of big cats — tigers, lions, jaguars, and leopards — carry long distances. In part, this reflects the animals’ size: large lungs exhale lots of air through a Keep reading
“Echo”
Daniel Kish is an echolocation pioneer, teaching fellow blind people to navigate the world independently. By clicking or tapping and listening to how the sound reflects back, Kish and his Keep reading
Sensing Sound Like Spiderwebs
Most microphones — like our ears — work by sensing the tiny pressure changes caused by a sound wave‘s passing. But for microphones built this way, the smaller they get, Keep reading
How Moths Confuse Bats
When your predators use echolocation to locate you, it pays to have an ultrasonic deterrence. So, many species of ermine moths have structures on their wings known as tymbals. These Keep reading
The Sound of Bubbles
Every day I stand in front of my refrigerator and listen to the water dispenser pouring water into my glass. The skinny, fast-moving jet of water plunges into the pool, Keep reading
A Better Ear Plug
Ear plugs can be wonderful at blocking outside noise, but they come with a downside: they typically amplify internal bodily sounds, like our heartbeat, breathing, and chewing. This effect, called Keep reading
Bravo!
Applauding is a familiar activity, but, as you stand for an encore in the concert hall, do you think about how you hold your hands and how that affects your Keep reading