Many substances – like the cornstarch and water mixture above – exhibit a property called shear-thickening. In these fluids, deforming them quickly causes the viscosity to increase dramatically. That shear-thickening occurs when particles Keep reading
Tag: acoustics
Seeing Sound
It’s not always easy to imagine how waves travel, but with this demonstration, you can see sound waves and how they reflect and defract. The set-up uses schlieren optics that show light Keep reading
Seeing with Sound
Sound carries rich information about the environment through which it’s traveled. And while many sighted people never take the time to notice this, using sound to build a mental picture Keep reading
Seeing the Song
We can’t always see the flows around us, but that doesn’t mean they’re not there. Audobon Photography Award winner Kathrin Swaboda waited for a cold morning to catch this spectacular Keep reading
Experimenting with Speakers
In her ongoing quest to explore natural resonance, Dianna has enlisted some very nice, very expensive speakers to find out just what happens when the bass drops. If you ever Keep reading
Fighting Resonance
Resonance is a funny creature, as Dianna discovered when she tried to sing a rising scale through a tube. At certain notes, everyone who attempted to do it had their Keep reading
Noisy Jets
One major problem that has plagued supersonic aircraft is their noise. The Concorde – thus far the only supersonic commercial airliner – was plagued with noise complaints that ultimately restricted Keep reading
Sonic Tractor Beam
Acoustic levitation uses the radiation forces generated by sound waves to trap small, lightweight particles at the nodes of standing waves. We’ve seen this a number of times previously, both Keep reading
Rattling Feathers for Attention
Peacocks are known for their colorful mating displays, but it turns out there’s more to them than meets the eye. To help them gain a penhen’s attention, peacocks will sometimes Keep reading
Ricequakes
Rockfill dams, sinkholes, ice shelves, and other geological features often consist of brittle, porous materials that are partially submerged. Over time, pressure and chemical reactions with the fluid around them Keep reading