PHY 101
Lab Report

Waves Lab

Purpose
The purpose of this laboratory experiment is to “investigate how the vibrating source affects selected characteristics of the sound produced” (Giancoli, 2006).

Materials
The following materials were used in the completion of this laboratory experiment: * Meter stick * Two paper towel rolls / cardboard tubes * Scissors * Two rubber bands * Wax paper * Transparent tape * Flashlight * Balloon

Procedure

Part 1: 1. Hold one end of a meter stick down on a tabletop so that 20 cm of the stick extends past the edge of the table. 2. Pluck the end of the stick that is extending past the edge of the table to produce a vibration and sound. 3. Observe this …show more content…

Similarly, the longer the kazoo was, the lower the pitch it created was. The higher the pitch of the kazoo with the balloon at the end was, the greater frequency the vibration created by the balloon was. The louder the sound in this kazoo was, the greater the amplitude the vibration created by the balloon was. Videotaping the third part of the experiment, and comparing the results using the video rather than having to watch them in real time could improve the procedure.

1. What happened to the frequency of the meter stick's vibration when the overhanging part was made longer?
As the overhanging part of the meter stick was made longer, the frequency became smaller.

2. How did the frequency of the meter stick's vibration affect the pitch of its sound?
As the length of the overhanging stick was made smaller, and the frequency of the meter stick’s vibration was reduced, the pitch became lower.

3. How did the kazoo's length affect its pitch?
Similar to the meter stick, the longer the kazoo was, the lower the pitch it created was.

4. When the pitch of the humming changed, what was the effect on the frequency of vibration of the mirror?
The higher pitch of humming led to a higher frequency of the vibration of the balloon in the mirror.

5. How is the amplitude of the kazoo's vibration related to its loudness?
The louder humming led to higher amplitude of the vibration of the balloon in the