Waves, Sound and Light: Sound and Music

Sound and Music: Audio Guided Solutions

Problem 26:

In the Speed of Sound Lab, Anna Litical and Noah Formula partially submerge a plastic tube into a column of water. The water air interface causes the tube to be a closed-end air column. Holding a 384-Hz tuning fork above the tube, they find that they must adjust the length of air within the air column to 22.6 cm in order to force the air column into resonance vibration with the tuning fork. Determine the speed of sound in the air column.

Audio Guided Solution

Habits of an Effective Problem Solver

  • Read the problem carefully and develop a mental picture of the physical situation. If necessary, sketch a simple diagram of the physical situation to help you visualize it.
  • Identify the known and unknown quantities and record in an organized manner, often times they can be recorded on the diagram itself. Equate given values to the symbols used to represent the corresponding quantity (e.g., v = 345 m/s, λ = 1.28 m, f = ???).
  • Use physics formulas and conceptual reasoning to plot a strategy for solving for the unknown quantity.
  • Identify the appropriate formula(s) to use.
  • Perform substitutions and algebraic manipulations in order to solve for the unknown quantity.

Read About It!

Get more information on the topic of Sound and Music at The Physics Classroom Tutorial.

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