Sound
6th Grade Webquest
By: Frankie Williams

Introduction:

Shhh!  What do you hear? And if you were in the forest what would you hear? There are so many different sounds that bombard our daily lives.  Think about it. The sound of water when you turn on the shower.  The noise the microwave makes as it warms your food.  The sound of the engine in the car that brought you to school.  The pencil sharpener grinding the wood of your pencil.  We encounter so many sounds that we don't even notice them until they are brought to our attention.



Your Challenge:

You have been hired by the CIA to help with a new special construction project.  Your job is going to be to investigate what is the best material to transmit sound through. We are looking for material that could be used to help us come up with ways to ensure secrecy so that other people and countries can not hear the information being transfered. What materials would be best for building to prevent others from hearing top secret information?
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Your Journey:

Click on the emblems below and start your secret investigation.  Remember to keep in mind we want to keep this information secret when being transmited. Also report back with any additional information that would be helpful in the creation of a  way to transmit information secretly.

(The Physics of Sound)

The Report:
    Write a letter to the CIA describing what material should be used to keep their information top secret. Was there one thing that would suggest the best way to send special information?  Would you suggest it if we wanted to keep the information secret?   Was there something that did not conduct sound well? Make sure to describe what you know about sound and how it travels in your letter.









An Extra Investigation:

(This may be an activity to do during our own time at the end of the day if all of your homework is done. )

Sound is made when something vibrates (back and forth).  Sometimes the vibration is too fast or slow for our ears to hear.  Here are a few ways to make things that vibrate and produce a sound. 


1) Hold one end of a rubber band between your teeth.  Pull the other end a little, but not enough to break it.  Pluck it.  What vibrates?  Record your findings.   Is a sound produced?

2) Put your fingertips to your throat while you sing or speak.  Move them until you feel vibration.  Our windpipes have vocal cords that vibrate when air passes over them.  Can you make different sounds by the amount of pressure you apply?  Record your findings and explain.

3)Place a thin wooden or plastic ruler on a table so that about half of the ruler sticks out beyond the table's edge.  Hold the ruler down firmly with one hand.  With the other hand, press down on the free end of the ruler,  then let it snap up.  Can you see it vibrate? Does it make sound?  How does the sound change if you move the ruler back on the table, with less of it sticking out?  Record your findings.

4) Strike a stainless steel fork with a spoon.  You probably can't see it vibrate because it moves very little.  Strike the fork again and quickly move it close to your ear.  Do not touch it to your ear or hair.  Does it sound different?  How?   Record your findings.

5) Strike the fork again, quickly move it close to your ear, and this time touch it to your ear or hair.  What happens tot the sound? What causes this? Record your answers.