Sebastien Ruesch

Jongho Park
Marwan Alhusennan
Andrew Yorgason

The Physics of Sound

Physics 1010

The musician draws the bow across the violin string and immediately the inert
atmosphere becomes vibrant and transparent, as if sound from non-spatial realms shines
through a window into the world of space. What is being demonstrated is a phenomenon
known as the overtone series, in which any tone, played or sung, activates a column of
mathematically-related notes which vibrate sympathetically with the sounded pitch and
create resonance. Octaves throughout the universe respond, in a modern, scientific music
echoing the hypothesis that dates back to ancient times. Until the Industrial Revolution, art,
religion, and science were intertwined; the order of the universe was an ongoing study, later
coming to fruition in the modern science of astronomy. But in the meantime, something fell
away from science that had defined it for centuries; a connection with mysticism. The Greek
philosopher Pythagoras, initiate, and teacher, stood at the point of the marriage of music,
science, and mysticism. He was one of the first scientists, and as an initiate, he asked deep
questions of the universe. Traveling to the centers of Babylonia and Egypt before settling in
southern Italy, Pythagoras was likely exposed to ancient teachings about the power of
number, as well as subjects which sensitized him to ask those important questions. He was
known to be a person of great knowledge and psychic power. Due to his higher nature,
legends grew up around him, such as an ability to travel to celestial realms and actually hear
the music of the spheres. The school that he founded went on to take his oral teachings to
even greater heights, influencing every future era of Western civilization. If we ask why
Pythagorass teachings and discoveries were so far reaching, we arrive at the beginning point
of the law that everything vibrates; a discovery which became a turning-point for a new
understanding of the universe. (Mus, M. (2001, December 10). Pythagoras and music. Retrieved
October 19, 2014.)

(https://www.rosicrucian.org/publications/digest/digest1_2009/05_web/07_richards/07_rich
ards.pdf)

Pythagorass mind, alive to possibilities, came upon a very simple theorem that had
cosmic value. The legend is that Pythagoras, while walking past a blacksmiths shop, heard
different pitches being emitted from the striking of the anvils. What is said to have gone
through his mind was that the variation in pitches was possibly created by the different
weights of the hammers. This story, possibly symbolically inspired by the legend of a magical
blacksmiths hammer, may have a basis in fact. At any rate, Pythagoras began to experiment
with musical overtones and ratios, which led to one of the most important discoveries of all
time. In Pythagorass search to determine interval ratios in music; an interval being both the
space and the relationship between two sounding notes. Pythagoras employed the lyre and
the monochord, a one-stringed instrument he may have invented, which featured frets on the
fingerboard at various lengths. By stopping the string exactly at the halfway point, he
produced an octave, or a ratio of 1:2. By dividing the string into various other lengths,
intervals of the fourth and fifth were produced. Pythagoras and his followers conceived of the
universe as a vast lyre, in which each planet, vibrating at a specific pitch, in relationships
similar to the stopping of the monochords string, harmonized with other heavenly bodies to
create a music of the spheres, a concept which remained viable for centuries. Even though
his theory was primitive, it serves to give us a picture which was later developed by
philosophers such as Boethius, Johannes Kepler, the Rosicrucian Robert Fludd, and, in
contemporary times, by scientists working with quantum relationships. The theories set forth

by Pythagoras are complex to those uninitiated into mathematical and musical analysis, but
certain concepts are important to set forth here. Nicomachus of Gerasa, a theorist in the first
or second century CE, was an authority on Pythagoras and called himself a Pythagorean. In
Nicomachuss Manual of Harmonics, he modeled his explanations of intervals, numbers, and
the music of the spheres on Pythagorass teachings as passed down through the years, and it
is a good source from which to explain some basic concepts. (Mus, M. (2001, December 10).
Pythagoras and music. Retrieved October 19)
(2014.https://www.rosicrucian.org/publications/digest/digest1_2009/05_web/07_richards/0
7_richards.pdf)
Turning a bit now from the history of sound discovery lets explore the decibel. We
know it has something to do with level or volume, but many of us really don't understand the
term. Why should we be concerned? The decibel is hard to understand because it was such a
well-conceived technical term that survived from the horse & buggy days. The Decibel was
first used in the early 1920s and has survived over three-quarters of a century. Do we need a
new term? - No, we need to understand it better. To understand the Decibel though we must
first talk about the physics of sound waves so we can better understand the Decibel. We will
start with compressive waves. (Dennis, R. (n.d.). Decibel: The harder & the most important term
in audio. Recording).
(http://www.recordingeq.com/magtip/tip/0902decibel.html)
Compression waves simply put are the basis for all sound propagation, or creation. A
compression wave occurs when the air pressure surrounding a particular object is disturbed.
The disturbance occurs by the object or instrument vibrating off kinetic energy into the
atmosphere. The compression wave is when the molecules are pushed forward into the others
thus transferring this energy. The concentrated parts of the wave are the compressions while

the lighter parts of the wave are the rarefactions. The movement of a compressive wave is
usually described as being a longitudinal wave, in which it moves parallel to its source. When
depicted in images, compressive waves tend to have a circular look. Compression waves are
very directional but can also tend to move around objects such as diffraction, or also can be
reflected back. The initial release of energy from a compressive wave is usually the strongest
vibration heard. Note that I have said vibration, without molecules in which to transfer the
kinetic energy released; there would be no sound. No sound can be made within a vacuum. A
key point to keep in mind with compressive waves is that they are the function in which all
sound moves. The movement could be in any direction. Lets present a graph to help describe
compressive waves (compression wave. (n.d.). Dictionary.com Unabridged. Retrieved October
21, 2014, from Dictionary.com
website: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/compression wave)

An Example to use to help clarify the compression wave is that of a spring. The
concept to present is very similar in function to what Pythagorean discovered in between 500
B.C and 564 B.C. If one were to take a spring and pull it out across a length, say between two
people and one of the persons was to flail the spring outwards towards the other person; a
wave would occur. The energy form the wave is transferred from coil to coil until it reaches
the next person who would feel the energy wave in their hand. Assume the hand is similar to

the effect of sound propagation or the effecting of sound, the hand would potentially be a
wall or medium in which effected the sound. (compression wave. (n.d.). Dictionary.com
Unabridged. Retrieved October 21, 2014, from Dictionary.com
website: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/compression wave) Longitudinal waves and
transverse waves are also to be discussed.
Longitudinal waves have a parallel movement to that of the propagation of sound;
creation of the sound. They oscillate in a direction that is of a circular motion. They are
associated with pressure and are you usually graphed using dBSPL. An example of this type of
wave would be someone hitting a drum head or a yelling into a tube, where the wave bounces
off the sides of the tube. They are the fastest form of wave and are usually the first to arrive.
Longitudinal waves are also the most common. They are described as being the P waves when
graphing an earthquake. (Russel, D. (1998, August 26). Longitudinal and Transverse Wave
Motion. Retrieved October 21, 2012, from
http://www.acs.psu.edu/drussell/demos/waves/wavemotion.html)
Transverse waves move with a motion that is perpendicular to the initial emission.
They simply oscillate up and down and do not move along with the wave. They just oscillate
up and down. Commonly known as S waves, they move slower than longitudinal waves. S
waves are usually seen seconds later during earthquake graphing. It is strong to mention that
transverse waves are also commonly used recording to describe waves graphed in software.
The waves are termed as so because of the common perpendicular look of the graphed
motion. (Russel, D. (1998, August 26). Longitudinal and Transverse Wave Motion. Retrieved
October 21, 2012, from http://www.acs.psu.edu/drussell/demos/waves/wavemotion.html).
There are other many types of waves but are not important to the terms presented in this
paper, hence we will move on to sound Propagation.

Propagation was mentioned in an earlier section, and let us build upon that.
Propagation of sound is the movement a wave through a medium. The medium could be of
any material with enough density to affect sound waves. Propagation could be by the sound
hitting a large curtain which is called Damping. The sound could hit a jagged edge of a rock
face that would scatter the wave; the effect know as diffusion. Echoes are probably the most
common form of sound propagation though. All effects of sound propagation effect any
quality of sound no matter what frequency it vibrates at though the propagation effect
differs. For instance, a lower frequency wave will not travel as far as a higher frequency wave
thus making it unusable for things such as sonar or radar which depend on higher vibrating
frequencies. We will delve into that more in later pages though. Lower Hertz frequency
though are strong enough to vibrate objects better then higher frequencies. When a person
attends a concert the true purpose of the bass is to vibrate or create feeling over the
audience. Lower frequencies are essential then felt not heard.

The graphing of waves was somewhat complicated in early applications. Most of the
tonal functions and frequency charts related to sound happened nearly 50 years ago with
constant research and meticulous graphing by Fowles, Coperthwaite, and Williams. These
three men gave the method in which to identify steady and simple waves. The study then was
constantly built upon to create many of the charts used today. (Orlikowski, D., & Minich, R.
(2011). Compression Waves and Phase Plots: Simulations.)

Graphing of sound takes into account a few things. The decibel, the hertz, and the
Fletcher Munson Curve, all play an important role in what is common sound graphing. The

decibel, Invented by Graham Bell in the 1920s was used to help simplify sound graphing by
using a logarithmic function of 10:1 it vastly simplified the graphing of any frequency of
sound, which could contain any number of level. Lets take a closer look at this for a moment
by looking at the energy associated with an energy wave in sound. Bring back the spring
referenced earlier and we can talk about the energy. If a spring was placed on a sliding
frictionless horizontal surface and pulled 3 cm and then released it would oscillate, or vibrate
with an amplitude of 3 cm. what if we doubled the distance? The energy from 6 cm must be
pulled twice as hard and twice as far to achieve a 6 cm oscillation. We could say in the case
stated that force is multiplied by distance to calculate work (W=FD). The function
represented means that 10 times as far and ten times as hard would make 100 times more
energy. In all cases we could say that the energy of oscillation is proportional to the square of
the amplitude. Thus all sound is measured in joules or watts (W m-2). This calculation of
intensity divided by power(watts) and area (m2) is useful but leaves use with large numbers,
so the decibel was created to simplify the function with a ratio of 10:1 ( Hall, D. (2002).
Sound Level and Decibel Scale. In Musical Acoustics (3rd ed., pp. 72-76, 86). Belmont:
Brooks/Cole.). If we were to graph this particular function into all frequencies of energy or
amount of oscillation we would have far too many large numbers in which to contend with.
This is considering that all frequencies can contain any amount of energy or work/joules; for
this reason, the Decibel was invented. The decibel takes the earlier energy levels and breaks
them down into neat increments of ten so that they can measured more accurately. The scale
used of decibels is called the Sound Level Scale, which basically a measurement of loudness.
Here is a graph to show the relations of sound.

(http://members.optushome.com.au/scottsoftc/Chapter01/Chapter1f.htm)
For Music most sound is only useable around 50 to 120 Decibels.
The simplest way to explain the term would be that the decibel is the ratio of two
levels according to a scale where a certain percentage change is one unit. The abbreviation
of decibel is dB and it is essential to know at least seven more things about the term to
understand it:
1 - One dB represents approximately the smallest volume change which can be heard if one
listens carefully. One dB represents an approximate change in pressure of 12%. This is
measured dBSPL (dB sound pressure level)
2-Three dB represents a small but noticeable change in volume depending on frequency.
3-Six dB represents a change in level of twice or half as much pressure depending on
frequency
4- A certain amount of dB represents a change of level (a change from what was before or
from a standard level).

5-A certain percentage change in level will always be the same amount of change in dB
6-Adding dB represents a multiplication of level.
7- "0 dB" is starting point in the comparison and does not mean "no level." Zero is relative to
what the dB is representing. (Dennis, R. (n.d.). Decibel: The harder & the most important term in
audio. Recording. http://www.recordingeq.com/magtip/tip/0902decibel.html)

The next important function is the Hertz or the measurement of Frequency. The
abbreviation for hertz is Hz. Hertz equals the cycles per second. The frequency of any
phenomenon with a regular periodic variation can be expressed in Hertz, but is most
commonly used in sound, electronics, and electromagnetic waves. The hertz system is based
off of the metric system and was presented in the 1920s by German scientists, the same time
period in which the Decibel was patented. The Hertz measurement was coined in
commemoration of Heinrich Hertz in October of 1933. (Hertz. (2014). In Encyclopedia
Britannica. Retrieved from http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/263882/hertz )
Hertz is basically how fast or how slow the wave form vibrates. The cycles per second
determine the pitch of the sound. The faster the cycles, the higher the pitch will be. The
lowest the human ear can pick or feel is roughly 20Hz. The highest frequency the human
ear can pick up is roughly 20,000Hz. The lowest frequency is associated with the bass of music
while the highest is associated with treble. The middle tones of sound usually occur from
about 1,000Hz to about 5,000Hz.
What is the Fletcher Munson Curve mentioned before? The Fletcher Munson curve is a
graph the shows how we perceive the difference in loudness between sounds. For instance
lower and higher frequencies tend to need more volume or a higher decibel increase in order

for ears to hear a sound increase. The middle tones usually can be heard with only ten
decibel increase and theoretically doubles the sound output. The curve is more of a reference
then anything but is still useful when understanding how sound is mapped. Hear is a graph to
show this.

http://www.webervst.com/fm1.gif
(Hall, D. (2002). Pitch and Loudness Together. In Musical Acoustics (3rd ed., pp. 105107). Belmont: Brooks/Cole.)

In relation to instruments and Hertz, the musical scale acts very similarly. All
instruments are tuned to have particular notes vibrate at specific frequencies. The standard
place stamp in western music is to have the A note vibrate at around 440Hz. Having that note
vibrate there usually leaves a good place in which to base tunings off of. Doubling the
Frequency then takes us to the next octave A and so forth. So and A4 note on the piano
vibrates at about 440Hz and the A5 or next octave A should vibrate at 880Hz.

Sound and atmosphere correspond with each other. When the sound is affecting the
atmosphere, the atmosphere is also affecting the sound. The sound is made by vibrating the
air and the vibration can be differed by the atmosphere. Therefore, there exist a relationship
between the sound and the atmosphere. We can discuss the sound as it affects the
atmosphere within three big topics; the speed of sound, sound in our society, and sound in
science.
To talk about the speed of sound, we have to talk about how the sound is transferred
through the air. Lets take a moment though to discuss the Doppler Effect. Austrian physicist
Christian Doppler proposed the theory in 1842. The Doppler Effect is the change in frequency
of a wave for an observer moving relative to its source. When the source of the waves is
moving toward the observer, each successive wave crest is emitted from a position closer to
the observer than the previous wave.
(http://www.qrg.northwestern.edu/projects/vss/docs/communications/3-what-is-thedoppler-effect.html). As we increase the distance between the source and receiver, the
wavelength of the sound is stretched. In opposite, if we decrease the distance, the
wavelength of the sound is contracted. The Doppler Effect though is rarely used in musical
applications. With stretching and contracting the sound, we can also discuss about
Rarefaction and Compression of the wavelength of the sound. Rarefaction is the opposite of
compression (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rarefaction). Rarefaction waves expand with
time. When there is compression, there is always rarefaction too. Sound is transferred with
vibration and vibration causes the waves. Waves make the sound by doing compression and
rarefaction. In action of transferring sound, rarefaction happens. Compression is inward
forces at different points on a material, so the compression in sound is where waves forced
inward from two different points in the wavelength
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rarefaction).

To further study, lets take a moment to dive deeper in what rarefaction is in terms of
sound propagation. Rarefaction has now been defined as being the calmed space in between
the compressions of wave. The Rarefactions of which are molecules yet to be effected or just
effected. We know this by seeing diagrams of longitudinal waves moving outwards, but what
if the temperature of the atmosphere was different? Would that effect the sound? Yes, and in
the world of sound engineering, this is also defined as rarefaction. For most instances, short
distances covered in sound usually are not effected by temperature, but can change the
quality of the overtones presented. A hot or humid room can add color to a sound, while a
cold room could make the sound sharper. In terms of distance, only cold air has large effect
on sound. When travelling larger distances, cold air can potentially slow down an incoming
sound wave. The decrease though is usually small and is easily compensated for, but when
instances call for a larger audience, such as playing a large field of people, then rarefaction
can have a larger impact. Large concert festivals usually come prepared with speaker arrays
to help project the sound evenly through the show so that the back of the crowd doesnt hear
the sound wave after the earlier crowd. The same goes for why large projector screens
usually broadcast the concert as well, so as to help the crowd not see the delay of the
sound from the stage. There are software programs that can produce diagrams in which to
show the relative speeds of sound, and noise cancelations in a room or area of emission but
those graphs are hard to present on paper.
Sound cancelation is another phenomenon to touch on that may help our
understanding of rarefaction. Sound waves which are exactly in phase add together to
produce a stronger wave. Sound waves which are exactly inverted, or 180 degrees out of
phase, cancel each other out and produce silence. When a sound wave interferes with
another is called wave interference. (How Sound Waves Interact With Each Other. (n.d.).
Retrieved October 21, 2014, from http://www.mediacollege.com/audio/01/wave-

interaction.html). Lets say that a sound wave is generated in a room at a particular

frequency. The wave generated contains equal levels of positive and negative current or
oscillation. The wave known as a Sinewave is used to describe the equal positive and negative
curves. If the room was filled with a generated sinewave tone, then the room would naturally
have pockets of quiet sound and pockets where there is a natural increase. This occurs by the
sound waves either joining within each other or canceling each other out. Every room where
this sinewave could be generated would yield potentially different results. Note that a
Sinewave is basically an equal wave that has both equal positive and negative curves that
create a solid tone. They are commonly used for testing equipment in sound engineering. It is
also the sound heard when the emergency broadcast tone is issued. We will discuss next on
the speed of sound.
Sound travels at roughly 340m/s2 on average through atmosphere. Though the medium
in which the sound travels affects the speed ultimately. For example sound tends to move at
higher speeds under water. Frequency also has an effect on speed. Lower frequencies tend
to go less distances but travel faster and less disturbed by opposing forces while higher
frequencies such 11,000k can travel much greater distance but are more susceptible to things
such as rarefaction and propagation factors. Here is graph showing the different speeds of
sound when applied to different materials.

(http://homepages.ius.edu/kforinas/S/WaveSpeed.html)

In the speed of sound, we cannot miss to discuss sonic boom. Sonic boom is the sound
associated with the shock waves created by an object traveling through the air faster than
the speed of sound. Sonic booms generate huge amounts of sound energy, sounding like an
explosion (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sonic_boom). What causes the sonic boom to
happen? When an aircraft passes through the air it creates a series of pressure waves in front
of it and behind it. The waves travel at the speed of sound, as the speed of object increases,
the waves are forced together, or compressed. They merge into a single shock wave. Theses
shock waves cause to form sonic boom. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sonic_boom)

We use sound in our society very usefully. Especially, in medical fields, we use sound
to see what we cannot see with our eyes. One application called ultrasound is used to look
inside the human body. Ultrasound is an oscillating sound pressure wave with a frequency
greater than the upper limit of the human hearing range. Ultrasound devices operate with
frequencies from 20 kHz, then up to several gigahertzes where young adults limit of
frequency is 20 kHz (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ultrasound). Ultrasonic devices are used to
detect objects and measure distances. Ultrasound is used to take images of a fetus in the
womb (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ultrasound). The basic concept of ultrasound devices is
to send sound to the object and catch the waves reflected, noting propagation as mentioned
earlier. Technological approach toward the sound helped us to discover useful scientific
knowledge; Sonar, Radar, and SFV videos.
The SFV video is basically a trick that is performed by using a candle light and several
placed mirrors to detect sound energy moving through the atmosphere. Although most
examples of SFV video are rarely found, making it hard to discuss. It is simply under
researched, but is still worth noting.
Sonar is an underwater range finder similar to Ultrasound. Sonar relies on the
reflections of sound bounced back at the place of emission. Sonar is very similar to what bats
use to navigate through dark caves and tunnels. If there is an object in the path of the pulse,
part or all of the pulse will be reflected back to the transmitter as an echo and can be
detected through the receiver path. By measuring the difference in time, it is possible to
determine the distance. The travel time of the Sonar pulse in water is strongly dependent on
the temperature and salinity of the water. Unlike the sonar wave, there are radio waves to
determine the range, altitude, direction, or speed of objects.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radar) When sonar waves move in one direction and reflected,
radar waves can move in all direction to determine altitude, speed, and direction. The radar

dish or antenna transmits pulses of radio waves or microwaves that bounce off any object in
their path. German physicist showed that radio waves could be reflected from solid objects in
1886. From 1895 to 1897, physicists combined the science with technology to develop detect
system. Later on, this technology came to be an important technology in the future
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radar).
Now that we have built a better understanding of how sound functions and acts within
the atmosphere; we can now come back to music with a much stronger affirmation. We will
begin with instruments and make our way towards stage and room dynamics. Understanding
the physics of sound conceptually is stronger when placed into application. Music being one of
the strongest dynamic for sound will help us have a better and stronger grasp of sound as a
whole.

Musical instruments can be distinguished by primarily the unique timbre or sound each
one produces. It is easy to differentiate between a piano and trumpet, even when both are
playing the same written note, because of the very different tones they produce. Timbre is in
a sense a tonal color that is produced from the overtones of each individual instruments
vibrations. And in the same way, the change in vibrations creates the change in sound one
hears when an instrument plays across its range. For example, a trumpet can sound warm in
the lower register and piercing in the high register, but the listener can still tell that its a
trumpet (Levitin, Daniel J. This is your Brain on Music: the Science of a Human
Obsession. Plume Publishing Company, 2006; New York , New York).

Musical instruments also differ from each other in the range of notes or pitches they
play. Pitch is related to the actual frequency of a particular note and to its relative position

in the musical scale. A tubas range of pitches is much lower than a mans voice (the voice is
also considered an instrument) or a trumpet. A piccolos range is higher than a violin or a
womans voice. Different instruments produce different moods and colors based on both their
timbre and range (Levitin, Daniel J. This is your Brain on Music: the Science of a Human
Obsession. Plume Publishing Company, 2006; New York , New York).

There has been speculation about the origin of instruments since antiquity. Older
writers were generally content to rely on mythology or legends. In the 19th century, partly as
a result of theories of evolution put forward by Charles Darwin and Herbert Spencer, new
chronologies based on anthropological evidence were advanced. The British writer John
Frederick Rowbotham argued that there was originally a drum stage, followed by
a pipe stage, and finally a lyre stage. The Austrian writer Richard Wallaschek, on the other
hand, maintained that, although rhythm was the primal element, the pipe came first,
followed by song, and the drum last. Sachs based his chronology on archaeological excavation
and the geographic distribution of the instruments found in them. Following this method, he
established three main strata. The first stratum, which is found all over the world, consists of
simple idiophones and aerophones; the second stratum, less widely distributed, adds drums
and simple stringed instruments; the third, occurring only in certain areas, adds xylophones,
drumsticks, and more complex flutes (Westrup, S. (2013, January 1). Musical instrument.
Retrieved October 21, 2014).

The truly great musicians also have the ability to touch listeners with their
musicality. It isn't only about playing the notes, rhythm, dynamics and phrasing perfectly,
although it is important for a musician to be polished in these ways. The best musicians also

tell the story or create the mood with their performance. They know how to express
emotions by nuances in phrasing and subtle tempo changes, and in other ways beyond
description (Levitin, Daniel J. This is your Brain on Music: the Science of a Human
Obsession. Plume Publishing Company, 2006; New York , New York).

Out of the millions of people who take music lessons as children, relatively few
continue to play music as adults. There is a class of musicians who become expert and who
are considered greatlike Ludwig V. Beethoven, Alfred Brendel, and Leon Fleischer. It has
been debated whether or not its talent or work ethic that makes these experts. In study
after study, of composers, basketball players, fiction writers, ice skaters, concert pianists,
chess players practice and study of ten thousand hours is required to become an expert. So
practice seems to be most important, but natural talent and genuine interest in the subject
are important in memory strength and categorization, which are both very important for
musicians (Levitin, Daniel J. This is your Brain on Music: the Science of a Human
Obsession. Plume Publishing Company, 2006; New York , New York).

Throughout the years Orchestras and Symphonies have had its ups and downs in
popularity. As long as that has happened people have revolutionized how we listen to them in
live environments. Certain angles help carry, reflect, or kill sound. Depending on what you
want to do you can make lower sounding notes come out more or vice versa with higher
pitches.

Sound travels in waves, these waves are called a mechanical waves, in other terms. By
definition a mechanical wave is a disturbance that moves and transports energy from one
place to another through a medium. The medium in theory can be a series of any
interconnected or interactive particles. As an example of this, when a bell rings, it vibrates,
which means the bell itself flexes inward and outward very rapidly. As the bell moves
outward, it pushes against particles of air. Those air particles then push against other
adjacent air particles, and so on. As the bell flexes inward, it pulls against the adjacent air
particles, and they, in turn, pull against other air particles. This push and pull pattern is a
sound wave. The vibrating bell is the original disturbance, and the air particles are the
medium (Strickland, J. (2009, January 1). Can Humans Hear in Space. Retrieved October 21,
2014).

When it comes to how the mechanical waves move in a room it is the same idea but
has some different ideas that go along with it. For instance, the bell has waves that move
through the open air. How those waves react when they hit walls change how they sound.
Another game changer on how those mechanical waves travel in rooms has to do with things
such as the humidity levels the temperature and the materials in the walls which is another
form of rarefaction (Viscosity. (2006, January 1). Retrieved October 21, 2014).

Mid-range and high frequencies reflect from hard surfaces such as plaster or
plasterboard walls in a similar way that light reflects from a mirror. The effect is not quite as
exact as with a mirror, as some of the sound energy is scattered, and a little is absorbed, but
in simple terms you can think of hard walls as approximate acoustic mirrors. If you put a
mirror alongside a light bulb, you see the light bulb itself and also its image in the mirror.

Both act as real sources of light as far as you, the observer, are concerned (White.
(2006, January 1). The Studio SOS Guide To Monitoring & Acoustic Treatment.
Retrieved October 21, 2014). A thick black cloth placed over a mirror will absorb all the
visible light of its reflection, a piece of acoustic foam will only be acoustically 'black' at high
frequencies, becoming increasingly transparent at lower frequencies. In very general terms, a
piece of four-inch-thick foam stuck directly onto the wall is only really effective for
frequencies above about 200-300Hz, whereas a piece of two-inch foam is only effective above
about 400-600Hz. In other words, if you halve the thickness of the foam, the frequency above
which it is effective moves up by an octave (White. (2006, January 1). The Studio SOS Guide
To Monitoring & Acoustic Treatment. Retrieved October 21, 2014).
Throughout this paper we have explored a large array of study attuned to the physics
of sound. We have explored the Decibel and Hertz measurements, as well as obtained a
background in sound propagation and stage ethics for musicians. We have talked about the
mythos and the application of sound through atmosphere and theory. All sound when applied
to music is art while all sound applied to science is physics. Both studies include logarithmic
functions and calculous study. Music truly is the most diverse phenomenon in the universe we
know and much like a 20 Hertz wave, it vibrates the very earth we walk on every day.