Investigating Properties of Sound

Investigating Properties

of Sound

Steve John Mart M. Jose

Teacher III​

Sound is all around us, all the time. It has a huge impact on our day to day lives. Sound fills our days with excitement and meaning, when people talk to us, when we listen to music, or when we hear interesting programs on the radio and TV. Sound is fascinating. Let's take a closer look at how it works! This module provides you understanding on the properties and characteristic of sound. In your journey through the discussions and different tasks, the learners are expected to:

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Most Essential Learning Competency (MELC): Investigate properties and characteristics of sound K to 12 BEC CG: S4FE-IIIh-5

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Lesson 1 Investigating Properties of Sound

Sound is all around us, all the time. It has a huge impact on our day to day lives. Sound fills our days with excitement and meaning, when people talk to us, when we listen to music, or when we hear interesting programs on the radio and TV. Sound is fascinating. Let's take a closer look at how it works! This module provides you understanding on the properties and characteristic of sound. In your journey through the discussions and different tasks, the learners are expected to:

​

Most Essential Learning Competency (MELC): Investigate properties and characteristics of sound K to 12 BEC CG: S4FE-IIIh-5

​

Lesson 1 Investigating Properties of Sound

LET'S GET STARTED!

Multiple Choice

Which of the following terms is a useful quantity to describe the loudness of a sound?

• intensity

• pitch

• frequency

• wavelength

Multiple Choice

Which of the following statements is NOT a good way to protect ourselves from exposure to sound?

• Cover your ears when a loud sound is near you.

• Listening to loud music always.

• Avoid going to crowded or noisy places.

• Noise absorbers may be fixed to prevent the sound from bouncing back so much.

Multiple Choice

Which of the following produces the loudest sound?

• wind blowing

• telephone

• cry of baby

• bird’s chirp

Multiple Choice

Which of the following produces a soft sound?

• fire alarm

• heartbeat

• banging of a hammer

• drum set

Multiple Choice

If I am playing a guitar and I place my finger on a string, why does the pitch increase?

• The string vibrates faster.

• The string gets longer.

• The string gets looser.

• The string vibrates slower.

Lesson 1 Investigating Properties of Sound

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Sound is the transfer of energy from a vibrating object in waves that travel through matter. Sound has certain characteristic properties because of the way sound energy travels in waves.​

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Sound is an energy made by vibrations. When any object vibrates, it causes movement in the air particles. These particles bump into the particles close to them, which makes them vibrate too causing them to bump into the particles. This movement, called sound waves, keeps going until they run out of energy. If your ear is within range of the vibrations, you hear the sound. When the vibrations are fast, you hear a loud sound. When the vibrations are slow, the sound is soft.

Lesson 1 Investigating Properties of Sound

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The loudness of a sound refers to how strong the sound seems to us when it reaches our ears. Loud sound also means intense sound. The application of a stronger force causes louder volume of sound like the rumbling thunder. A lesser force makes a softer sound. Sound does not lose some of its energy as it travels through the air, it spreads outward in all directions from the sources. The loudness of a sound decreases as the source of sound moves away from you. The softness and/or loudness of sound is called volume.

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Lesson 1 Investigating Properties of Sound

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Pitch is the highness or lowness of sound. Pitch depends on the number of waves produced in a given time. This is called frequency. The higher the frequency, the higher the pitch. In a guitar, if you pluck the thick strings, a low pitch is produced. On the other hand, a thin string will produce a high-pitched sound.

​ Noise is any undesirable sound which disturbs the activities of human or animal life. Often it is not the pitch or the loudness that makes a sound annoying. Sometimes it is the repetitive nature of the sound and our inability to control it that makes it annoying.

Activity: Answer the following questions. Write your answer on a sheet of paper. Take a photo of your answer and submit it together with your summative assessment for this week.​

Multiple Choice

Which of the following produces a soft sound?

• banging of a hammer

• fire alarm

• heartbeat

• drum set

Multiple Choice

Which of the following terms is a useful quantity to describe the loudness of a sound?

• wavelength

• frequency

• intensity

• pitch

Multiple Choice

If I am playing a guitar and I place my finger on a string, why does the pitch increase?

• The string vibrates slower.

• The string gets looser.

• The string gets longer.

• The string vibrates faster.

Multiple Choice

What is the unit to measure sound intensity or loudness?

• sound energy

• frequency

• pitch

• decibel

Multiple Choice

Which of the following statements is NOT a good way to protect ourselves from exposure to sound?

• Avoid going to crowded or noisy places.

• Cover your ears when a loud sound is near you.

• Listening to loud music always.

• Noise absorbers may be fixed to prevent the sound from bouncing back so much.