ChatterBank20 mins ago
Sound V Glass
6 Answers
Can a very high-pitched scream really shatter glass?
It was shown on TV but cant remember the advert
It was shown on TV but cant remember the advert
Answers
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It's not possible to do it with the voice alone
There was a thing on the TV a while back where they tried it out, it was possible to break a glass using sound waves but it took a while and needed to remain at the exact pitch and volume for a sustained time.
It is possible to do if the voice is amplified however but thats not really the same thing in my opinin.
There was a thing on the TV a while back where they tried it out, it was possible to break a glass using sound waves but it took a while and needed to remain at the exact pitch and volume for a sustained time.
It is possible to do if the voice is amplified however but thats not really the same thing in my opinin.
Yes it was memorex, no it wasn't Cleo Laine and no she's not dead. I think it was Ella Fitzgerald. And no, a scream can't shatter glass. Sustained controlled sonic waves can if they resonate with the glass and open up small voids in its structure.
Resonance is the phenomenon that causes this - the sound source matches the natural vibrational frequency of the object (in this case the glass) and sets up sympathy vibrations in the object, known as "constructive interference". Oh yes, I knew those O-level physics lessons would come in handy 25 years later! It's what caused that suspension bridge (Tacoma?) to shake itself to bits in that famous and horribly compelling piece of footage - a relatively low but crucially steady crosswind, at the same resonant frequency of the bridge structure, set up a standing wave in the bridge.
The slogan from the ad: "Is it real? Or is it Memorex?" (The Memorex tape of Ella - or whoever - supposedly shattered the glass too).
Resonance is the phenomenon that causes this - the sound source matches the natural vibrational frequency of the object (in this case the glass) and sets up sympathy vibrations in the object, known as "constructive interference". Oh yes, I knew those O-level physics lessons would come in handy 25 years later! It's what caused that suspension bridge (Tacoma?) to shake itself to bits in that famous and horribly compelling piece of footage - a relatively low but crucially steady crosswind, at the same resonant frequency of the bridge structure, set up a standing wave in the bridge.
The slogan from the ad: "Is it real? Or is it Memorex?" (The Memorex tape of Ella - or whoever - supposedly shattered the glass too).
1 to 6 of 6
