18. Waves & Sound

A sound source radiates sound waves in all directions. At a distance of 4 m from the source, you measure the wave intensity to be 0.06 W/m². How much sound energy does the source emit in 1 hour if the power output is constant?

You measure the intensity from a sound source to be 0.3 W/m² at a distance of 3.4 m. What will the intensity be if you walk closer to the source, to a distance of 2.5 m?

Two earthquake waves of the same frequency travel through the same portion of the Earth, but one is carrying 3.5 times the energy. What is the ratio of the amplitudes of the two waves?

What is the ratio of the intensities, of an earthquake P wave passing through the Earth and detected at two points 15 km and 55 km from the source?

(II) What is the ratio of the amplitudes of an earthquake P wave passing through the Earth and detected at two points 15 km and 55 km from the source?

A bug on the surface of a pond is observed to move up and down a total vertical distance of 0.10 m, lowest to highest point, as a wave passes. What is the amplitude of the wave?

A bug on the surface of a pond is observed to move up and down a total vertical distance of 0.10 m, lowest to highest point, as a wave passes. If the amplitude increases to 0.15 m, by what factor does the bug’s maximum kinetic energy change?

An earthquake-produced surface wave can be approximated by a sinusoidal transverse wave. Assuming a frequency of 0.60 Hz (typical of earthquakes, which actually include a mixture of frequencies), what amplitude is needed so that objects begin to leave contact with the ground? [Hint: Set the acceleration a > g. Why?]-

Energy Output. By measurement you determine that sound waves are spreading out equally in all directions from a point source and that the intensity is 0.026 W/m² at a distance of 4.3 m from the source. How much sound energy does the source emit in one hour if its power output remains constant?

Energy Output. By measurement you determine that sound waves are spreading out equally in all directions from a point source and that the intensity is 0.026 W/m² at a distance of 4.3 m from the source. What is the intensity at a distance of 3.1 m from the source?

Threshold of Pain. You are investigating the report of a UFO landing in an isolated portion of New Mexico, and you encounter a strange object that is radiating sound waves uniformly in all directions. Assume that the sound comes from a point source and that you can ignore reflections. You are slowly walking toward the source. When you are 7.5 m from it, you measure its intensity to be 0.11 W/m². An intensity of 1.0 W/m² is often used as the 'threshold of pain.' How much closer to the source can you move before the sound intensity reaches this threshold?

A jet plane at takeoff can produce sound of intensity 10.0 W/m² at 30.0 m away. But you prefer the tranquil sound of normal conversation, which is 1.0 μW/m². Assume that the plane behaves like a point source of sound. (a) What is the closest dis-tance you should live from the airport runway to preserve your peace of mind? (b) What intensity from the jet does your friend experience if she lives twice as far from the runway as you do? (c) What power of sound does the jet produce at takeoff?

At a distance of 7.00 x 10¹² m from a star, the intensity of the radiation from the star is 15.4 W/m². Assuming that the star radiates uniformly in all directions, what is the total power output of the star?

The intensity of electromagnetic waves from the sun is 1.4 kW/m² just above the earth's atmosphere. Eighty percent of this reaches the surface at noon on a clear summer day. Suppose you think of your back as a 30 cm x 50 cm rectangle. How many joules of solar energy fall on your back as you work on your tan for 1.0 h?