Physics 121: Physics of Music

Due Thursday, 7 September 1995

Assignment 2

1. Hall, page 15, Exercise 3.

2. Hall, page 15, Exercise 5.

3. Hall, page 15, Exercise 9.

4. Write down your weight in pounds. This is the force that you exert on the ground. Estimate the area of your shoe. You can do this easily by making a grid of 1-inch squares on a sheet of paper, tracing the imprint of your shoe, and counting the number of square inches inside. Calculate the pressure you exert on the floor [under your shoes] if you stand with both feet on the ground. What is the pressure if you stand on only one foot? Is this more or less than the air pressure on the floor?

5. Suppose a pianist plays a trill of 32nd notes in a piece where the metronome marking is 60 for a quarter note. (This is a rapid train of sound bursts that are produced 8 per second.) Imagine each burst traveling from stage to you in the audience. What is the distance between subsequent bursts?