Physics 121: Physics of Music

Griffioen; Fall 1995
Survey

Survey

Please answer the following questions if you can. Don't be discouraged if you cannot answer all of them. Your responses will only be used to gauge the general background knowledge of the class.

24 respondants

Music

What instrument(s) can you play?
piano(14), cello(3), horn, violin(3), voice(6), guitar(8), drums(3), bass(2), clarinet, sax(2), oboe, trumpet, recorder, harmonica, flute, viola da gamba.
What were the titles of the last recordings that you bought? (i.e. what kind of music do you like to listen to?)
classical, rock, ethnic, Irish/Scottish, Chr. contemp., folk, new age, movie, pop, soul, rap, blues, punk, swing, jazz, big band, bluegrass...
What piece is this?
Star Spangled Banner (67% answered correctly)
Write a G major scale in 16th notes in the treble clef.
63% answered correctly
What is a tritone? Where might you hear one?
An interval of 3 whole steps or 6 half-steps; 8% answered correctly
What is the ratio of frequencies for the interval of a perfect fifth?
A ratio of 3 to 2; 0% answered correctly
Name the following notes:
C, E, A-sharp, B-flat (83% answered correctly)

Math

Have you studied any calculus? If so, how much?
39% have had some calculus.
The function f(x,y) = 4xy. If x=3 and y= 1, then f=?
f=12 (78% answered correctly)
If 357000 = 3.57 x 10n then n = ?
n=5 (83% answered correctly)
If x^2 - 2x + 1 = 0 then x = ?
x=1 (71% answered correctly)
log10 100 = ?
2 (25% answered correctly)
Sketch sin x from x=0 to x= pi
33% drew the graph correctly.
Graph y=1+3cos2x from x=0 to x=2 pi
17% drew the graph correctly.
If 25% of the 10,000 people attending an outdoor concert are wearing hats, and 30% of those hats are white, how many white hats are there?
750 white hats (79% answered correctly)
What's the integral of x?
x^2/2 + const. (21% answered correctly)
exp(i pi) + 1 = ?
0 (4% answered correctly)

Physics

Have you ever taken a course in physics? If so, what was it?
58% have had some sort of physics course before.
Without a ruler, draw a line 1 cm long.
42 % drew a length in the range 0.8cm - 1.2 cm.
How many nanometers are there in a centimeter?
10,000,000 = 10^7 (8% answered correctly)
What happens to the pitch of a string as one increases the tension, keeping the length fixed?
The pitch goes up; 92% answered correctly.
Which weighs more, a 1cm cube of lead or a 1cm diameter ball of lead?
The cube weighs more; 71% answered correctly.
Draw the first 2 standing waves on a string
13% drew correct diagrams.
You are sitting on the bridge of the Enterprise and a Klingon ship explodes off the port bow. What do you hear? Why?
nothing; there's no air for the sound to travel in; 65% answered correctly.

Computers

Do you feel comfortable using a computer?
88% felt somewhat comfortable (or better) with computers.
What programs/software have you used? Do you know any programming languages?
13% have learned a computer programming language.
What computer systems have you worked with (Macintosh, DOS, Windows, UNIX)?
Mac (63%), DOS/Windows (83%), UNIX (13%)
What programs have you used, if any, on a Macintosh computer?
Most people had experience with word processors.
What would this program output?

program Sample(input, output);
var i, j: integer;
begin
i:=3;
j:=4;
writeln('Hi:', i ,'+', j, '=', i+j);
end.

Hi: 3 + 4 = 7 (21% answered correctly)