Language Arts

Language Arts Connection: Ernst Chladni's experiment helped improve the quality of sound in buildings because it increased the understanding of many during the 17th-18th centuries of how and through what sound travels (see Social Studies connection).

As a result of this I'm sure meetings or gatherings where people would debate or orate would have been improved as well with this new found information on acoustics and resonance. My researching Ernst Chladni's contributions to the understanding of sound can also be connected back to topics having to do with English/Language Arts.

For my English component I have done an argumentative essay. It is in a file found below~

Crystal Orazu

Mrs. Parchman

16, December 2013

Period 4

The Father of Acoustics

Is it often we think about invisible forces around us? We feel air but cannot see it, rarely think about how we would feel without its constant presence; a presence that enables me to whip my hand through the air and feel its resistance as well as the breeze I create around me. The same goes for sound- it isn’t tangible-we cannot taste sound, or feel it in between our fingers. We also cannot see sound but we can certainly imagine what it looks like. Many commercials and animated shows feature sound as waves when depicting signals bouncing off a radio tower, or the exaggerated hearing of a cartoon character. Today such a thing is common sense, imagining sound as waves, because what else could it be? In reality it took experimentation, revision, and observation plus more experimentation by many scientists before this conclusion and understanding of sound was achieved. Ernst Chladni was one of these contributors- especially on knowledge of vibration and acoustics- who furthered the study of the movement of sound and other fields of science. Even while considering the many other scientist contributions, without Chladni’s input on the subject all that we know about the matter now would arguably not be nearly as sophisticated as it is.

It is hard to exemplify one scientist’s contributions to a certain field over others, but Chladni in my opinion held a main role. Through his curiosity concerning musical instruments, which lead his studies of experimental acoustics, Chladni created a basis of knowledge for the understanding of sound in the 19th century. How exactly did he accomplish this? To figure this out we must first address who he was and what exactly were his interests. Ernst Florens Friedrich Chladni was, of course, a scientist of German origin, who occasionally is referred to as being either a physicist, musician, or acoustician, depending on which of his achievements in a certain field are being discussed. He was supposedly from a well learned family, theologians and lawyers were among some of their occupations, and was exposed to scientific principles at an early age during his studies that were stringently supervised by his father who wished for him to become a lawyer. Chladni had actually studied and received a law degree that proved unnecessary when his father died allowing him the freedom to pursue his own interests in studying acoustics, a then unexplored field of science.

The reason Chladni’s research in this field was so important was because he was one of the first ever to venture into the topic. He, however, did not start off with the intention of studying the movement of sound on thin metal plates which would later be named after him. Similarly to other known scientists his research served as a bridge to another topic, never searching in specifics for what he would eventually find. Chladni started off by experimenting with the transversal vibrations of rods, as well as tuning forks which then resulted in his looking into the topic of vibrations in relation to metal plates- which he himself described as an “unknown field” during the time.

Chladni directed the well known experiment because of his interest in demonstrating whether or not there was a connection between vibration, sound, and physical reality. He conducted his experiment as follows: First Chladni would pick out a thin metal plate in the specific shape he wanted to use and then pour sand on it. He would thereafter run the violin bow down the corner of this plate and observe what shape was produced. The shape, he observed. depended on what the angle of the bow when it struck the plate, the shape of the plate, and the location on the plate he hit. In effect, the details of each of these facts contributed to the kind of sound, or sound wave he soon conjectured, was produced. The different sound wave frequencies would morph the sand on the plates into various shapes. This is how he, and years later modern society, began to think of sound moving in waves. These plates turned out to be his namesake as they camed to be called Chladni plates.

This procedure laid the foundation of the scientific study of sound primarily because it proves that sound moved in waves. Not only that it also provided proof that sound can move through metal as well as other mediums such as water (mostly observed by ripples or sonar utilized under water), as well as the more obvious medium of air (observed when we converse or talk out loud and are able to hear each word with little obstruction). Chladni held many public demonstrations featuring his famous plates which intrigued even the likes of Napoleon Bonaparte, and as a result helped improve public opinion on the field of acoustics in his time.

It is because of this fact that I view his research as central to our understanding of sound that began to be observed in depth during the 19th century based upon his research. Because of this we know better than to think of sound as something that moves around us like the air, when in reality it moves through us. His research granted us with a majority of the media which dominates our lives and relies in some way on sound. Ernst Chladni gave to us the prime knowledge that helped others, and still even more today, better understand the medium through which one of humanity’s basic forms of communication relies upon. We cannot taste sound, touch sound, or feel sound, but because of Chladni we can certainly understand it.

Works Cited

Turner, Steven. "Smithsonian - Chladni Plates." Chladni Plates. National Museum of American History, 23 Mar. 2012. Web. 15 Dec. 2013.

Burok, Dusan. "Ernst Chladni." - Monoskop. Wiki, 5 Oct. 2013. Web. 15 Dec. 2013.