Embedded Files
In this project, each person had to build their own instrument. We were assigned into groups, and each group had to build at least one wind instrument, chimes instrument and string instrument. I chose a wind instrument — my groupmates built two string instruments and a chime instrument. Attached below is a document created by our group which includes all the technical specifications of our instruments as well as some scientific background on how they work.
Since I play alto saxophone, I wanted to make my wind instrument as different as possible to make it a challenge. I ended up with a free-double-reed instrument that has both a slide and tone holes to modulate pitch; the reed is enclosed inside a mouthpiece housing in the upper neck of the instrument, and the finger holes are part of a pipe which moves on a slide. Each note produced by consecutive holes are a whole step away from each other, so thus by modulating the slide chromaticism can be reached. Additionally, by blowing harder I found I could overtone the instrument, allowing me to play multiple octaves. As far as tone quality, it has a very clear tone which is reminiscent of an oboe (or perhaps a duck).
I started the build process by blueprinting out a rough idea of my instrument, parts for which I then manufactured to-spec in the makerspace. As I had more time, I was able to add the double reed mechanism and 3D print a special mouthpiece assembly to fit it. Overall, the build was fairly smooth and I didn't really run into any major roadblocks since I followed my blueprint and ended up with exactly what I wanted.
Key Concepts
Key Concepts
Crest, Trough, Node, and Antinode
Crest, Trough, Node, and Antinode
Each part of a wave has a different name. A high point in a wave (a "peak") is called a crest, a low point (a "valley") is called a trough, a part of the wave which stays at zero (touches the x-axis; see the diagram below) is called a node, and an antinode is either a crest or a trough.
Frequency, Wavelength, Wave speed and Amplitude
Frequency, Wavelength, Wave speed and Amplitude
A wave can be quantified with many values that characterize different aspects of its shape. The best way to show this is with a diagram:
Amplitude is the distance from the x-axis to the crest of the wave (so it is measured in a distance unit like meters, and is represented by the variable "A"); it's how "tall" or "big" the wave is. Wave speed is how fast the wave is moving (so it is measured in a velocity unit like meters per second and represented by "v"). Wavelength is the distance between two equal points on the wave — that could be crest to crest, trough to trough, or (as shown in the diagram) any point to that same point later in the wave. (Once again, this is a distance, so it is measured in a distance unit like meters. It is represented by the Greek character "𝜆".) Frequency is the number of times a trough or crest (depending on which way you think about it) passes a fixed point per second due to the wave moving along — it's a sort of "cycles per second". The unit for this is Hertz, (abbreviated Hz) defined as 1/s ("one [cycle] per second"), and it is represented by the variable "f".
There is an important relation which connects three of these concepts together: 𝑣 = 𝜆𝑓. In words, this reads "the wave speed is equal to the wavelength times the frequency". Conceptually, this makes sense — the frequency is cycles per second, so higher frequency should mean a faster wave (more cycles = more movement), and larger wavelength means more distance covered in the same amount of time (and thus a greater speed as well). This formula allows us to compute one component of a wave if we have two others, which is an important shortcut or verification.
Transverse and Longitudinal Waves
Transverse and Longitudinal Waves
There are two types of waves: transverse waves and longitudinal waves. The wave in the diagram above is transverse — the direction of the oscillation is perpendicular to the direction of the wave's motion (the wave moves side-to-side but the peaks and troughs go up-and-down). However, the oscillation of a longitudinal wave goes parallel to the wave's motion, resulting in a series of compressions ("squishes") and rarefactions ("stretches"):
We deal with each of these types of waves on a daily basis. Light is a transverse wave — the photons that make up the light vibrate "up and down" relative to the way they are moving. But sound is a longitudinal wave; sound is carried in the air, and when it does it compresses and rarefies the air in a wave pattern. This is why sound needs a medium to travel through but light doesn't; sound isn't a particle, it's a disturbance in a medium (usually air), while light is a particle that vibrates on its own.
The Electromagnetic Spectrum
The Electromagnetic Spectrum
Electromagnetic radiation is the umbrella term for any kind of wave that involves "vibrating" photons, including light, radio waves, X-rays, and more. The categorization for such waves is determined based on their frequency, and we can arrange them in a spectrum from lowest frequency to highest frequency. This is the electromagnetic spectrum:
Here we see that radio waves are photons with a fairly low frequency (and thus a large wavelength), while X- and gamma-rays are photons with relatively high frequencies (and thus a very small wavelength). These categorizations are useful because they let us determine how much energy a certain type of electromagnetic radiation contains; generally speaking, lower-frequency electromagnetic waves have less energy while higher-frequency ones have more energy. Another useful classification is that of ionization capability: high frequency waves which can knock electrons out of atoms are said to be ionizing, while low frequency waves which can only vibrate atoms are said to be non-ionizing.
Reflection
Reflection
This project was enjoyable and I think I did pretty well with it. I believe my conscientious learning was strong in this project because I made a plan (blueprint), stuck to it, and was diligent about doing the right thing at the right time. In fact, I reached my goal faster than expected, which gave me extra time to add to the instrument and dive deeper. Additionally, I think my collaboration was pretty good. Since we were finally back together in the classroom (and makerspace), I could work with my groupmates and help them out as well. Notably, I helped one of my groupmates with the construction of their fretboard, which was fun since we could actually work together in-person after working virtually for so long.
One area where I think I could've improved was my critical thinking. While I did good for most of the project, at one point I didn't quite think a length calculation through enough and I almost made a mistake (which would've forced me to rebuild a lot of the instrument). In the future, I need to take my time and think things through fully to make sure I don't make a mistake accidentally. Additionally, I feel like my conscientious learning could've been just a little stronger if I had planned ahead at the very beginning of the project to know what I would need. Due to the hybrid schedule, I was only in class in-person half the week, so I had one brief chance to get materials before I had to wait for multiple days. Although there was other work to be done (and so it was alright overall), if I had planned for the project a day ahead-of-time and taken measurements I would've known what materials to get which would've allowed me to start a little earlier.
I definitely think the shortcomings of this project were small compared to the successes, and I felt good about the project by the end. So, I'll try to incorporate what I've learned for the future and replicate these successes.
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