You're Torturing My Ears

By Laura Hospitál on Jun 25, 2017

In this science project, a student chose to test students' ability to hear sound in different ranges of pitch.

Question

What group of frequencies do teenagers hear best?

Independent variable

Frequency played

Dependent variable

Reactions of teenagers tested

Constants

Same volume
Same notetakers and sounds
Same distance of speaker from person

Hypothesis

Teenagers would hear the high frequencies best.

Results

All of the subjects heard the high frequencies best.

Conclusion

All of the teenagers heard the high frequencies because the high frequencies played the loudest through the headphones.

Experimental Error

I think that it was a little unfair, but I don’t think that there was anything that I could have done about it. The frequencies were so loud that people that weren’t wearing the headphones could hear them.

Preparation:

Valerie worked with a volunteer to determine which app would work best to play the appropriate ranges of pitch she had chosen and which headphones would work best.

She determined that she would need to decide when will this experiment be conducted and where, arrange a room so as not to disrupt class and get consent from students.

Prior to the experiment she needed to:

Find sounds on the app using iPhone.
Sounds should be frequencies
- 145 Hz
- 795 Hz
- 5000 Hz

Materials

App to play low bass and high sounds
Good headphones

Procedure

Test each volunteer separately.
Have your volunteer put on the headphones.
Play each sound a duration of 3 seconds.
Sounds should be frequencies
- 145 Hz
- 795 Hz
- 5000 Hz
Record which frequencies each volunteer hears.

Variations

You could choose other frequencies to test.

NGSS Standards:

Plan and conduct an investigation individually and collaboratively to produce data to serve as the basis for evidence, and in the design: decide on types, how much, and accuracy of data needed to produce reliable measurements and consider limitations on the precision of the data (e.g., number of trials, cost, risk, time), and refine the design accordingly. (HS-ESS2-5)