Question

Explain how does the sound produced by a vibrating object in a medium reach our ears? [3 marks]

Answer 1

Air is the most common medium through which sound propagates. When vibrating objects, like prongs of a tuning fork move forward, they push the molecules of the air in front of them. This in turn compresses the air, thus, creating a region of high pressure and high density called compression. This compression in the air travels forward. When the prongs of the tuning fork move backward, they create a region of low pressure in the air, commonly called rarefaction. This region has low pressure, low density and more volume. As the tuning fork continues to vibrate, the regions of compression in the air alternate with the regions of rarefaction. These regions alternate at the same place. The energy of vibrating tuning fork travels outward and reach to our ears.
[3 Marks]