Name ________________________

Date _______________

Partners______________________

Section _____________

Lab 2: Sound, Echolocation and Kinematics

2.1 Introduction: Use of Sound in Air and Water

Hearing is the universal alerting sense in all vertebrates. Sound is so important because animals are able
to hear events all around them, no matter where their attention is focused. Many species of blind
amphibians, reptiles, fishes and mammals are known, but no naturally profoundly deaf vertebrate species
have been discovered. Although hearing is important to all animals, the special qualities of the undersea
world emphasize the use of sound.
In a very general sense, there are two ways that sound is used: passively and actively. In passive
acoustics, the organism or user makes no sound of their own, but listens to sounds that are being made by
others. The ocean, particularly coastal environments, is a very noisy place. By listening to the sounds,
much can be learned about the environment.

Activity 2.1.1
One person wears the blindfold (do not cheat!). Another person drops a pencil somewhere on the table or
floor. The blindfolded person gets one chance to locate the object by placing their finger where they think
the object is located. They cannot search with their hands! Leave your finger on the table until
measurements are completed. Another person will measure the location of the object and how far off the
finger is from the object with a ruler. Repeat this 10 times.
Drop
Example
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10

Item
Dropped
Pencil

Guessed
Item
Marker

Where Dropped

Where Guessed

How Far Off?

50 cm

15 cm

35 cm

11

How Far Off (cm)

Make a plot with the How Far Off data on the y axis and the Where Dropped on the x axis.

Where Dropped (cm)

From your data, where was it easiest to locate the object? Where was the most difficult? What can you
conclude about this?

Note: Some dolphins can use sound to detect a 15 centimeter (6 inch) long fish a football field away!

12

Table 1: Information about different types of waves and their speed.

Wave
Light
Sound
Sound

Medium
Vacuum
Air
Water

Speed
3 x 108 m/s
330 m/s
1300 m/s

Use the data in Table 1 to answer these Follow-up Questions:

Question 2.1.1. Why do you think coaches tell sprinters to take off as soon as they see the smoke leave
the gun rather than waiting until they hear the shot?

Question 2.1.2. How long does it take light and sound to travel 1 mile? How can you tell how far away
lightning is?

2.2 Echolocation

The second way to use sound is called active acoustics. In this case, sound is created by a source and then
received by a receiver. Some active acoustic systems, such as underwater telephones, have a separate
source and receiver that are located in different places. Other active acoustic systems have the source and
receiver located at the same place. In this case, sound goes out from the source, bounces off an object, and
returns to the receiver. The sound returning to the receiver is called backscatter. By analyzing the sound
received (the return echo), much information can be learned about the object, such as its distance, size,
and composition.

13

Echolocation is used by animals in both air and water. List examples of animals which use this process in
air and water as a means of locating objects. You may look on the internet to research this question.

Air

Water

Question 2.2.1 Which medium has the most animals using echolocation? Can you predict some reasons
why?

Physics Reasons:
A. Distance Traveled: Sound travels far greater distances than light under water. Light travels only a
few hundred meters in the ocean before it is absorbed or scattered. Even where light is available, it is
more difficult to see as far under water as in air.
Question 2.2.2: How would the fact that sound travels greater distances than light in water impact
whether animals in air and water adapt to using echolocation?

B. Speed: The undersea world presents very different conditions for hearing as well as seeing. Sound
travels much farther underwater than in air. The sounds produced by many marine mammals can project
for miles. Strong echoes are always present underwater, because sound travels without much loss and
there are many underwater surfaces that reflect sound. So, it can be tricky to communicate using sound
underwater, because a listener may have to sort through many different sounds and confusing echoes to
hear the message. Marine mammal sounds are probably structured so that they can be recognized in spite
of all the echoes.
Question 2.2.2: Calculate the time it takes for a bat to detect a predator approaching at a distance of 1000
m away. How much time does it take for a dolphin to detect a predator approaching at the same distance?
How does this result support more living creatures in water using echolocation than creatures in air?

14

Marine animals rely on sound to acoustically sense their surroundings, communicate, locate food, and
protect themselves underwater. Marine mammals, such as whales, use sound to identify objects such as
food, obstacles, and other whales. By emitting clicks, or short pulses of sound, marine mammals can
listen for echoes and detect prey items, or navigate around objects. This animal sense functions just like
the sonar systems on navy ships. It is clear that producing and hearing sound is vital to marine mammal
survival.

Clicks and whistles are the two main types of dolphin vocalization. Each individual dolphin has its own
"signature whistle", which is a series of whistles, like a dolphin Morse code, which is distinct from any
other member of the group. This signature whistle provides a way for dolphins to recognize and bond
with others. Dolphins produce directional clicks in trains. Each click lasts about 50 to 128 microseconds.
The click trains pass through the melon (the rounded region of a dolphin's forehead), which consists of
lipids (fats). The melon acts as an acoustical lens to focus these sound waves into a beam, which is
projected forward into water in front of the animal.

C: Frequency: High frequency sounds don't travel far in water. Low frequency sounds travel farther
because of their longer wavelength and greater energy.
Question 2.2.3: From your experience listening to whales and dolphins, do whales emit high frequency or
low frequency sounds? What about dolphins? Their range is about 5-200 meters for targets 5-15
centimeters in length. Can you hypothesize why dolphins or whales havent evolved to send out even
lower frequency signals?

The major areas of sound reception are the fat-filled cavities of the lower jaw bones. Sounds are received
and conducted through the lower jaw to the middle ear, inner ear, and then to hearing centers in the brain
via the auditory nerve. The brain receives the sound waves in the form of nerve impulses, which relay the
messages of sound and enable the dolphin to interpret the sound's meaning. By this complex system of
echolocation, dolphins and whales can determine size, shape, speed, distance, direction, and even some of
the internal structure of objects in the water.

15

Question 2.2.4: Do you think that echolocation can be learned by humans? Check out this video:
http://www.wideo.fr/video/iLyROoaft87F.html

2.3 Using Echolocation to Understand Position, Velocity and Acceleration

The Ultrasonic Motion Sensor
In the rest of the activities in this unit you will be using a computer-based laboratory system with an
ultrasonic motion sensor and motion software. It is helpful to understand some of the basic characteristics
of motion sensors to use them intelligently.
The ultrasonic motion sensor acts like a stupid bat when hooked up with a computer-based laboratory
system. It sends out a series of sound pulses that are too high in frequency to hear. These pulses reflect
from objects in the vicinity of the motion sensor and some of the sound energy returns to the sensor. The
computer is able to record the time it takes for reflected sound waves to return to the sensor and then, by
knowing the speed of sound in air, figure out how far away the reflecting object is. There are several
things to watch out for when using a motion sensor.

.15 m

Fig.2.1 . Diagrams showing the ramp, cart, and motion sensor setup.

Position and Velocity Graphs of a Cart

In this activity you will use a cart on a low friction track to study position and velocity graphs and how
they relate to each other.
1. Set up the motion sensor at the end of the ramp.
2. Open the P, V & A Graphs application in your Physics 211 folder.
3. When taking measurement, give the cart a push away from the motion sensor and start collecting
data with the motion software just as you finish pushing the cart.
4. Stop taking data just before the cart hits a surface.
5. Do not let the cart crash into the motion sensor!

Activity 2.3.1: Graphs of a Stationary Cart

a. Based on your knowledge of position, velocity and acceleration, predict how the position and
velocity graphs will look if the cart is placed at the center of your track and remained in that
position while you collect data? Sketch your predictions with dashed lines on the following axes.

16

b. Acceleration is defined as the time rate of change of velocity. Sketch your prediction of the cart
acceleration on the axis that follow using a dashed line.

c. Test your prediction by collecting data on the stationary cart with the motion software. Be sure
that the cart is farther than 0.15 m from the motion detector. Sketch your results with solid lines
on the axes shown above. The acceleration vs. time graph will exhibit small fluctuations due to
irregularities in the motion of the cart. You should ignore these fluctuations and draw smooth
patterns.
d. Did your position-time and velocity-time graphs agree with your predictions?

17

Activity 2.3.2: Cart Motion After a Push

a. Based on your knowledge of position, velocity and acceleration, predict how the position and
velocity graphs will look AFTER it leaves your hand if the cart is pushed away from the motion
sensor starting at the 0.5-meter mark? Sketch your predictions with dashed lines on the following
axes.

b. Acceleration is defined as the time rate of change of velocity. Sketch your prediction of the cart
acceleration on the axis that follow using a dashed line.

c. Test your prediction by collecting data on the moving cart with the motion software. Be sure that
the cart is never closer than 0.15 m from the motion detector. Try several times until you get a
fairly consistent velocity. Sketch your results with solid lines on the axes shown above. The
acceleration vs. time graph will exhibit small fluctuations due to irregularities in the motion of the
cart. You should ignore these fluctuations and draw smooth patterns.
18

d. Did your position-time and velocity-time graphs agree with your predictions? What characterizes
constant velocity motion on a position-time graph?

e. What characterizes constant velocity motion on a velocity vs. time graph?

f. What characterizes constant velocity motion on an acceleration vs. time graph?

Activity 2.3.3: Predicting the Shapes of Position vs. Time Graphs

When Using a Motion Sensor
1. Do not get closer than 0.15 meters from the sensor because it cannot record reflected pulses that
come back too soon after they are sent.
2. The ultrasonic waves spread out in a cone of about 15 as they travel. They will see the closest
object. Be sure there is a clear path between the object whose motion you want to track and the
motion sensor.
3. The motion sensor is very sensitive and will detect slight motions. You can try to glide smoothly
along the floor, but dont be surprised to see small bump representing your steps in velocity
graphs and even larger bumps in acceleration graphs.
4. Some objects like bulky sweaters are good sound absorbers and may not be seen very well by a
motion sensor. You may want to hold a book in front of you if you have loose clothing on.

Fig. 2.2 Walking in front of motion sensor attached to a computer-based laboratory system.

19

The purpose of the next activity in this session is to learn how to relate graphs of position as a function of
time to the motions they represent. How does a position vs. time graph look when something moves
slowly? Quickly? What happens when something moves toward the motion sensor? Away? After
completing the next activity you should be able to look at a position vs. time graph and describe the
motion of an object. You should also be able to look at the motion of an object and sketch a graph
representing that motion.

Matching Position vs. Time Graphs

Wed like you to look at a graph of a completed motion and then describe the motion you think it depicts
in words. Then you should be able to reproduce the motion you described.

Matching Position vs. Time Graphs

0.8
0.6
0.4
0.2

a. Describe in your own words how you plan to move in order to match the graph shown above.

b. Move to match the above graph on the computer screen. You may try this a number of times. It
helps to work in a team. Get the times right. Get the positions right. Do this for yourself.
(Each person in your group should do his or her own match.) You will not learn very much by
just watching!

20

c. What was the difference in the way you moved to produce the two differently sloped parts of the
graph you just matched?

d. Predict what the velocity vs. time plot would look like for the motion above. Sketch your
prediction below using a dashed line. After you have sketched your prediction, use the DataStudio
software to graph the velocity vs time graph for your actual data. Sketch this on the same graph
below with a solid line.

References
http://www.dosits.org/
http://nelson.beckman.illinois.edu/courses/neuroethol/models/bat_echolocation/bat_echolocation
.html
21

22