Julian Hernandez

Period 4
Waves

OBJECTIVE: To better understand mechanical waves and factors that affect them.

EQUIPMENT NEEDED:
Generator
Wave Table
Water
Overhead light source
White paper (for wave visibility)
External props (wooden bar, metal slider)
Set of instructions A-D (4 of them)

PROCEDURE:
1. Gather the necessary materials
2. Gather the necessary instructions
3. Turn your generator on to generate no more than 10 volts for the simulation
4. Turn on the overhead light and make sure you can see the generated waves beneath
the table.
5. Adjust the white paper beneath the simulation until you can properly see the waves.
6. Begin to test out the different scenarios described in the instructions
7. Record your observations

DATA TABLES:





CALCULATIONS:



RESULTS:
Through this lab were able to observe mechanical waves in the medium of water.
We found some very interesting things regarding mechanical waves in water that are
relevant to our objective. We observed how mechanical waves adjust when external
variables are introduced into the scenario, for example, we placed a wooden stick in the
water and observed the waves bounce off the stick and find their way through the
openings it left. We also observed that the higher the amount of energy introduced into
the simulation, the higher the frequency of the waves are, and so we see more waves
closer together. The simulation also provided us with some very insightful things about
energy and how that translates into waves.

CONCLUSION:

For many people, the first thought concerning waves conjures up a picture of a
wave moving across the surface of an ocean, lake, pond or other body of water. The
waves are created by some form of a disturbance, such as a rock thrown into the water,
a duck shaking its tail in the water or a boat moving through the water. By simply
dipping our finger into the water, waves were formed and this tells us that waves are
pretty much formed with everything we do. This ranges from motion to sound.