Flexible Plastic Tubing with the Center Marked, and Small Wooden Dowel Rod

 

Code Number: 3C10.20

Demo Title: Binaural Hearing

Condition: Excellent

Principle: Hearing Resolution

Area of Study: Oscillations & Acoustics

Equipment: 

Plastic Tubing with the Center Marked, and Small Wooden Dowel Rod.

Procedure:

Hold the ends of the flexible tubing so that each end of the tube goes against an ear.  Have someone tap on the tube in different positions.  See how close to the middle of the tube you can come before you can no longer distinguish the time differential.

References:

  • Thomas D. Rossing, "Localizing Sound Underwater", TPT, Vol. 23, #7, Oct. 1985, p. 430.
  • Morris G. Hults, "Binaural Hearing", TPT, Vol. 18, #7, Oct. 1980, p. 509.
  • Stephen G. Benka, "Binaural Hearing for the Hearing-Impaired", Physics Today, Vol. 67, #3, Mar. 2014, p. 21.
  • "W-035. Time Resolution of Ear", DICK and RAE Physics Demo Notebook.
  • Pat Murphy, Ellen Macaulay, and the staff of the Exploratorium, "Where's That Sound Coming From?", Exploratopia, p. 20.
  • Martin Gardner, "The Puzzling Snap", Science Tricks, p. 78.
  • Raymond Bruman, "Stereo Hearing", Exploratorium Cookbook I, p. 69.1 - 69.2.
  • "Stereo Sound", Science Snackbook, p. 94.1 - 94.2.
  • "Hearing Test", PIRA Newsletter, Vol. 3, #17 Jan. 1990.
  • Robert J. Brown, Science for You - 112 Illustrated Experiments, p. 39.
  • "Perception of Direction with Sounds", Physics From the Junk Drawer, 3rd Edition, The Science House, North Carolina State University, p. 46.
  • Janice VanCleave, "72. Sound and Direction", Janice VanCleave's 201 Awesome, Magical, Bizarre, & Incredible Experiments, p. 39.
  • Martin Keen, "Two Ears are Better than One", Let's Experiment, 1968, p. 156 - 157.
  • "Sense and Non-Sense with Your Five Senses", Science Experimenter Magazine, p. 60 - 62.
  • Jane Bingham, "Surprising Senses", The Usborne Book of Science Experiments, p. 12 - 13.