Snow Day Mosquito Experiment |
Wow it’s really snowing out there isn’t it!
In years past you would have been safe since school couldn’t happen outside of the classroom but, luckily, you’re in the internet age! If not for the snow you would have had music class today so here is your snow day lesson.
I promise this activity won’t take you more than 20-30 minutes so you won’t miss too much sledding, fort or snowman building/ice skating/snowball fight time. You guys still do all that kind of stuff right?!
In music we have, or soon will, take a look at human hearing during our Science of Sound unit. As it turns out the world is full of really interesting sounds. Take a minute to download an App called Sound Uncovered which is an interactive book featuring sounds that are all around us and help set the stage for your activity today.
By using Sound Uncovered you will realize that there is a lot of sound around us that goes unnoticed. When you are younger your hearing is more sensitive than when you are older. Due to this natural phenomenon some people use high frequencies to get the attention of or annoy various ages of people. One such instance is the ‘Mosquito Tone’. The mosquito tone is a sound between 17-20 kHz and should only be heard by people under 30. In the recent past this tone has been used in major cities to stop young people from gathering where they are not wanted. In other instances it is used to signal young people while the ‘old folk’ remain unaware that a message has been sent. Today you will be testing the mosquito tone scientifically.
Scientists are always conducting experiments to prove their hypotheses. In case you don’t know, hypotheses are like educated guesses that scientists make before an experiment outlining what they hope the experiment will prove and the results they expect to see. During testing, the best experiments happen when the test subjects (like your family and friends) don’t know they are being experimented on. The reason scientists are tricky sometimes is that people alter their behavior when they know you are testing them. We are going to use an iOS/Android app that generates high pitched sounds and expose the people (and animals) around us to these sounds to gain knowledge about bias in experimentation and about how well you, your family, friends, and/or pets can hear.
Therefore, our first step is going to be filling out Sections 1 and 2 of this worksheet. In these sections you will identify the test subjects you intend to use (including yourself) and state your hypothesis by answering the questions provided.
You will need |
Access to an iOS or Android device A Free Tone Generator Program on your phone or tablet device: A Free Decibel Reader App on your phone or tablet device A second phone or tablet with the following App installed (optional) Tape Measure Headphones Access to your personal Google Drive Folder: (Use the iOS/ Android Apps) An iOS/Android internet browser: (Example Chrome iOS) Access to the Classroom Community Folder (Through iOS Google Drive)
Recommended if you are using a tablet (iPad or Surface)
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Special Note: WARNING |
Before you begin make sure you have copied the ‘Mosquito Snow Day’ Folder into your personal Google Drive Folder. If you cannot make changes to this document then you are trying to work off of the original which is READ ONLY. Make a copy of the entire folder to your own Google Drive folder and continue as normal. |
Section 2: Hypothesis | ||||||||||
Remember that a hypothesis is an educated guess that scientists make about the outcome of their experiments. You are going to develop your hypothesis by answering the following questions.
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Section 3: Equipment Familiarity |
We now need to familiarize ourselves with the equipment we will be using during the experiment. |
Signal Generator or Audio Test Tone If you haven’t already downloaded and installed the free Tone Generator onto your iOS or Android device do that now. Next find a quiet spot where you’re alone. You need to play with the program until you can ‘Sweep’ a frequency between 17,000 and 20,000 Hz for 3-4 seconds at a fixed Decibel (volume) so that you can hear the tone from about 3-4 feet away. If you cannot hear the tone even at the highest volume then drop down to 16,000 - 20,000 Hz (ps. This means you have some hearing loss). |
Decibel 10th Professional Noise Meter or Sound Meter You need to familiarize yourself with the App you will be using to measure the ambient noise environment. Both Decibel 10th and Noise Meter work very similarly. You will need a 4-5 second sample of your environment which both apps can plot on a graph. Be sure you know how to identify the highest average noise in any environment. |
Petralex Hearing Aid This optional activity requires that you know how to use the Petralex Hearing aid to more accurately detect the Mosquito Tone. Your goal is to use the built in Mic function to turn your ears into Super Ears. You will need another iOS device to complete this task. !WARNING: The Petralex Hearing Aid will amplify sounds for you. Do not use this App in a noisy environment or you could damage your hearing. |
Section 4: The Experiment Phase 1 |
You will need:
If you have a tablet device (iPad or Surface) open this document, Data Collection Tool 1, and the Tone Generator using different Apps. If you have your Tone Generator on a smaller device like a phone then open the Tone Generator there and open this document and Data Collection Tool 1 on a separate device (like a laptop or desktop computer). You will also need your Decibel reader running to measure the sound level of each environment before testing. |
Your job is to first measure the average decibel level of the testing environment with the Decibel reader. Take a 4-5 second reading. Then step out of the testing area and note the average reading. You then need to re-enter the testing area and play play the Mosquito Tone for your subjects WITHOUT them knowing what you are doing. How you accomplish this is up to you but remember that you need to keep the volume of the Mosquito Tone the same and you need to stand roughly 3-4 feet (1 meter) away from your subjects when you play the tone. Once your subject reacts to the tone take a moment and fill out Data Collection Tool 1 for that subject before going onto collect data from another subject. Repeat the process until you have data for all your subjects. |
Section 5: The Experiment Phase 2 |
If you have a tablet device (iPad or Surface) open this document, Data Collection Tool 2, and the Tone Generator, Decibel Reader, and Petralex Hearing Aid using different Apps. If you have your mobile apps on a smaller device like a phone then open the them there and open this document and Data Collection Tool 2 on a separate device (like a laptop or desktop computer). |
Your job is to use the decibel reader to get an average reading of your testing environment before each test begins. Then play the Mosquito Tone for your subjects a second time making them fully aware of what you are doing. Ask your subjects to come to your testing area and use Data Collection Tool 2 to get the information you need from them. |
SUPER EARS! |
Use the Petralex Hearing Aid on one device and play the Mosquito Tone on another. Adjust the settings of the Petralex Hearing Aid app to see how much further away from the sound source (the device playing the Mosquito Tone) you can get while still being able to hear the tone. Follow the directions and record the distance your new super ears can hear from on Data Collection Tool 2. |
Section 6: Analysis and Results | ||||||||||||||
Now that you have collected all the data you need to know if it supports your hypothesis or not. In the following section you will answer the questions based on the results you achieved during testing. You will need to consult the ‘Live Data Graphs’ in Section 7 to get most of the answers to the questions in Section 6. | ||||||||||||||
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Section 7: Live Data Graphs |
The following charts are an analysis of the data you entered in Data Tools 1 and 2. They are ‘Live’ so if you don’t see any bars on these graphs click on them and you will see an ‘Update’ button in the right hand corner. Click and watch your graphs fill themselves in with the date you collected during Experimental Phase. |
Chart 1: Subject Age vs Aware and Unaware Hearing |
The chart below outlines the subjects you chose to test, their respective age ranges, and the highest Frequency they heard during both the Unaware and Aware testing phase. |
Chart 2: Male vs Female vs Pet Hearing |
The following chart will help you determine whether the average male, female, or pet had the best hearing during your experiment. If you did not enter in pet data then none will appear. |
Chart 3: Highest Average Frequency vs Age |
The following chart will tell you about the hearing of your test subjects based upon their age range. |
Chart 4: Noise levels During Testing |
The following chart will tell you about the noise conditions your testing took place under. |
Section 8: Wrap Up |
Now that you have an understanding of your own sonic environment and your own ability to hear you might be concerned about one of your test subjects (maybe even yourself). Many young people have old ears due to premature hearing loss brought on by noise pollution or listening to music at unsafe volumes doing headphones. While sensitivity to sounds cannot be repaired the good news is that their is a difference between being able to hear and listening. Think of it like this; If someone speaks chinese to you you might be able to hear them but you also might not understand them. Training your ear to understand what it hears is just as important as hearing itself. With this truth in mind try using the following iOS app which will teach you to hear more effectively |
Section 9: Submit Your Work / Assessment |
You are done now. All you need to do is save this document into your personal Google Drive Folder. Your folder will be checked before the next class for a completed worksheet. If it is present and completed correctly you will pass this assignment. If you do not complete it or you complete it incorrectly you will not pass the assignment. Be sure to contact your instructor with any questions you have. I will be checking my email throughout the day. When we get back to school we will take all the data from the snow day experiments and put them into a master chart that should tell us a lot about hearing and our hypotheses. Until then... Go out and play in the snow! |
