Women in Science and Engineering
Stony Brook Laser Teaching Center

Second Meeting - 30 March 2004





Today we did many things involving light, sound, and SOAP BUBBLES. There were only three of us in the group, including someone who normally goes with the Marine Sciences group. This was because today was a "snow date" and many people had conflicts with other activities.

DIFFRACTION

Using lasers and wine glasses we learned about diffraction. When we shined a laser through the water, it came together into one point. We also discovered that when you shined a laser through a thin vertical space, the light expanded through it and looked like a thin horizontal line.

SOUND

We were able to answer the question "Why can you hear me through a wall, but not see me through a wall?" This is because sound waves are much longer in length than light waves are. (They can amount to 1 meter) Therefore they can bend around walls. We also looked at the freaquencies of our voices, a turning fork, and wine glasses. (Wine glasses with water- then running your finger around the rim.) We watched as the overtones of a note settled down on the "osciloscope". - The sine curves went from rocky to smooth.

BUBBLES

After making a bubble we could stick a pen through the bubble without the bubble breaking.

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