Physics Behind Music - Bryan H Suits

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Résumé :
This engaging undergraduate text uses the performance, recording, and enjoyment of music to present basic principles of physics. The narrative lays out specific results from physics, as well as some of the methodology, thought processes, and 'interconnectedness' of physics concepts, results, and ideas. Short chapters start with basic definitions and everyday observations and ultimately work through standard topics, including vibrations, waves, acoustics, and electronics applications. Each chapter includes problems, some of which are suited for longer-term projects, and suggestions for extra reading that guide students toward a deeper understanding of the physics behind music applications. To aid teaching, additional review questions, audio and video clips, and suggestions for class activities are provided online for instructors....

Biographie:
Bryan H. Suits has been a professor in the Department of Physics at Michigan Technological University (MTU) since 1985. An award-winning teacher, he has taught physics courses at all levels. An accomplished amateur musician with decades of experience, the author has combined his enthusiasm for physics with that for music to find ways to improve physics literacy among nonphysicists.

Sommaire:
Preface; 1. Introduction; 2. Frequency and rates; 3. The notes we use; 4. The frequency domain and pitch; 5. Harmonic oscillators and resonance; 6. String theory; 7. Normal modes; 8. Traveling waves; 9. The uncertainty principle; 10. Nonlinear physics; 11. Classical gases; 12. The speed of sound in a gas; 13. Sounds we hear; 14. Sound in pipes; 15. Sound in three dimensions; 16. Interference, diffraction, and diffusion; 17. Faraday's laws of induction; 18. RC time constants; 19. Physics and recording technology; 20. Electronics and music; Appendices; Index.