Where does the coincidence of wave sounds come from?

Arabia Weather - When we were young, the trip to the beach was one of the special times that live in our memories, and perhaps the best part was searching for seashells, and placing one of them so that we would hear sounds similar to the sound of the sea, while we were surprised and felt that something magical had happened when These sounds were emerging from the depths of the shell, as if the roar of the sea had a language that spoke to our souls

But why do sea-like sounds seem to come from inside the shell? Are we really listening to voices from the world of chance or is there a simpler explanation?

Where does the shell sound come from?

Trevor Cox, a professor of audio engineering at the University of Salford in the UK, said in an email to Live Science:

“That's not exactly the sound of the sea.” “However, when you hold a shell to your ear, it seems logical to imagine that it makes a similar sound.”

So, if this is not the sound of the sea you hear, what exactly is it?

According to Andrew King, Director of the University of Oxford's Center for Integrative Neuroscience and Head of the Oxford Auditory Neuroscience Group, we can hear ocean-like sounds when the shell is placed next to the ear, but this sound does not necessarily have to be the sound of the sea.

He explains that the hard, curved surfaces inside the shell reflect sound waves, causing the waves to “bounce” inside the shell and increase certain sound frequencies. This makes the shell work like a wind instrument, producing a set of resonant frequencies that are amplified next to the ear, and determines which frequencies are heard based on the volume. And the shell shape.

This effect can be experienced by placing any other object next to the ear, such as a cup or bowl. However, there must be background noise in order for any sound to be heard, and in a completely soundproof room, you will not be able to hear any sound due to the absence of any sound. Background noise.

What happens when humans use seashells to hear the sea?

An anechoic chamber is a room specially designed to prevent “reflection of sound from the confines of the room,” according to

According to the University of Southampton, these rooms are such quiet environments that people can hear their heartbeats and the grinding or creaking sounds of their bones after a short time. A 2018 CNN report describes this phenomenon: The absolute lack of reverberation leads to people being exposed to physical noise that disrupts their spatial awareness.

Therefore, there must be background noise in order for the sounds inside the seashells to be heard, and this raises a question

Do you actually hear the sound of the sea when you are by the sea or are you simply hearing amplified background noise?

For this question, Trevor Cox points out that the shell reflects and amplifies the sound , but he considers that the sound you hear from the shell on the beach is simply the nearby environmental sound, i.e. the sound of the sea. Therefore, it can be considered that you are listening to the sound of the sea indirectly when you place the shell next to the sea. .

Also know:

Do the planets have voices?

What if there were mirrors in space?

Sources:

livescience

sciencefocus