117k views
4 votes
you are waiting for the bus when you notice christopher lloyd and michael j. fox down the street. they are travelling on hoverboards at a speed of towards you with christopher in front of michael. the two of them seem to be doing some sort of science experiment as they are each carrying a sound generator that is set to the same frequency. you notice that during the time when you are in between christopher and michael (such that christopher is travelling away from you and michael is travelling towards you), you hear a beat with a frequency . what is the frequency of their sound generator? (assume the speed of sound is .)

User Estefanie
by
6.8k points

1 Answer

4 votes

Final answer:

Without specific numerical values such as the hoverboards' speeds, the beat frequency heard, and the speed of sound in the context, it is not possible to accurately calculate the frequency of the sound generators. The scenario involves the Doppler effect, which requires these values for calculation.

Step-by-step explanation:

The scenario you are describing involves the Doppler effect, which is an increase or decrease in the frequency of sound, light, or other waves as the source and observer move toward or away from each other. As Christopher Lloyd and Michael J. Fox approach on hoverboards with sound generators set to the same frequency, and you are positioned between them with one moving away and the other towards you, you would experience a beat frequency. The beat frequency is the difference between the frequencies you receive from each one.

However, it seems like your question is missing some numerical values, such as the speed at which they are traveling towards you and the actual beat frequency you hear. To calculate the frequency of their sound generators, we would also need the speed of sound in your scenarios, which is generally around 343 m/s at room temperature. Without these exact numbers, we cannot calculate the frequency accurately. To solve a problem similar to this, you would use the formula for the Doppler effect which takes into account the speed of the source, the speed of sound, and the original frequency of the sound.

If you can provide the missing values, we would be able to give you a specific answer. Otherwise, feel free to examine other examples where the Doppler effect is calculated using given speeds and frequencies.

User Moethata
by
7.1k points