Noise Pollution Essay

NOISE POLLUTION

Noise pollution is a type of energy pollution in which very displeasing sound occurs. Noise and sound are two different things. A sound is a kind of vibration which travels through mediums such as air or water- it’s basically something that can be heard. Whereas a noise is a type of sound which is mixed together with other sounds, and it cannot be heard clearly. Some people may think of it as a really irritating and annoying noise coming from any strong and disturbing sound sources. It can be caused by humans, animals, or machines. However, the really serious noise pollution mainly comes from engines, rail noises, automobiles, and car alarms which can affect the human ear- it can cause damage to it and can lead to hearing disabilities. Noise pollution occurs all over the world but it does not only happen in the air, it also happens in other mediums that the sound waves travel through (for example underwater). But to be sincere, noise pollution may occur in various ways: in huge shopping malls, in a classroom, in factories where people produce new items, at a party where there is loud music, lawn mowers may cause a lot of noise, slamming doors/car doors (only if a lot of people do it at the same time) barking dogs or any other animal making loud noises, voices yelling or loud conversations, construction, and most of all: beeping car horns, revving engines, cars, planes, trucks etc.
Noise pollution can affect people in many different ways, and not only to humans, but also to animals. Animals can hear noise 100 times better than humans, so there is a possibility that they can be more affected than humans! For example, it can cause people/animals to have hearing problems. Loudness or sound level is measured in Decibels (dB). The maximum amount of noise to not get hearing problems is 100dB. However, if a person/animal listens to a sound that is up to 100dB for a long period of time, then it will definitely cause hearing damage.
Next are cardiovascular issues. This causes damage to the blood pressure- and your heartbeats can increase- leading to a heart attack (if the noise is extremely loud). Sleep disturbances are also an issue. If a person screams or a loud car alarm occurs while someone’s sleep, it can cause the person to be uncomfortable and increase their intensity. When that happens, the person can no longer work or think on anything after. Mental health problems happens when a person is very anxious or mad and a whole crowd or loud noise occurs. My teacher was once very depressed, and when the class started yelling, screaming, and being crazy she got annoyed and could no longer think. Finally, interferences in verbal communication are when two people are talking, and loud noise is happening in the background- this can lead to confusion and misunderstandings.

Have you ever wondered how life would be wonderful without all the loud noise occurring in the city? In the older days, people had no transportation and machines to be able to get hearing loss, instead they could hear rusting leaves (10 dB) and birds ‘singing’ on the trees. I can imagine how wonderful and peaceful that could be! I’m sure we want to live like that! The only way we can is to eliminate noise pollution! Here are some examples:

· Turn off the TV, you don’t want noise to disturb you while you’re working on something important! (Although I love listening to music while I do my homework, and if I want my work to be well done, I’m going to have to turn the TV off. Well, this is sad. L )

· Avoid indoor noise- go outside if there a lot of noise going on inside, this can lead you to have a headache and faint!

· If the noise is really getting irritating, put some ear protection materials over your ears to protect those tiny hairs!

· Don’t build your living space in the surrounding of the railway, highway etc. Try to surround it with plants and bushes.

· Don’t use your car or motorcycle when there is no actual need for it!

· Listen to soothing music, it will calm you down- try listening to meditating songs.

· N-E-V-E-R watch those scary maze games, they can pop up and scare you to death. MY friend once sent me a link about scary mazes. In the first 5 minutes I watched beautiful trees with wonderful birds singing in the background, rusting leaves and everything was so peaceful. Until it lasted… A huge scary face popped up on the screen, I have to admit, it really freaked me out and I jumped like a cockroach out of my chair!

· People say planting trees is helpful to avoid disturbing noises- plant trees can absorb noise so we should have more of them to diminish noise!

· Increase healing sounds- birds, chimes, bells, music, streams, indoor or outdoor waterfalls or fountains to calm yourself!

· For people who work in the factories or in the noise pollution work places, it’s necessary to wear earphones to protect the ear. They should keep the factory hall opened (if this is possible) etc…

These are some things that we can do to diminish the noise pollution level, and it sounds really easy, doesn’t it? However, what can science do to solve this widely spread problem? Unfortunately, not a lot because, in contrast to air or water pollution in which we can locate the source, noise pollution comes from many different sources, so it might be hard to handle it. It also doesn’t have obvious and direct influences such as for example radioactive particles from the air, so there is no big need for prevention (except if the sound isn’t too loud at that moment).

Now I will talk about helping a person with hearing loss. Do you have a friend who has hearing problems? If you do, you can take him/her to a quiet room where there is no music at all- and where you can talk to in peace. Face the person and talk to him/her clearly without chewing gum, and you cannot mumble often otherwise he won’t be able to understand you. You should use facial expressions to make the person understand what you’re saying better. Also, if needed, you should reword your statement, you never know if the person understood you! You should be patient and stay relaxed! I also think that the person with hearing disabilities use visual signs much more than sound, so, for example, when a person rings a bell next to the door, there should be a light next to the deaf person so that he knows that someone wants to go in. There should also be a bigger number of channels on TV with titled programs so that the person with hearing problems can understand better and quicker- if he doesn’t know how to read, then there should be a person who will use the alphabet for impaired people.

Bibliography:

1. "Noise Pollution." iDea Connection- build on the genius others. N.p., 4 Sept.
2005. Web. 1 Apr. 2011. 4353-Noise-pollution.html>.

2. "Noise Pollution clearing house NPC." NPC webmaster. N.p., 7 Apr. 2001. Web. 1
Apr. 2011. http://www.nonoise.org/

3. "What is Noise Pollution?" What is what? N.p., 9 Dec. 2007. Web. 9 Dec. 2007.
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4. "Noise Pollution." Wikipedia. N.p., 24 Mar. 2011. Web. 1 Apr. 2011.

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5. "Noise Pollution." Answers.com. N.p., 5 June 2008. Web. 1 Apr. 2011.
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Bill Nye Video

SOUND!

1. What is sound?
Sound is an energy made by vibrations. When an object vibrates, it causes movement in the air particles, these particles bump into the particles close to each other, which makes them vibrate too causing them to bump into more air particles.

2. Does sound travel faster in a brick or in the air and why do you think that is?
Through a brick because it vibrates!

3. Do the individual particles in the air move to your ear to make sound?
They don't move very much.

4. Which creates longer wavelengths, high pitched or low pitched sounds?
Low pitched sound.

5. How many different notes are there in most music?
12.

6. How does the whisper dish work?
It funnels it.

7. What is it called when something vibrates at its' natural frequency?
Resonance.

8. How does the outer ear help you hear?
It's designed to catch sound.

"To the Master's honor all must turn, each in its' track, without a sound, forever tracing Newton's ground."
- Albert Einstein

Earthquake Safety

EARTHQUAKE SAFETY

Have you ever wondered what to do during an earthquake? If you haven't, you'll find a whole bunch of good tips for you and your family, whether you are at home or on a vacation.
I've researched about this topic, and found fantastic things; what you can do
during an earthquake, after an earthquake, and before an earthquake.
But firstly, you have to know some basic facts that will lead you to survive in an earthquake.

The first step is, you have to be prepared. Reduce/eliminate hazards throughout your home, neighborhood, workplace and school- You can reduce your risk of injury, and most likely it helps you stay alive.

Make a plan! Practice "Drop cover and hold" by sitting on the ground, showing your back towards the protective table above you and hold something, for example, a table leg. Also, learn how to protect yourself no matter where you are while the earthquake strikes!!!!!!
Make disaster kits! You should have disaster supplies anywhere in your home, your disaster supply kits should include food, water, flashlights, portable radios, batteries, a first aid kit, cash, extra medications, a whistle, fire extinguisher, etc.

Before an earthquake:
1. Learn how to survive during the ground motion.

2. Teach all members of your family about earthquake safety.

3. Learn where the main turn-offs are for your water, gas and electricity. Know how to turn them off and the location of any needed tools.

4. Arrange your home for safety: Store heavy objects on lower shelves and store breakable objects in cabnents with latched doors.

During an Earthquake:

1. If you are indoors, stay there. You don't want heavy stuff falling on you from the buildings!

2. If you are outdoors, move somewhere where falling objects are unlikely to strike you. Stay away from buildings, power lines, and trees.

4. If you are driving, slow down slowly and and stop on the side of the road. Stay in the car.

After the Earthquake:

1. Check for damage. If your building is badly damaged, leave it until it is inspected by a safety professional.

2. If you smell or hear a gas leak, get everyone outside and open windows and doors.

3. If the power is out, unplug major appliances to prevent damage when the power is turned back on!

Tsunami

Tsunami Essay

How peaceful and attracting does this beach look like, isn't it just wonderful? Can you imagine going swimming in that salty warm dreamy beach? But if you look at this HAZARD WARNING ZONE sign, and you know what might happen if you INTEND on going to this beach, it is scary to even pass the warning sign, and not go INTO the water, right?

Tsunami, which is also known as seismic waves- and mistakenly called tidal waves because they are not caused by tidal action- are one of the world’s most dangerous waves that begin growing in height from any small number like 10 cm, and continue growing in height up to about 100 feet or more. A tsunami is a lot of waves made in an ocean or other body of water by an earthquake, volcanic eruption, landslide, or meteorite impact. Tsunami waves are tremendous and can travel very quickly, about 700 km/hr, wow, that’s a fast wave! They usually start growing when they reach the coast, and that's where they start slowing down to be able to hit. A short time before the tsunami wave hits, the water near the shore moves away so the tsunami has space. The first wave isn't usually the largest, every 10-60 minutes additional waves come. When it hits the city, Uh-oh! Everyone's doomed!! :( When these HUGE waves splash into the city, a lot of damage happens. Tsunami waves will destroy the buildings, houses that people live in, cars, banks, streets, basically the whole city! The whole city is very important for people to be able to survive in their environment. For example, without buildings they wouldn’t have a healthy place to live in, and without banks they could be going through a crisis and run out of cash, there are so many reasons why the tsunami is extremely dangerous and why it is important for the city to be safe. More importantly, the people need to be safe! What’s a safe city with not people in it?
The environment is another important thing. Tsunamis cause damage to infrastructure, animals and plants due to the fast waves that destroy everything in their path. For example like trees, crops, bushes, plants, and everything living, also animals, species and fish and a lot more!
If you’re thinking that the only way of protecting yourself from a tsunami is by running, you’re wrong. Tsunamis travel a lot faster than humans do, that’s what makes them SO dangerous! There are several tips that I found on the internet on how you can save yourself before a tsunami happens, during the tsunami and after a tsunami. Firstly, you have to know where the closest high-ground is and how you will reach it. You have to get as far inland as you can! You should always plan how to go far away from a tsunami before it actually happens. On the other hand, during a tsunami you should never go to the shore to watch for a tsunami. Don’t get close to at-risk areas until everything is over. Lastly, after the tsunami listen to radios and see what the people say- if they mention any more possibilities that the tsunami will happen, stay away from the shore, and DO NOT go sightseeing. Also, if you are injured or if your stuff is damaged, take notes and take pictures for insurance purposes.

So as you can see, tsunamis are quite dangerous. One article that I read described where the biggest tsunami occurred- and I found out that in 1964, a gigantic, tremendous tsunami about 200,000 square mile area which took place along the source fault has hit the South East coast of Alaska, the Pacific coast of British Columbia, and west coast of the United States. About 119 people got killed in this huge tsunami along the coast of Alaska, and caused 300 to 400 million dollars in damage of Alaska alone.
We should be very aware of them because we know what will happen by even THINKING about all the damage they can cause; The people and the community, the place/country, and the environment and animals and species will all lose their lives.

Because of all the consequences previously mentioned, it is very important to have good integrated measure to predict tsunamis’ appearances and to avoid human disasters.
There are different types of tsunami warning systems. I will describe one type that uses the bottom pressure sensors.

The fact that the presence of a tsunami can be felt on the sea floor can be used to detect the tsunami. By placing a piece of equipment that can sense the seismic waves’ energy on the seabed, we can be able to accurately sense the presence of a tsunami. One example of the tsunami warning system is given on the picture below. It is NOAA Tsunami Warning System

If you look at the diagram, the sensor will rest at the bottom of the ocean. It will continue to measure the pressure. The spike in the pressure in the ocean floor most likely means that a tsunami has just passed over the sensor! Once the measured pressure spikes, the sensor will send a signal to a buoy with a hydrophone and a transmitter. The buoy would be resting on the surface of the water. Once the buoy has received the signal from the pressure sensor, it will transmit VIA satellite to the Early-warning station the information it has. The Early-warning station will be able to inform the endangered areas of coming danger.

- This is to examine how the tsunami decides whether to inform the public or not!
The tsunami warning system was made to help minimize loss of life and property. It has two sources- the distant source and the local source. Basically, a distant source is when an earthquake happens from one place to another, like from Australia to America, and a local source is when the tsunami happens in the place its’ happening in- for instance, in Alaska.

I've also read some kind of article that explains how elephants in India run to the hills before the tsunami appears in the year 2004. It's amazing how they are capable of hearing the sound waves with much smaller frequency than us people- from 0.001 Hz to 20 Hz. Of course, when they felt it they ran away- maybe people should look more for these natural warning systems, pay more attention to this natural sign and include them with scientific inquiry that they received with some modern kinds of devices.

The global environmental justice between rich and poor countries are known as the powerful and the powerless within the countries. Even though the earthquake and the tsunami are natural phenomena- any natural disaster like volcano eruptions, drouts etc-, there wasn’t anything "natural" about the tsunami disaster and the earthquake disaster. The tsunami before and after is a study of how "natural" disasters can have "unnatural" effects in much poorer regions, going from human made things like poor housing and vulnerable subsistence economies. For example, the Pacific Ocean warning system can warn the Pacific “Ring of fire” countries of an incoming tsunami, but the poorer countries of South and Southeast Asia were not able to afford an Indian Ocean warning system. Now scientists are trying to create a warning system in poorer countries so that they live the same way as rich countries!

After all the online articles and information that I've read, I can conclude that it is very important to have a good emergency infrastructure- which can reach EVERYONE: from fishermen in Indonesia to THE SWIMMER in Hawaii- because that can save a thousand of people's lives!

Bibliography:

1. Pendick, Daniel. "Catching a Tsunami in the Act." Savage Earth. Daniel Pendick,
15 July 2008. Web. 23 Feb. 2011.
tsunami/html/sidebar1.html>.

2. NOAA. "What is a tsunami?" Windows to the Universe. /, 16 Sept. 2007. Web. 27
Feb. 2011. .

3. "The tsunami warning system- how does it work?" Yaquina Bay Communications.
N.p., 10 Aug. 2005. Web. 27 Feb. 2011.
home.cfm?dir_cat=40785>.

4. Claire, Eau. "The waves of devastation." The waves of devastation. N.p., n.d.
Web. 27 Feb. 2011.
tsunami/>.

5. Doesn't, Mention. "Tsunamis." United States search of rescue and Task Force.
N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Feb. 2011. .

Tsunami in Alaska:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yN6EgMMrhdI

Seismograph lab

CREATING A SEISMOGRAPH LAB

Problem:
How to create a seismograph that would properly record the simulated earthquakes.

Guiding Question:
How does the speed of the paper affect the data?

Hypothesis:
If you move the table faster, then the frequency and amplitude of the earthquake waves will be smaller.

Materials:
1. Cardboard box (to hold the paper)
2. Pen (to record the data)
3. String (to hold the pen)
4. Ruler (to hold the pen)
5. Lots of tape (to tape the rulers together)
6. Scissors
7. Notebook (to make the paper higher so the pen can touch it)
8. Chair (to hold the ruler)
9. Table (to make an earthquake)
10. Long paper (to be able to have a lot of trials)

Procedure:
1. Take any cardboard box that is about 40 cm long and 14 cm wide. Put it on a table where you will create the earthquake.
2. Take two rulers of any kind and tape them together to form a 90 degrees angle. Take one end of the ruler and stick it to the side of the seismograph- but make sure you stick them tightly so the rulers will be balanced!
3. For the rulers to be COMPLETELY perfect, take 1-2 heavy metals and tape them on top of one ruler so that the pen is more likely to touch the paper.
4. Take a thick notebook and place it on the cardboard box so that the paper which will be placed on the notebook will be high enough for the pen to touch it.
5. Place a long piece of paper which is about 25 cm long on the cardboard box
6. Then take a school chair and place it on the table- Fix the ruler with the tape into the chair
YOUR SEISMOGRAPH IS CREATED!
7. One partner should shake the table. First he/she should shake the table at slow movement, then at constant movement and finally with strong force. The other partner should move the paper (while the table is shaking) Observe what happens.
8. Repeat the previous steps

This is how your seismograph should look:




Record and analyze:
The data is presented on the pictures of our seismograph


Picture 1:



Picture 2:




Data analysis:
From the pictures above we can see that if we move the paper faster, the graph will look less frequent (like on the first part of the picture.) If we move the paper slower, then the shaking of the table would be fully recorded and the amplitude and frequency will be much higher.

Conclusion:
We can conclude that our hypothesis is correct. If the paper movement is faster, then it will decrease the amplitude of our earthquake waves. In a good designed seismograph you SHOULD NEVER MOVE THE PAPER FAST BECAUSE YOU CAN LOSE THE HIGH FREQUENCY AND THE AMPLITUDE OF THE EARTHQUAKE. I can conclude that this is very important to design a good speed of the paper (it should be slow). Also, the pen has to be strongly tight so that it doesn’t move with the paper. Thirdly, the height has to be exactly corresponding so that the pen doesn’t push on the paper.

Further inquiry:
I have a couple of things to warn myself for the future. Firstly, we unfortunately didn’t take pictures of everything we observed, we should also have done several trials and record each of them ; In the future, I advice myself to do an easy and hard shake with a slow and fast movement of the paper. However, in this case we should have seen the validity of our data and we should have had a good conclusion.

Labs and other Homework

Guiding Questions:
How can you locate an earthquake's epicenter?

Hypothesis:
You locate an earthquake's epicenter by finding the center of three different cities to see where the crossing point is- the edge or point where they cross is the epicenter.


Analyze & Conclude:

1. Observe the three circles you have drawn. Where is the earthquake's epicenter?
The earthquake's epicenter is somewhere between Mississippi and Alabama.

2. Which city on the map is closest to the earthquake's epicenter? How far, in kilometers, is this city from the epicenter?
The city closest to the earthquake's epicenter is Mobile which is in Alabama. It is approximately 100 km.

3. In which of the three cities listed in the data table would seismographs detect the earthquake first? Last?
The closest city city to the epicenter is Houston Texas, the next closest city to the epicenter is Chicago Illinois, and the farthest city from the epicenter is Denver Colorado.

4. About how far from San Francisco is the epicenter that you found? What would be the difference in arrival times of the P waves and S waves for a recording station in San Francisco?
San Francisco is about 3,000 km away from the epicenter. The difference of arrival times of the P waves and S waves for recording station is 4 minutes and 40 seconds.

5. What happens to the difference in arrival times between P waves and S waves as the distance from the earthquake increases?
The difference in arrival times between P waves and S waves increases as the distance from the earthquake increases.

6. When you are trying to locate an epicenter, why is it necessary to know the distance from the epicenter for at least 3 recording stations?
It is necessary to know the distance from the epicenter for at least 3 recording stations because we need to find the crossing points of all three. If you have two circles, then you will have two possible points of earthquakes.


MORE TO EXPLORE:

When I looked at figure 18 (earthquake risks in the U.S) I wasn't quite sure what my earthquake risk is, but in my opinion, the point is not about the highest risk, I assume this is the white gray color. When I looked at the map of earth's Lithospheric plates, I could assume that the cause of the earthquake in this area is in compression of the North and South American plates.

Research the city where you come from to see if there are any Earthquakes which have occurred in your area and if so when and how often? What magnitude are they?
The last recent earthquake that happened in Serbia was in Kraljevo in November the 3rd. It happened about 2 hours after midnight and it was 5.4 degrees by the Richter magnitude scale. The epicenter was 10 kilometers North from Kraljevo in a village called Vitanovac, unfortunately 2 people died during the earthquake. The strongest earthquakes in Serbia was not with the epicenter in Belgrade, but they were located mostly in central Serbia and their average magnitude (the strongest one) is approximately 5.7 degrees of the Richter magnitude scale. The first one was detected in 1893 with the epicenter in Sviljanac which was 5.7 degrees.

Wave Simulator Reflection

Today in science class I watched an amazing video about how waves move when drips fall on water. I found out some really interesting things, it was like I did a real experiment!
If we keep our amplitude constant, and change the frequency, then our wavelength will change too: If the frequency increases, our wavelength will decrease, opposite: Smaller frequency will give us a bigger wavelength. We can observe our wavelength on the graph below the picture – in the axe position. On the other hand, if the frequency is constant and we changed the amplitude, then the wavelength will stay the SAME! However,the position of the crest and trough will just get bigger and bigger.
What I also found interesting was if you put a barrier in the middle of the water space, the waves get slower after they reach the barrier, and even slower when there are two barriers, or slits as it is written in this video.