Sound Comic Name: __________________________________

Directions: Read the comic and respond to the following questions and prompts (they are in order of the
comic)
1. Describe the process of the blade of the jackhammer striking the pavement creating a sound wave:
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2. What causes some things to be louder than others? _________________________________________
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3. What happens in your larynx when your voice becomes higher? ________________________________
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4. Why do things sound quieter the further away you move from a disturbance? ____________________
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5. What determines a sound’s pitch? _______________________________________________________
6. What is the range of frequencies humans can hear in? _______________________________________
7. Your dog jumps off the couch as if he heard something but you heard nothing at all. Explain why this
might have happened: _________________________________________________________________
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8. Ears might be weird looking but of course have a specific purpose. Describe the function of our outer
ear: ________________________________________________________________________________
9. What happens in the middle ear? ________________________________________________________
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10. Describe the parts and processes of how our ears turn a sound wave into a signal to the brain starting
with the outer ear,: ____________________________________________________________________
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11. How are sonic booms created? _________________________________________________________
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12. How much faster does sound travel in water than air? ______________________________________
13. Why can’t Max hear the astronaut pounding on the space station? ____________________________
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14. Describe what happens when sound hits a soft surface versus a hard surface: ____________________
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15. Do sound waves always travel in straight lines? _____ If not, describe how they might change: ______
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16. How does radar detection work? __A sound wave is sent out and… _____________________________
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17. Your friend Pog listens to their headphones REALLY loud. Pog’s mom tells him it will affect his hearing
one day but he doesn’t believe her. Explain to Pog the science behind “why” his hearing may be
compromised: ________________________________________________________________________
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18. How much faster does sound travel through steel than air? ________________________ km per hour
19. Yuk, earwax, GROSS! But how does it keep our ears clean? ___________________________________
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20. You and Pog are at the Zoo watching elephants. They’re flapping their ears, waving their trunks and
appear to be gossiping (in elephant speak) about you two knuckleheads but you don’t hear a thing.
Explain why this is possible: _____________________________________________________________
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Choose one of the options a-c to complete in the space below (or separately and attach to this sheet).
Incorporate 5 of the 7 following concepts: sound waves, frequency, pitch, speed of sound in different
mediums, absorption/reflection, functioning of the ear (outer-middle-inner)
a. An illustration
b. Write a poem or song lyrics
c. Write a movie “short” screenplay