PHYS 1204 - Physics of Musical Sound

(crosslisted) MUSIC 1466
(PBS-AS)

Spring. 3 credits. Student option grading.

Enrollment limited to: 60 students. Assumes no scientific background but uses high school algebra. Open to all students and suitable for non-scientists; does not serve as prerequisite for further science courses.

K. Selby.

Explores musical sound from a physics point of view. Topics include how various musical instruments work; pitch, timbre, scales, intervals, and tunings; hearing; human voice and room acoustics. This course is a Writing In The Majors Course: both science writing and physics problem-solving skills are developed through weekly assignments. Student activities include hands-on investigations of musical instruments and field trips. Students write a term paper investigating a topic of their choice. At the level of The Science of Sound by Rossing, Moore, and Wheeler.