What does the loudness of a sound depend on?
AHow energetically the source vibrates
BHow far the source sits from a wall
CThe colour of the vibrating source
DThe temperature of the listener
Answer & Solution
Correct answer: A. How energetically the source vibrates
1. A leaf falling in a quiet forest is audible, while a traffic jam drowns out a voice.
2. The difference is how energetically each source is vibrating.
3. A more energetic vibration puts more energy into the wave and sounds louder.
4. The quantity used to describe this precisely is called sound intensity.
_Source: OpenStax Physics (high school, CC BY 4.0), Ch 14 "Sound", section Amplitude, Loudness and Energy of a Sound Wave_
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