Bugging
Insects
-
Materials:
- Paper
or Styrofoam Cup
- Waxed
Paper
- Elastic
Band
Directions:
- 1)
Use the cup to capture an insect. Everybody
should try capturing a different insect so they can be shared around.
- 2)
Stretch a piece of waxed paper over the top of the cup and secure it with
the elastic band. The waxed paper
should be pulled tight across the cup.
-
3)
Hold
the cup next to your ear and listen to the beat of the insect’s wings.
Can you hum along to the beat?
Make sure you get a chance to listen to everyone’s insects!
- 4)
Do the different insects sound different?
In what ways do they sound different?
- 5)
Once all the insects have been listened to, please release them back to
the wild!
Explanation:
The
“insect amplifier” you just built increases the volume of the sound of an
insect’s wings beating. The
beating wings cause the air in the amplifier chamber to vibrate; in turn, the
air moves the waxed paper covering the cup.
An insect that works especially well in the chamber is the mosquito!
Did you
know…
- A
mosquito’s wings flap about 300 times/second.
- A
honeybee’s wings flap about 250 times/second.
- A
housefly’s wings flap about 190 times/second.
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