Inside: Dixie Cup Phone is an engaging, hands-on way to celebrate Alexander Graham Bell’s birthday (March 3rd) and National Telephone Day (March 10). It’s also great for hands-on fun with physics or as part of the Vibration & Sound Waves science unit.
Join in the celebration of Alexander Graham Bell Day and invention of the telephone by crafting a Dixie cup telephone of your own!
Our vocal cords are folds of smooth muscle tissue located in our larynx or voice box. They vibrate as air leaves our lungs during exhalation.
This vibration creates a specific pitch and tone, which we know as our voice. The strength of the vibration determines the volume of our voice. The faster the vocal cords vibrate, the higher the pitch of the sound produced. Likewise, the slower the vibration, the lower the pitch.
This activity works by using the principles of sound waves and vibration, the same same forces that bring to life our vocal cords.
How?
The sound of our voice vibrates the bottom of the cup. This vibration then travels along the string that connects two cups. As the vibrations reach the second cup, they make the bottom of that cup vibrate, transforming the vibrations back into sound waves that the person on the other end can hear.
This is why speaking into one cup at a normal volume allows the person holding the second cup to hear the words as if they were spoken directly into their ear. So cool! We love that slightly tickling sensation!
The sound waves are transferred directly through the string, with little loss of energy, unlike in air, where sound waves can scatter and lose energy.
In celebration of Alexander Graham Bell’s birthday and the invention of the telephone, this simple yet effective activity can help us understand the basic principles of sound propagation. It’s a fun and interactive way to appreciate the scientific genius of Bell, who gave us an innovative technology that revolutionized communication.
Let’s talk about the specifics.
How to Make Dixie Cup Telephone
This hands-on learning experience not only helps you appreciate the science behind telecommunication but also celebrates scientific inventions and pays homage to the great inventors.
Materials Needed:
Paper clips
Ruler (optional)
A friend
Step-by-Step Instructions:
1. Poke a hole
Poke a hole in the center of the bottom of each Dixie cup that’s large enough to fit the string through.
By the way, I always keep Dixie cups in the house. They are truly indispensable for many creative craft projects and science experiments.
2. Cut a piece of string
Cut a piece of string about 3 yards long or whatever works for your space. Don’t worry about being precise, and use a unit of length that seems the easiest for you: 3 yards = 9 feet = 108 inches.
I keep a wooden yardstick from Home Depot by my craft table, and that’s what I used. If you want to use your body to estimate the distance, keep in mind that the distance from your nose to your fingertip is about 1 yard.
It’s ideal to use a string that’s both strong and doesn’t stretch for crafting a paper cup telephone. My favorite choice is simple cotton twine. It’s durable, not stretchy, and allows for superior sound transmission. Plus, it’s easy to find! You probably have it in your kitchen drawer.
3. Pull either end of the string through the bottom of each cup.
Pick up one end of the string and push it through the bottom of one of the cups. Sometimes, getting the string through the tiny opening can be a challenge. I find that the easiest way to do this is to tie a small knot and push it through the hole with the paper clip.
Tie a paper clip to the end of the string. The paper clips will keep the string from pulling out of the cup. You can also tie a giant knot instead, but in our experience, the knot ends up flying out of an opening after a few minutes of active use.
4. Repeat with the other end of the string and the second cup.
To finish putting together our Dixie cups phone, just pull the second end of the string through the bottom of the second cup and tie a paper clip.
5. Give one of the cups to a friend.
Hold onto the other cup and start moving away from your friend. Continue until the string is fully stretched.
6. Speak Softly
Instruct your friend to position their cup over one ear. Start speaking into your cup. Can your friend hear you? This simple experiment is an engaging way to understand the transmission of sound!
How Does a Dixie Cups Phone Work?
This experiment demonstrates how a paper cup phone transmits sound vibrations along a taut string. The base of each cup acts as a combined “microphone” and “speaker,” capturing and reproducing sound vibrations.
When you speak into a cup, your voice’s sound reaches its bottom, causing it to act as a vibrating diaphragm. This vibration is transmitted into a taut string attached to the cup. The sound, in the form of a longitudinal wave, travels along this string, vibrating the bottom of the receiving cup at the other end.
The cup then transmits the sound into the surrounding air, enabling the listener to hear the speaker. This method, utilizing solid mediums – the cup and the string, enables sound to travel more effectively than through air, facilitating communication over large distances at volumes inaudible if spoken through air.
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