Tuning my Diddley Bow

Diddley Bow,(LD),2017

This unit in Light, Sound and Time, we studied and explored what sound is. Sound are the vibrations traveling through mediums then into our ears. We dove deeper into frequency and wavelengths and how the pitch of a sound affects the wavelength and frequency. I also learned that the speed of sound is 343 meters per second and travels differently depending on the density of the object. My class visited the Chicago Hearing Society, an organization that helps people hard of hearing or deaf for one of our Field Experiences. We listened and asked questions to some of the volunteers that were deaf, I learned how to say thank you and you’re welcome in American Sign Language (ASL).

For this Action Project, we had to create a Diddley bow, something similar to a guitar. We had to create it with wooden sticks, tin cans, nails and batteries. This project was fun and interesting to do, to know more about it keep reading below.

Diddley Bow Diagram, (LD),2017,Befunky

To create the Diddley bow I had to gather, nails, strings, a tin can, a wooden stick, and a glue stick. Then I created a hole at the back of the tin can, then put the tin can down sideways on the wooden stick. To stabilize the tin can, I nailed two nails front and back, then I inserted a string through the tin can tying it from the front nail. Then I nailed a nail in the back of the tin can, pulled the strings as tight as possible around that nail and then inserted the glue stick for tension. Finally, I plucked the string and it created a guitar-like note. The Diddley bow and guitar make sound similarly, first one has to pluck a string then the vibration travels through the body then into the tin can, amplifying the sound, allowing people to hear the note. The thickness of the string is 1.3cm and length is 12cm.

Math:

Tin Can,LD,Google Drawing, 2017

Frequency and Wavelengths,( LD),Google Drawing, 2017

This diagram explains the vibration, frequencies and wavelengths of my Diddley Bow at certain points of the string. Frequency is the number of complete cycles per second, in the case it is vibrations per second, and is measured in hertz. Wavelength is the distance from one peak to the next and can be thought of as one complete wave cycle.

     Trapezoid,(LD),Google Drawing,2017       

                                                 Recording of my Diddley Bow: