LIGHT PROJECTS!
For this project, you will be writing a 2-3 page paper on one of the following topics. Mrs. Biernat will
distribute the rubric for the paper in class. This project will be due on October 4th
How Lasers Work
Project Goal: Imagine finding a journal that Theodore Maiman might have kept as he worked on the
construction of the first laser. Describe what Maiman wrote in his journal, including a description of
the science behind laser technology and how light from a laser is different from light produced by a
flashlight. Include a labeled cross section of a laser and a diagram showing the different states in an
excited atom. Then, update Maiman’s journal adding at least five applications of laser technology
today.
Questions to Consider:
•What are the three components of a laser?
•What are the three properties of laser light?
•Where does the energy to initiate a laser come from?
•What are photons and how are they produced in a laser?
•How are lasers classified?
•What is the relationship between lasers and fiber optics?
•What are some applications of laser technology today? In the future?
How Animals Use Sound
Project Goal: Many animals of all types (e.g., mammals, birds, insects, and fish) are uniquely adapted to
life in their environments. These adaptations include the ability to use sound waves to communicate
over long distances, to locate food, and to navigate safely. Identify at least three animals that depend on
sound to survive and describe how each uses its auditory sense in its habitat.
Questions to Consider:
•Which animals respond to ultrasonic sounds?
•Which animals respond to infrasonic sounds?
•What are the different ranges measured in hertz that different animals can hear?
•How are the ears of these animals adapted to hearing?
•What is a click train?
•What are scientists doing to better understand how animals that depend on their auditory
senses navigate in their environments?
The Human Ear
Project Goal: Draw a cross-section of the human ear and label each of its three parts. Then, briefly
describe how the ear receives and transmits sound. Also describe how hearing aids can work.
Questions to Consider:
•What are the three factors required to hear?
•What are the three parts of the human ear and what is the function of each part?
•What are the bones in the middle ear called?
Musical Instruments
Project Goal: Identify the four major categories of musical instruments and any sub-categories within
them. Describe how the instruments in each classification create sound and give the names of three (or
more) instruments in each category. Then, choose a favorite musical instrument for the group, describe
its construction, how it is played, and how it makes sound.
Questions to Consider:
•What is a musical scale?
•Why does the same note sound different when played on different instruments?
•Which instruments have a fixed pitch? A variable pitch?
•What is the difference between consonance and dissonance?
•What factors make music pleasant to listen to?
•What is the range in hertz that the human ear can hear?