How might you use sound waves to smash a glass? What are other examples of resonance in everyday life?

The natural frequency of a glass can be found by tapping it or making it 'sing' (running a wet finger around the top of the glass till it sings a note. If you emit sound waves at this frequency in the direction of the glass, then it will start to vibrate. You will not often see these vibrations since they are about 500 Hz (500 times a second), however strobe lights can appear to slow down the movement. If the force of the sounds waves (i.e. the amplitude) is sufficient, then the glass will vibrate so much that it smashes. 

Have a look at a video of the Tacoma Bridge in North America - a case of bad engineering! The wind was blowing at the natural frequency of the bridge, causing it to swing at larger and larger oscillations until it broke completely. 

An easy way to picture this is someone being pushed on a swing - catching the swing at the right frequency (i.e. not too soon or too late) will result in the most successful push. 

JR
Answered by Josie R. Physics tutor

2433 Views

See similar Physics A Level tutors

Related Physics A Level answers

All answers ▸

If a 10N tension force is exerted on a steel beam (E = 200 GPa) with cross-sectional area 1cm^2, what is the stress acting on the beam? What is the change in length of the beam, if the beam is 10cm long?


A supertanker of mass 4.0 × 10^8 kg, cruising at an initial speed of 4.5 m s^(–1), takes one hour to come to rest. Assume the force slowing down the tanker is constant.


A small ball of mass 150 g is placed at a height of 20cm above the ground on an incline of 35°. It is released and allowed to roll down the slope; what will be the ball's speed when it reaches the ground? Assume friction and air resistance can be ignored.


Explain the photo-electric effect and describe how the intensity of light effects rate of electron emission.


We're here to help

contact us iconContact ustelephone icon+44 (0) 203 773 6020
Facebook logoInstagram logoLinkedIn logo

MyTutor is part of the IXL family of brands:

© 2026 by IXL Learning