- #1
Thundagere
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So, I was reading a book on Nikola Tesla the other day, and it said that he said that he could theoretically split the Earth in two with resonance.
If I had a variable frequency oscillator, and I knew the natural frequency of an object, obviously I could create a standing wave. But, could I, as Tesla states, actually destroy it? Just clamp on the generator, and come back later to find it destroyde?
Secondly, what determines the amplitude of a standing wave set up by natural frequency. When you have a metal piece or a length of string it's the length that determines the wavelength, but what determines the amplitude?
Thanks for any help!
EDIT: Something else that's been bugging me...the Tacoma Narrows Bridge. The book said it was destroyed by winds hitting the natural frequency, which I presumed set up a standing wave. However, this seems...off, to me.. How could the winds hit and more importantly HOLD that frequency? Was it mere lack of structural integrity that destroyed this bridge,or was it the standing wave?
If I had a variable frequency oscillator, and I knew the natural frequency of an object, obviously I could create a standing wave. But, could I, as Tesla states, actually destroy it? Just clamp on the generator, and come back later to find it destroyde?
Secondly, what determines the amplitude of a standing wave set up by natural frequency. When you have a metal piece or a length of string it's the length that determines the wavelength, but what determines the amplitude?
Thanks for any help!
EDIT: Something else that's been bugging me...the Tacoma Narrows Bridge. The book said it was destroyed by winds hitting the natural frequency, which I presumed set up a standing wave. However, this seems...off, to me.. How could the winds hit and more importantly HOLD that frequency? Was it mere lack of structural integrity that destroyed this bridge,or was it the standing wave?