Can Humming in a Bathroom Stall Cause Resonance?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the phenomenon of resonance experienced in enclosed spaces, specifically in bathroom stalls and other similar environments. Participants share personal anecdotes and observations related to sound frequencies and their effects in various settings, including bathrooms and hallways.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Technical explanation
  • Conceptual clarification
  • Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • One participant describes experiencing resonance in a bathroom stall while humming, noting that certain frequencies caused the stall to vibrate significantly.
  • Another participant introduces the concept of room modes, suggesting that these are common in rectangular rooms with smooth surfaces and offers to provide equations or resources related to this phenomenon.
  • A participant recalls a similar experience in a hallway, where clapping produced multiple pitches, and humming a selected pitch caused the hallway to resonate back.
  • Reference is made to Tesla's claims about creating an earthquake machine that operated at resonant frequencies, which led to significant disturbances in his environment.
  • One participant shares an experience inspecting large stainless steel containers, noting that a specific hum could produce a loud sound with minimal effort.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants share similar experiences and observations regarding resonance, but there is no consensus on the specifics of the phenomenon or its implications. Multiple viewpoints and anecdotes are presented without resolution.

Contextual Notes

Some discussions reference personal experiences with resonance in different environments, but the underlying physics and specific conditions leading to these effects remain unexplored and unresolved.

Who May Find This Useful

Individuals interested in acoustics, sound engineering, or those curious about the effects of resonance in everyday environments may find this discussion relevant.

sammyb787
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The other day, I was in a bathroom stall doing my business, and I randomly started humming some song (can't remember exactly what it was). Well it just so happened that I hit the resonant frequency of that stall. Talk about a surprise! I could make a very quite sound with my mouth closed, and if I hit just the right frequency the stall practically started throbbing. Just the very quite vibration of my throat would make the stall utter a loud hum. I was just wondering if anyone else has ever noticed this. I have plans for future tests. I'm going to build some kind of audio generator that I can adjust the frequency of until I hit resonance, and see if I can knock the stall down. :smile: Anyway the next time you get a chance try this. I'm sure you and the person in the next stall will get a kick out of it.
 
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these are called room modes and they are most prevalent in rectangular shaped rooms with smooth and hard surfaces. you can predict what frequencies are the room modes. when i get back to this, i'll post the equations or point to a website with it. try Googling "room mode" or "room modes".
 
sammyb787 said:
Anyway the next time you get a chance try this. I'm sure you and the person in the next stall will get a kick out of it.
Just don't make any hand signals under the divider or tap him on the foot. :smile:
 
Tesla claimed to have created an earthquake machine that vibrated at a rooms resonant frequency. He claimed to have destroyed his lab and caused results from the fire department.

Incidentally, all of his neighbors believed it was an earthquake.

Please tell me how ur attempt at knocking down the stall goes :smile:.
 
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I once noticed the same thing about a hallway in the huose ni which I grew up. If I clapped my hands, it sent back several diffeernt pitches. If I listened carefully to those pitches, selected one, and hummed it, the hallway would hum back with just that one pitch. At other notes, the place sounded completely dead.

Bedframes are good for this, also.
 
turbo-1 said:
Just don't make any hand signals under the divider or tap him on the foot. :smile:
The distinguished Gentleman has just entered the chamber.
 
A while back when I used to inspect large 20,000L stainless steel chemical storage/hauling containers. I would go in and do an internal inpection and while I was at it, if I hit just the right hum in my throat it would be deafening with very little use of my vocal cords at all.

Jim
 

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