- #1
LightRocks
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My question is regarding the nature of waves, and may be a very elementary question. Please bear with me.
I am curious as to why waves form the way that they do. If for example i were to turn on the speaker in my car, then the resulting wave that is produced is simply energy transfer through air particles. Why does the energy transfer in a wave pattern? Are the air particles actually bouncing off each other in a pattern that resembles a wave, constantly turning up and down through the medium in which they are traveling? Is there some nature of matter that causes travel through it to propogate in a wave formation? Or does the energy transfer travel in a straight line and the wave is a way of measuring its intensity at anyone point?
Thanks for any help :)
EDIT: Now that i think about it sound, light, water etc must travel through their mediums in actual wave patterns, otherwise cancellation(like in the 2 slit light experiment) wouldn't happen. Still I'm wondering why waves form the way that they do. Is a wave pattern the path of least resistance for the energy that is being transferred?
I am curious as to why waves form the way that they do. If for example i were to turn on the speaker in my car, then the resulting wave that is produced is simply energy transfer through air particles. Why does the energy transfer in a wave pattern? Are the air particles actually bouncing off each other in a pattern that resembles a wave, constantly turning up and down through the medium in which they are traveling? Is there some nature of matter that causes travel through it to propogate in a wave formation? Or does the energy transfer travel in a straight line and the wave is a way of measuring its intensity at anyone point?
Thanks for any help :)
EDIT: Now that i think about it sound, light, water etc must travel through their mediums in actual wave patterns, otherwise cancellation(like in the 2 slit light experiment) wouldn't happen. Still I'm wondering why waves form the way that they do. Is a wave pattern the path of least resistance for the energy that is being transferred?
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