Velocity of mechanical waves

AI Thread Summary
The velocity of mechanical waves in a medium is determined by the square root of the ratio of an elastic property to an inertial property. While this relationship is intuitive, there is a lack of comprehensive explanations in textbooks and online resources. Several links were shared for further reading, including descriptions of wave velocity and specific examples related to sound and water waves. These resources aim to clarify the mechanics behind wave propagation. Understanding this concept is essential for grasping the behavior of waves in various media.
toam
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Ok, so the velocity of mechanical waves through a medium is equal to the square root of some elastic property divided by some inertial property...

I did a quick search on google and a couple of textbooks and cannot find any actual explanation as to why this is. It is intuitive, yes, but surely there is a decent explanation somewhere?
 
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Not sure exactly what you want, but for a http://www.physicsclassroom.com/Class/sound/U11L1a.html" description.

If you want http://www.mcasco.com/p1mw.html" .

If you want the http://scienceworld.wolfram.com/physics/WaveVelocity.html" .

If you want to know about http://www.vims.edu/physical/research/TCTutorial/longwaves.htm" , (not tidal), this goes into some description about what the water is actually doing in waves in general, tide waves in particular.
 
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