• Question: why do we hear the ocean when we put a shell to our ear?

    Asked by millymolly to Peta, Natalia, Hayley, Daniel, Andrew on 17 Nov 2011.
    • Photo: Daniel Scully

      Daniel Scully answered on 17 Nov 2011:

      It’s not the ocean you can hear, just a roaring noise.

      You’ve basically put your ear very close to a small box where the only way out is into your ear. Even very small sounds that make it into that box then bounce around until they go into your ear, creating a roaring sound that’s a bit similar to the ocean.

    • Photo: Peta Foster

      Peta Foster answered on 17 Nov 2011:

      It’s great isn’t it… i love doing that, but you don’t even need a shell… you can cup you hands over your ears and hear the same thing.

      The sound you hear is actually sounds from around you vibrating in the trapped volume of your hand or the shell. 😀

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