Have you ever wanted to hear that conversation taking place across the room? Ever wanted to know what those two people were whispering about. It’s time to build some serious spy gear to help you out!
Today we’re building parabolic microphones. These are microphones that collect sound waves and amplify them to a specific spot.
You can even have an entire building be one, but we’re more interested in the type we can build in 45 minutes.
Come join us as we give ourselves superhearing!
Dr. Erica and Evan
Links: Livestream @ 1130
Thursday: Eavesdropping with Ease – Build a Parabolic Microphone (Physics/Engineering)
Activity: Build a parabolic microphone.
Listen to distant conversations undetected with this clever sound amplifier.
Supplies:
- Bowl/dish/pan (the more curved it is the better, flat bottoms are less desire-able)
- Popsicle sticks or thin cardboard
- Tape
- Binder clips (2)
- Cheap microphone (you can find $6 ones on Amazon, or you can try with the mics on your parents headphones)
- Access to a phone/mp3 for audio recording