If a Tree Falls in the Forest...
Created | Updated Oct 11, 2007
...and no one is there to hear, does it still make a sound?
I was awake all night the other night and ended up puzzling on this in order to try and get to sleep. (Its far more interesting than counting sheep, im Welsh so i see sheep all the time anyway).
Anyway, i did come up with an answer that satisfied me so i would say it could even be the right one.
It is my belief that no, the tree does not make a noise of no one is there to hear it.
My reasoning behind this is that noise, or sound, is just the way we biologically perceive the longitudinal waves as they travel through the air. so, although the energy from the tree falling is still converted to 'sound' waves, if no one is there to hear it there is technically no sound.
I could be wrong though.
...also, I think maybe trying to answer the question is rather a pretentious thing for me to do since it is probably more a thought provoking idea and not actually a question intended to be answered.
I was awake all night the other night and ended up puzzling on this in order to try and get to sleep. (Its far more interesting than counting sheep, im Welsh so i see sheep all the time anyway).
Anyway, i did come up with an answer that satisfied me so i would say it could even be the right one.
It is my belief that no, the tree does not make a noise of no one is there to hear it.
My reasoning behind this is that noise, or sound, is just the way we biologically perceive the longitudinal waves as they travel through the air. so, although the energy from the tree falling is still converted to 'sound' waves, if no one is there to hear it there is technically no sound.
I could be wrong though.
...also, I think maybe trying to answer the question is rather a pretentious thing for me to do since it is probably more a thought provoking idea and not actually a question intended to be answered.
