Engaging in interdisciplinary learning, G12 students recently collaborated on a project aimed at debunking scientific myths. Each group was tasked with selecting a myth, planning its debunking, conducting an experiment, and presenting their findings.
Interesting and fun projects emerged, including the investigation into the age-old notion of the tongue map, the experiment challenging the belief that placing a spoon in a champagne bottle prevents it from losing effervescence, and the examination of the claim that glass shatters at high frequencies. This multifaceted exploration stands as a typical illustration of authentic learning, nurturing a sense of curiosity and an appreciation for evidence-based reasoning among students.
Shreya’s group was intrigued by a video of Jamie Vendera, a rock singer, shattering a wine glass with a 105-decibel scream. She explains: “Our group hypothesized that human voice/sound does not cause a glass to break, therefore, this is purely a myth or a widespread belief. It was predicted that regardless of changes in the variables including sound frequency, volume and/or glass thickness, the glass would not break. We tested several methods to debunk the myth through initial trials of individual screaming as well as a group. As predicted, the glass was not breaking at the frequency of each of our voices. As an alternative approach, a speaker was used and sound played at different ranges (500-850 hz) but no different outcome was achieved, further confirming that our hypothesis was a false myth.”
