Sound waves are what sound travels in! They are little vibrations of air that travel through a medium or a material that it is travelling through. Sound waves are why you can hear a jackhammer or my podcast! First, an object or person has to make a sound. A sound is made by an object vibrating back and forth. When the object vibrates, the air around it starts to move. The molecules of air bump into each other. This causes a wave of air molecules. This wave continues until it reaches your ear. This is how sound waves work. Sounds travel better through materials or mediums that are very dense, such as water or iron. That means that the atoms are packed together tightly. Humans hear sounds thanks to their ears. Sound waves travel through the ear canal and hit a small piece of skin called the eardrum. It is at the end of your ear canal. When the eardrum vibrates, a few bones in your middle ear vibrate. They are the smallest bones in your body! Then, the bones transfer the vibrations to your inner ear. That is where there is a liquids, that is made out of electrolytes. When the vibrations come through, the liquids moves fine hairs on the sides of the inner ear. After that, the hair send electrical signals to your brain, which will interpret what you are hearing.
You hear things very differently underwater. Why? Check out the episode below to find out!