
The sounds made when a bamboo chopstick is broken follow the three main power laws that describe earthquakes, yet scientists also show that they can explain this power law behavior using geometry
Whereas a dry twig can be broken with a single snap, breaking a bamboo chopstick produces more than 400 crackling sounds. In a new study, researchers have found similarities between the complex acoustic emission of breaking a bamboo chopstick and the three famous power laws that describe earthquake activity. The scientists also propose that the underlying mechanism behind these laws may be simpler than currently thought.
The researchers, Sun-Ting Tsai et al., from National Tsing Hua University, have published their paper on the sounds of breaking a single bamboo chopstick in a recent issue of Physical Review Letters.
Bamboo and earthquakes Continue reading Earthquake power laws emerge in bamboo chopsticks