Chapter 26, Problem 25A

When watching at a baseball game, we often hear the bat hitting the ball after we actually see the hit. Why?

To determine

To determine why do we hear the bat hitting the ball after we actually see the hit when we watch the baseball game.

Answer to Problem 25A

We hear the bat hitting the ball after we actually see the hit,as light travels faster than sound.

Introduction:

Light is a transverse wave, which has a speed nearly 3×10⁸ m/sound is a longitudinal wave with velocity 340 m/s in air at room temperature .

Explanation:

Since the speed of light is much more than that of sound, the light from an incident reaches us before the sound comes. Therefore, we see the incident before we hear sound of it. This is why we hear the ball hitting after we actually see the hit.

Conclusion:

Since light travels faster than sound, we hear the ball hitting after we actually see the hit.

Explanation of Solution

Introduction:

Light is a transverse wave, which has a speed nearly 3×10⁸ m/sound is a longitudinal wave with velocity 340 m/s in air at room temperature .

Since the speed of light is much more than that of sound, the light from an incident reaches us before the sound comes. Therefore, we see the incident before we hear sound of it. This is why we hear the ball hitting after we actually see the hit.

Conclusion:

Since light travels faster than sound, we hear the ball hitting after we actually see the hit.