The Microphone By Isabella B

Introduction Why I chose to research the Microphone. – I like singing and music – We use them nearly all of the day without knowing it – I wanted to find out more about them

History/Background One of the earliest examples of the Microphone was called the lovers telephone which was invented by a English scientist called Robert Hooke in 1665.It is made of stretched wire and a cup attached to each end. You may have made one yourself. Edward Hughes, another Englishman, created the word Microphone in the 1870’s.He showed his invention to the royal society by magnifying the sound of insects scratching through a sound box. In 1877 a American called Thomas Edison claimed that he invented the microphone and in other words patented it.

How it works The Microphone is what’s called a input device it work’s a bit like a speaker in reverse. A speaker turns a electric signal into sound by pushing air from the cone. A Microphone turns sound hitting the cone (the diaphragm) into an electric signal. This electric signal is what we can record, transmit or make louder.

How we use it We use Microphones for several reasons. – To hear each other when you are talking on the phone. – To watch T.V. – To record music – To make announcements – To keep in contact

I have learnt… Doing my research of the microphone I have realised that – That the microphone has been with us for well over a century. – How sound travels as vibrations in the air. – Microphones work like speakers in reverse. – That they are everywhere and they play a important part in everyday life. – But they are also fun to sing into!