If a tree falls....

This is actually a good question, because ‘sound’ is subjective in it’s definition.

We all know that sound is essentially vibrations, but we classify only a sub set of these frequencies to be called sound. For humans, this is typically 20hz to 20,000hz. When the tree falls, it will definitely create vibrations in this frequency range, and if a human were there, we would hear it.

But what about the frequencies outside our range? If the tree were to make a 10hz or 50,000hz vibration, we would not hear it, and would say no sound was made, but ask a dog (if you could), and he heard the sounds we didn’t. Does that mean the tree is not making a sound?

The purpose of the ‘tree falling in a forest’ is to show us that what we call a finite, recordable sense is biased toward the human interpretation.

Another analogy I heard along the same lines;

If a jar of pudding is sitting on a table, does it have taste?

Of course it does have taste, but only when a human digests it does the taste become a reality, even though it was always there, but not measurable to us.

Code420 said:

This is philosophy for the retarded. Yes it makes a sound, the act of observation has no effect on the event being observed. Sound is a vibration traveling threw a medium. If no one was there the vibration would still happen and sound would still be generated. Its like asking if no one had eyes would the sun still shine? Does the universe exist outside of my field of vision? When I turn around does my monitor turn into a flying spaghetti monster?

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that was just my opinion dont get your panties in a bunch
you act like i just quoted some fact or some shit

Educated_Black_Man said:

well tell me if there are any holes in my idea

the question is if a tree falls without anyone around to hear it does it make a sound?

Well the "sound" is an energy wave that travels from an object or person making a certain action.

So if a tree falls it will still produce the energy waves needed to produce sound but without something to receive or interpret the energy wave it will only result in a tree falling soundlessly to the ground

The funny thing being this would be practically impossible to observe yet the answer can be thought up so easily hmmmmmm......

give me some feedback

Peace




P.S. And those muthafucka's said stoners are stupid man thats some bull

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asked this for the first time 25 years ago LoL.

it both makes a sound and doesn't, at the same time. there is a theory. put a cat in a box with a can of poison on a random timer that can be activated at any moment. at any given moment, the cat can be thought of as both alive and dead at the same time. I think if tree fell in the woods, first, you wouldn't know when it happened or when to try detecting a resulting sound to prove it made any sound at all. second, I think it would first give off a wave of probability. a wave of "possible" sound would expand from the position of the tree. but not knowing when, that would give constant waves of possibility, so a sound wave "could" be detected in any position at any time.

conclusion.. in a parallel universe, there is a tree falling on your desk right now. may be seemingly infinitely improbable, but still a possibility. there for.. jump out of the way

lorenzo08 said:

it both makes a sound and doesn't, at the same time. there is a theory. put a cat in a box with a can of poison on a random timer that can be activated at any moment. at any given moment, the cat can be thought of as both alive and dead at the same time. I think if tree fell in the woods, first, you wouldn't know when it happened or when to try detecting a resulting sound to prove it made any sound at all. second, I think it would first give off a wave of probability. a wave of "possible" sound would expand from the position of the tree. but not knowing when, that would give constant waves of possibility, so a sound wave "could" be detected in any position at any time.

conclusion.. in a parallel universe, there is a tree falling on your desk right now. may be seemingly infinitely improbable, but still a possibility. there for.. jump out of the way

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good old Schrodinger's cat....... i love physics.....or quantum mechanics technically.....

the proverb teaches us that the world around you is worth nothing unless you are there to experience it.

if i smoke trees in the forest...

But if you cut a silencer, does it still smell?

Lol, I think you guys are missing the depth of that question. Here is how I translate that 'point to ponder'

Is there a universe outside (or apart) of you that you part take in or is the universe all in you and you merely project your thoughts onto a mighty mighty canvas making you the artist (or butcher) of your world. The commonalties of thought would make up for the shared portions of our own universes.

I pondered this for many years, and still am, but in the end it is rather amazing, and I live in the here and now only!

Unity

Educated_Black_Man said:

that was just my opinion dont get your panties in a bunch
you act like i just quoted some fact or some shit

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You act as if it was somehow directed at yourself personally. I was just stating my opinion on the subject to the thread as a whole not directly in opposition to you.

nickfury510 said:

it makes no sound unless something is there to catch the vibration and make it audible......

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Which would be...The ground.

there is also another theory being proven in recent years. every action has a reaction, or cause and effect, right? the theory is, results from an action actually change when they're measured, by the act of measuring, not by the tool doing the measuring. if this is true, then the tree may not make any sound at all, unless there is a ear to detect it. the act of listening changes the outcome and causes sound to be present. these thoughts come out of sober minds of scientists. also, I'm sober at work atm. crazy stuff, but I believe the answer will seem crazy because the world isn't really what it seems.

lorenzo08 said:

there is also another theory being proven in recent years. every action has a reaction, or cause and effect, right? the theory is, results from an action actually change when they're measured, by the act of measuring, not by the tool doing the measuring. if this is true, then the tree may not make any sound at all, unless there is a ear to detect it. the act of listening changes the outcome and causes sound to be present. these thoughts come out of sober minds of scientists. also, I'm sober at work atm. crazy stuff, but I believe the answer will seem crazy because the world isn't really what it seems.

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I like that, some people are willing to engage their mind and not just repeat the bull they hear !

lorenzo08 said:

there is also another theory being proven in recent years. every action has a reaction, or cause and effect, right? The theory is, results from an action actually change when they're measured, by the act of measuring, not by the tool doing the measuring. if this is true, then the tree may not make any sound at all, unless there is a ear to detect it. the act of listening changes the outcome and causes sound to be present. these thoughts come out of sober minds of scientists. also, I'm sober at work atm. crazy stuff, but I believe the answer will seem crazy because the world isn't really what it seems.

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Theres a lot of weird stuff we are discovering in our universe. The more we learn the more restricted we realize our knowledge truly is. Something I thought was strange is that you cant directly observe a atom. Its constantly blinking in and out of existence between our universe and a infinite amount of others. Or that every thing broken down to its smallest piece is made out of vibrating strings, and in the future it could be possible to change the vibration of the strings. Essentially you could take granite change the vibration, and have gold, change the vibration again and have hydrogen.

there are also theories involving time travel with those subatomic pieces. one electron from a million years in the future comes back in time to be viewed at present time as a different partial. it then goes on for what seems like infinet time, back and forth to make up everything we see. way off topic. tree in the woods.. if you hear it, can you smoke it?

If you build it, will they come???????

who said humans have to hear it op?

there is plenty of wild life around when that tree falls..and they hear sound just as much as we do.

If a tree falls down in a forest, and nobody was around was it really a tree? Or was it a kangaroo?

I bet you never pondered that one.

loveformetal1 said:

If a tree falls down in a forest, and nobody was around was it really a tree? Or was it a kangaroo?

I bet you never pondered that one.

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Nice, way out, but closer to truth then one might think

I think it all stems from the question. does anything exist if there's not a consciousness to perceive it? would the universe exist without consciousness? if it did, how would you know for sure??

lorenzo08 said:

I think it all stems from the question. does anything exist if there's not a consciousness to perceive it? would the universe exist without consciousness? if it did, how would you know for sure??

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Do we really exist or are we just a dream or idea? Could there be a entity out there that is controlling everything that happens, everything we do and everything we think (A God if you will)? I may feel like I'm writing this by my own accord and you may feel like your reading it by yours but could it just be a false sense of control? Did I have no choice but to write this? Did you have no choice but to read it? Is our destiny set in stone regardless of how we think or feel? Who knows, this could all be a complex simulation that was created as an experiment. Sometimes I think I'll just wake up and I've been in a coma for ten years. None of this is real. Your not real. I'm not real. When I die will I wake up? Maybe I'm still 14 and on a salvia trip. Maybe I'm 37 and in a psych ward, so crazy that I live within the universe of my mind. Maybe I'm stoned....definitely stoned