natural slap echo OT OT OT....

[CCartCat at aol.com]

In a message dated 12/18/99 1:08:07 PM, ijfritz at earthlink.net writes:

<<Sure -- it depends on the details of the geometry. Suppose you snap your

finger right next to your ear. The direct sound will be stronger than the

echo. But if you hold your hand straight out in front of you I think the

echo could be stronger... depending on how big the dome is, how well it

reflects and refocuses, etc.


  Ian>>

Not to bludgeon this poor OT horse, but:

Someone mentioned lasers.  

Another light analogy is the focusing power of a simple magnifying glass.  
Focusing the light on a small point, you're not breaking physical law by 
creating energy from nothing, but merely bringing the existing light of a 
larger area (the magnifying lens) to bear upon a much smaller area (the focus 
point).  

The echo can be louder than what was heard of the original sound because more 
of the outgoing sound energy is being returned to the ears from a large, 
focused reflecting area.  One may hear 10% of the energy of a sound one 
utters when one initially speaks and then have 12% reflected back (just a 
rough example--your % may vary).

Only personal example of real world echo is nothing too expansive, a domed 
grotto in a garden.  Trippy focused slapback echo.

A once and future lurker,
Kevin