ASPECt
Energy: Forms, Transformation, Transfer, and Conservation
Item RG027004: Even though a person’s ear won’t feel any different while listening to music, sound does transfer a small amount of energy to the person’s ear, which makes parts of the ear vibrate.
Two students are participating in a class discussion during their music lesson. One student says that when a person listens to music, the person is gaining energy because the sound transfers energy to the person’s ear. The other student does not agree because a person’s ear does not feel any different while listening to music. Will the person gain energy because the sound transfers energy to their ear?
- No, the person will not gain energy while listening to music because sound does not transfer energy.
- Yes, the person will gain energy while listening to music, but that energy does not come from the sound.
- Yes, even though the person’s ear won’t feel any different while listening to music, sound does transfer a small amount of energy to the person’s ear, which makes parts of the ear vibrate.
- Whether or not energy is transferred to the person’s ear depends on how loud the music is. Only loud sounds can transfer energy by sound.
- Distribution of Responses
- Scale Score for Item Difficulty
(200[Easy]-800[Difficult]) - 485
- Students Responding Correctly
| Group | Correct | Total | Percent |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 943 | 1943 | 49% |
| Grades | |||
| 4–5 | 166 | 401 | 41% |
| 6–8 | 374 | 794 | 47% |
| 9–12 | 403 | 748 | 54% |
| Gender | |||
| Male | 476 | 973 | 49% |
| Female | 450 | 935 | 48% |
| Primary Language | |||
| English | 836 | 1689 | 49% |
| Other | 84 | 204 | 41% |