in the guiness book of world records the quietest place on the earth was -0.98 decibals? how can that happen?
2007-07-14 14:20:02 · 4 answers · asked by i_am_not_a_french 3 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Physics
The decibel is a logarithmic scale, so a negative value is less than a threshold, and zero energy would be -infinity.
By definition 0 dB is the weakest sound perceptible by a human ear, corresponding to a 2*10^-5 Pascal pressure. Anything quieter than that would thus be negative dB.
2007-07-14 14:28:04 · answer #1 · answered by Vincent G 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
The decibal system is an exponential scale, so that it can span from positive to negative infinity.
Addendum: See wiki article on decibels, and look under "absolute and relative decibel measurements"
2007-07-14 14:23:37 · answer #2 · answered by Scythian1950 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I deal with negative decibel values all day. Logarithms can only be taken of positive values, so a negative logarithm just means the log of a number less than 1 was taken.
2007-07-14 15:01:17 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
0 decibels is defined as the threshold of hearing. So just because we can't hear something doesn't mean it isn't making a sound. So things that are so quiet we can't hear them are measured in negative decibels.
2007-07-14 14:25:20 · answer #4 · answered by Lady Geologist 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋