Experiments recently carried out by researchers at Grenoble University in France have found that when trees are thirsty and lacking water they actually make a sound which is not detectable to the human ear. According to the expieriments, trees make “ultrasonic pops” which emit a sound that is 100 times faster than the human ear can detect.
The researchers discovered this phenomena using pieces of dead pine trees soaked in a hydrogel, this structure was built to simulate a living tree. The researchers then placed the simulated trees in a dry environment and listened for sound that was being created when the drying wood released air bubbles.
One of the lead researchers on the team, Philippe Marmottant, told the Huffington Post that the simulation allows them to see things take place on a more rapid scale than a living tree would.
“We can track the articulation of bubbles, and what we found is the majority of sounds that we hear are linked to bubbles. I say majority, because there may be other causes like cracks in the wood, or insects. But the majority of sounds that occur during cavitations (tiny air bubbles that pop out in the water) are due to these bubbles,” Marmottant said.
Now that scientists are aware that this process occurs, they are attempting to design a device that can measure these sound waves and transform them into a pattern that is detectable by the human ear.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MNyiwgSHGxA]
John Vibes writes for True Activist and is an author, researcher and investigative journalist who takes a special interest in the counter culture and the drug war.
