8140-ABED_1: Unit D Section 1 Introduction

Section 1: Simple and complex machines make human tasks easier.

**Figure D.S.1.1** – Piano hammers are levers that hit piano strings.

**Figure D.S.1.2** – A hurdy gurdy is a musical instrument with a hand-turned wheel.

**Figure D.S.1.3** – A drummer uses levers to keep the beat.

Musical Machines

Machines help humans do useful work, but they also help humans do fun and artistic activities.

Musical instruments are machines. Some musical instruments are simple machines. For example, a drumstick, combined with the human hand, is a lever that helps strike a drum with greater speed.. Other musical instruments, such as pianos, are complex machines. A piano key is a lever that extends inside the piano. When a pianist presses a piano key down, the other end of the piano key lever moves up. This motion causes a series of parts in the piano to move and make a hammer hit a string.

Musical instruments change over time. You might not recognize musical instruments from the past, like the medieval hurdy gurdy. Many modern musical instruments convert force from a musician’s hands into electric signals that produce sound. What musical machines will humans invent in the future?

Check out the word cloud below. It pictures the important words that you are going to learn in this section. Watch for these words, and combinations of these words, as you read. When you see them highlighted, you can click on them to learn more about what the word means. You can also visit the course glossary and read definitions for all of these words.