If you’ve been on the internet at all during the last decade, you may have noticed the trend of using helium to raise the sound of one’s voice. Personally, I had noticed that the trend existed, but never really watched any helium videos until I came across this one.
This subtle April Fools video was definitely amusing, but beyond that, it raised several questions in my mind which prompted me to do some research on the subject.
How does helium (or any other gas for that matter) change the sound of your voice?
First off, we need to establish what happens when we speak normally.
Put simply, when we speak, air is pushed out of our lungs and passes in between our vocal cords, causing them to vibrate. Changes in pitch are the result of different speeds of vibration, which are measured in Hertz (Hz) or cycles per second.
However, vibration speed isn’t the only factor that contributes to pitch; the density of the space the produced sound waves pass through can also affect how high or low your voice sounds, and this is exactly how helium fits into the picture.
Helium is much, much lighter than air, with their densities being 0.1761
kg/m3 and 1.2740 kg/m3 respectively. Thus, contrary to popular belief, the change in pitch created by helium is not because your vocal cords are vibrating faster, but rather that the sound waves your vocal cords produce are able to travel much faster in a lighter gas, such as helium. This is then perceived as a change in pitch.
Wait, so if a lighter gas can make my voice higher, can a heavier gas make my voice sound deeper?
Yes, it can. There’s already another gas taking the internet by storm: sulfur hexafluoride. This gas is almost 5 times as dense as air, which slows the movement of the sound waves your vocal cords produce, and makes your voice sound lower.
So, whether you want to sing the highest falsettos, or become the next Morgan Freeman, you’ll have two gases to help you achieve your dreams.
DISCLAIMER: If you do use these gases, please inhale cautiously. Breathing in either gas continuously can deprive your lungs of oxygen and cause asphyxiation within minutes.
You’ve reached the end; thanks for reading!
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