The typical sound of George Lucas' laser blaster in the "Star Wars" series is well known. What does a laser blaster in "Star Wars" sound like, and why? Here we show a simple way to produce this sound by using low-cost lab material, like a spring or a Slinky. Building on the work of Crawford, who analyzed the sound of a Slinky…

It has often been reported in this column that smartphones are very suitable tools for exploring the physical properties of everyday phenomena. A very good example of this is an elevator ride. In addition to the acceleration processes, oscillations of the cabin are interesting. The present work responds to the second aspect.