Deck 19: Vibrations and Waves

Question 1

The frequency of a simple pendulum does NOT depend on

A)its mass.
B)its length.
C)the acceleration due to gravity.
D)all of the above
E)none of the above

Answer 1

its mass.

Question 2

The amplitude of a wave is 1 meter. The crest-to-trough distance of the wave is

A)0.5 m.
B)1 m.
C)2 m.
D)none of the above

Answer 2

2 m.

Question 3

A wiggle in both space and time is a

A)vibration.
B)wave.
C)both of these
D)neither of these

Answer 3

wave.

Question 4

A pendulum clock at high altitudes runs

A)fast.
B)slow.
C)normally as it does at sea level.

Question 5

An object that completes 20 vibrations in 10 seconds has a frequency of

A)0.5 hertz.
B)1 hertz.
C)2 hertz.
D)200 hertz.

Question 6

A 60-vibration-per-second wave travels 30 meters in 1 second. Its frequency is

A)30 hertz and it travels at 60 m/s.
B)60 hertz and it travels at 30 m/s.
C)1800 hertz and it travels at 2 m/s.
D)none of the above

Question 7

When an elevator is accelerating upward, the frequency of a pendulum inside

A)increases.
B)decreases.
C)doesn't change.

Question 8

A fishing-boat captain returns to port saying, "It's rough out there with waves that are 4 meters high." He is probably talking of waves of amplitude

A)1 m.
B)2 m.
C)3 m.
D)4 m.

Question 9

A weight suspended from a spring bobs up and down over a distance of 1 meter in two seconds. Its frequency is

A)0.5 hertz.
B)1 hertz.
C)2 hertz.
D)none of the above

Question 10

The source of all waves is

A)something that vibrates.
B)energy.
C)a force of some kind.
D)all of the above
E)none of the above

Question 11

The pendulum with the greatest frequency is one with the

A)shortest length.
B)longest length.
C)neither of these

Question 12

If you double the frequency of a vibrating object, its period

A)doubles.
B)halves.
C)is quartered.

Question 13

If a child swinging to and fro on a playground swing stands up, her time for a to-and-fro swing is

A)longer.
B)shorter.
C)unchanged.

Question 14

The stride of a horse would be quicker if more mass in its legs were concentrated

A)in the upper part, nearer the horse's body.
B)towards its feet.
C)halfway up its legs.
D)uniformly all along its legs.
E)none of the above

Question 15

An object that completes 100 vibrations in 5 seconds has a period of

A)0.5 second.
B)1 second.
C)2 seconds.
D)none of the above

Question 16

A wiggle in time is a

A)vibration.
B)wave.
C)both of these
D)neither of these

Question 17

The frequency of a certain wave is 10 hertz and its period is

A)0.1 second.
B)10 seconds.
C)100 seconds.
D)none of the above

Question 18

An object that completes 10 vibrations in 20 seconds has a frequency of

A)0.5 hertz.
B)2 hertz.
C)200 hertz.

Question 19

Which of these is affected by mass?

A)a freely-falling object
B)an object sliding down a friction-free plane
C)a pendulum
D)all of the above
E)none of the above

Question 20

Both a transverse wave and a longitudinal wave have

A)amplitude.
B)frequency.
C)wavelength.
D)speed.
E)all of the above

Question 21

Which equation is correct for wave speed?

A)wave speed = frequency x wavelength
B)wave speed = (1/period)x wavelength
C)both of these
D)neither of these

Question 22

The distance traveled by a wave during a single period is

A)one-half wavelength.
B)one wavelength.
C)two wavelengths.
D)none of the above

Question 23

The vibrations of a longitudinal wave move

A)along the direction of wave travel.
B)at right angles to the direction of wave travel.
C)that changes with speed.

Question 24

A wave oscillates up and down two complete cycles each second. If the wave travels an average distance of 6 meters in one second, its wavelength is

A)0.5 m.
B)1 m.
C)2 m.
D)3 m.
E)6 m.

Question 25

The period of the second hand on a clock is

A)1 second.
B)1/60 second.
C)60 seconds.
D)3600 seconds.
E)12 hours.

Question 26

A water wave passes by a floating leaf that is made to oscillate up and down two complete cycles each second, which means that the wave's frequency is

A)0.5 Hz.
B)1 Hz.
C)2 Hz.
D)3 Hz.
E)6 Hz.

Question 27

A floating leaf oscillates up and down two complete cycles in one second as a 10-meter long water wave passes by. What is the wave's speed?

A)2 m/s
B)10 m/s
C)20 m/s
D)40 m/s
E)more than 40 m/s

Question 28

All waves have in common a

A)pattern.
B)vibrating source.
C)variable regions of high and low pressure.
D)none of the above

Question 29

Radio waves travel at the speed of light, 300,000 km/s. The wavelength of a radio wave received at 100 megahertz is

A)0.3 m.
B)3.0 m.
C)30 m.
D)300 m.
E)none of the above

Question 30

A wave travels an average distance of one meter in one second with a frequency of 1 hertz. Its amplitude is

A)less than 1 meter.
B)1 meter.
C)more than 1 meter.
D)need more information

Question 31

The vibrations of a transverse wave move

A)along the direction of wave travel.
B)at right angles to the direction of wave travel.
C)that changes with speed.

Question 32

Repeatedly dipping your fingers into water produces waves. Increasing the frequency of dipping produces waves that are

A)shorter.
B)longer.
C)the same.

Question 33

Which of these is a transverse wave?

A)a Slinky shaken to and fro.
B)a radio wave
C)a sound wave
D)all of the above
E)none of the above

Question 34

A 101-MHz radio wave has vibrations per second of

A)less than 101,000,000.
B)101,000,000.
C)more than 101,000,000.

Question 35

The frequency of the second hand on a clock is

A)1 hertz.
B)1/60 hertz.
C)60 hertz.

Question 36

Water waves pass by a piece of cork floating on the water that bobs up and down one complete cycle each second. The waves are 2 meters long. What is the speed of the wave?

A)0.25 m/s
B)0.50 m/s
C)1.0 m/s
D)2 m/s
E)4 m/s

Question 37

Which of these is a longitudinal wave?

A)sound
B)light
C)radio
D)all of the above
E)none of the above

Question 38

What is the wave speed of a wave traveling an average distance of 6 meters in one second?

A)less than 0.2 m/s
B)1 m/s
C)3 m/s
D)6 m/s
E)more than 6 m/s

Question 39

Some of a wave's energy dissipates as heat. In time, this will reduce the wave's

A)speed.
B)wavelength.
C)amplitude.
D)frequency.
E)period.

Question 40

The compressions and rarefactions in a longitudinal wave travel in

A)the same direction.
B)opposite directions.
C)a vacuum.

Question 41

A node is a position of

A)minimum amplitude.
B)maximum amplitude.
C)half amplitude.

Question 42

Wave interference occurs for

A)sound waves.
B)light waves.
C)water waves.
D)all of the above
E)none of the above

Question 43

If you quickly run away from the orchestra at a concert, the frequency of the sound you hear will be

A)decreased.
B)increased.
C)neither of these.

Question 44

The Doppler effect is characteristic of

A)water waves.
B)sound waves.
C)light waves.
D)all of the above
E)none of the above

Question 45

The number of nodes, including the end points, in a standing wave that is three wavelengths long is

A)4.
B)5.
C)6.
D)7.
E)none of the above

Question 46

If you quickly run toward the orchestra at a concert, the frequency of the sound you hear will be

A)decreased.
B)increased.
C)neither of these

Question 47

An aircraft that flies faster than the speed of sound is said to be

A)subsonic.
B)supersonic.
C)impossible.
D)none of the above

Question 48

A sonic boom is produced by an airplane flying at a speed

A)just below the speed of sound.
B)equal to the speed of sound.
C)greater than the speed of sound.
D)all of the above
E)none of the above

Question 49

A standing wave is likely produced when

A)two waves overlap.
B)a wave reflects upon itself.
C)the speed of the wave is zero or near zero.
D)the amplitude of a wave exceeds its wavelength.

Question 50

A bow wave is produced when a speed boat moves

A)nearly as fast as the waves it produces.
B)as fast as the waves it produces.
C)faster than the waves it produces.
D)none of the above

Question 51

To say that one wave is out of phase with another is to say that the waves are

A)of different amplitudes.
B)of different frequencies.
C)of different wavelengths.
D)out of step.
E)all of the above

Question 52

A skipper on a boat sees wave crests passing the anchor chain every 5 seconds and estimates the distance between crests is 15 m. What is the speed of the water waves?

A)3 m/s
B)5 m/s
C)15 m/s
D)need more information

Question 53

A red shift for light indicates that the light source is moving

A)toward you.
B)away from you.
C)both of these
D)neither of these

Question 54

A shock wave is

A)the opposite of a bow wave.
B)usually composed of a pair of closely spaced cones.
C)weak for aircraft that fly at less than the speed of sound.
D)all of the above
E)none of the above

Question 55

A blue shift for light indicates that the light source is moving

A)toward you.
B)away from you.
C)both of these
D)neither of these

Question 56

The number of nodes, including the end points, in a standing wave that is two wavelengths long is

A)1.
B)2.
C)3.
D)4.
E)none of the above

Question 57

A Doppler effect occurs when a source of sound moves

A)towards you.
B)away from you.
C)either of these
D)neither of these

Question 58

A shock wave is produced when a wave source moves

A)nearly as fast as the waves it produces.
B)as fast as the waves it produces.
C)faster than the waves it produces.
D)none of the above

Question 59

In the Doppler effect it is important to distinguish between

A)frequency and speed.
B)speed and velocity.
C)speed and acceleration.
D)distance and displacement.

Question 60

Interference is a property of

A)sound waves.
B)water waves.
C)light waves.
D)all of the above
E)none of the above

Question 61

The source of a sonic boom may be a

A)whip.
B)a high-speed bullet.
C)both of these
D)neither of these

Question 62

As a supersonic aircraft increases in speed, the angle of its V-shaped shock wave becomes

A)wider.
B)narrower.
C)both of these
D)neither of these

Question 63

The source of a sonic boom

A)must be a sound emitter.
B)may or may not be a sound emitter.
C)is not a sound emitter.
D)none of the above

Question 64

A less intense sonic boom at ground level can occur if the aircraft

A)is smaller.
B)flies higher.
C)is more streamlined.
D)all of the above
E)none of the above

Question 65

A jet traveling at 1500 km/h passes overhead. The sonic boom produced is heard by

A)a listener on the ground.
B)the jet pilot.
C)both of these
D)neither of these