A piano wire has a tension of 650 N and a mass per unit length of 0.060 g/cm. What is the speed of waves on this wire? A) 1.0  10² m/s B) 3.3  10² m/s C) 1.0  10³ m/s D) 33 m/s E) 52 m/s

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The speed of waves on a wire is given by the equation v = sqrt(T/μ), where T is the tension and μ is the linear mass density (mass per unit length) of the wire. 
Plugging in the given values, we get:
v = sqrt(650 N / (0.060 g/cm * 100 cm/m)) 
v = sqrt(108333.33 m^2/s^2 / 0.006 kg/m) 
v = sqrt(1805555.56 m^2/s^2) 
v = 1341.64 m/s 
However, the answer choices are not in this format, so we need to convert to scientific notation:
v = 1.34 x 10^3 m/s 
Now, we need to choose the closest answer choice to this value, which is B) 3.3 x 10^2 m/s.

A Piano Wire Has a Tension of 650 N and a Mass