Waves (Frequency, Period, Speed)

Which of the following is NOT an example of simple harmonic motion?

• a tree swaying back and forth in the wind

• a car driving to New York to San Francisco

• a minute hand moving around a clock once every hour

• earth going around the sun once a year

A pendulum swings through 10 complete cycles in 15 seconds. The period of the pendulum is:

• 0.15 s

• 0.67 s

• 1.5 s

• 15 s

Which statement best describes the meaning of the word frequency?

• the time it takes to complete one full cycle

• the maximum distance a system moves away from equilibrium

• how often a cycle is reapeated

• the ratio of restoring force to friction force in an oscillator

Harmonic motion occurs when systems:

• have restoring forces that tend to oppose any motion away from equilibrium

• have enough mass that they keep moving when disturbed

• have so little friction that they keep moving in the same direction once they are started

• are acted on by unbalanced forces that tend to pull away from equilibrium

A pinball machine uses a spring that is compressed 4.0 cm to launch a ball. If the spring constant is 13 N/m, what is the force on the ball at the moment the spring is released?

• 0.52 N

• 52 N

• 3.25 N

• 325 N

_____________ waves vibrations are perpendicular to the direction of the wave.

• Longitudinal

• Transverse

• Earth quake

• Sound

____________________ wave vibrations are parallel to the direction of the wave motion.

• Electromagnetic

• Light

• Longitudinal

• Transverse

The maximum displacement of a wave from equilibrium is the ______________

• wavelength

• frequency

• amplitude

• velocity

Which of the following is NOT a characteristic of mechanical waves?

• They consist of disturbances or oscillations of a medium.

• They transport energy.

• They travel in a directions which is at right angles to the direction of the particles of the medium.

• They are created by a vibrating source.

What is the speed of all Electromagnetic Waves?

• 200 m/s

• 340 m/s

• 3.0 x 10^8 m/s

• unknown