What are waves? (Part 1)

Every summer, Raelene visits her grandmother's cottage on the coast of North Carolina. She loves playing in the sand, feeding the seagulls, and spending time with her grandmother. Each night, they sit on the porch and happily listen to the ocean waves break along the beach.

Raelene knows that energy, which is the ability to do work or cause a change, helps to create the calm crash and swoosh of the ocean waves. Waves are disturbances that transfer energy from one place to another. However, waves do not just occur in ocean water. In fact, waves exist all around us.

What are waves?

• Waves are electromagnetic energy that cause disturbances in the ocean.

• Waves are disturbances that only occur in oceans and large bodies of water.

• Waves are disturbances that transfer energy from one place to another.
• Waves are solid objects that float on water.

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Waves are disturbances that move or transfer energy. For example, energy from wind can create waves very far from shore. Then, that energy is moved along through the ocean water until the waves break on the beach.

How are waves and energy related?

• 
  Energy stops waves from occurring.

• Waves transfer energy from one place to another.

• Waves create all the energy used by people on Earth.

• Energy and waves are not related.

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What is a mechanical wave?

• A wave caused by energy traveling through matter

• A wave that does not require a medium

• A wave that travels only through solids

• A wave that travels only through liquids

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Why do sound waves need a medium to travel?

• Because they are mechanical waves

• Because they are electromagnetic waves

• Because they are caused by light energy

• Because they are caused by heat energy

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Which of the following can be a medium for mechanical waves?

• Solids, liquids, and gases

• Only solids

• Only liquids

• Only gases

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What is a medium?

• A medium is a type of wave that travels through space.
• A medium is the energy source for wave propagation.
• A medium is the substance through which waves travel.

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Which of the following is a medium through which mechanical waves can travel?

• 
• 
• 

Answer explanation

Swimming pool water, air, and mountains are all types of matter. Therefore, they all represent examples of media through which a mechanical wave could travel.

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Sound travels in the form of mechanical waves. In outer-space sound cannot be heard.

Which of the following are most likely true about outer-space?

• 
• 
• 
• 

In this diagram, wind provides the ​energy, and water provides the ​ (a)   . Ocean waves are ​ (b)   waves because they transfer ​ (c)   through a medium.

• energy
• medium
• mechanical
• light
• sound
• force

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During a class break, Oriel is drumming quietly on his desk with his fingers. He lays his head on the desk to rest his eyes for a moment. As his ear meets the surface of his desk, he realizes that he can hear his drumming fingers much louder through the desktop than through the air.

Which of the following is most likely true?

• The solid medium of the desktop carries sound waves more easily than the gas medium of the air.

• Waves cannot travel through the solid medium of the desktop, but they can travel through the gas medium of the air.

• The gas medium of the air carries sound waves more easily than the solid medium of the desktop.

• The gas medium of the air and the solid medium of the desktop carry waves equally.

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