waves

Question 1

what is the purpose of waves?

Answer 1

to transfer energy from one place to another(don’t transfer any matter)

Question 2

define distance (in terms of waves)

Answer 2

how far a wave has travelled from the starting point

Question 3

define displacement (in terms of waves)

Answer 3

how far from the equilibrium point the wave has oscillated (gone up and down)

Question 4

define time period (in terms of waves)

Answer 4

time it takes for one complete oscillation

Question 5

what is frequency?

Answer 5

the number of complete oscillations per second

Question 6

how do transverse waves travel?

Answer 6

transverse waves transfer energy/vibrate perpendicular to the direction of energy transfer

Question 7

all electromagnetic waves are….

Answer 7

transverse

Question 8

give two examples of longitudinal waves?

Answer 8

-sound
-sometimes shockwaves

Question 8

how do longitudinal waves travel?

Answer 8

longitudinal waves vibrate/transfer energy parallel to the direction of the energy transfer

Question 9

describe two differences between longitudinal waves and transverse waves

Answer 9

1.transverse waves vibrate/transfer energy perpendicular to the direction of energy transfer whereas longitudinal waves vibrate/transfer energy parallel to the direction of energy transfer
2.transverse waves have peaks and troughs whereas longitudinal waves have rarefactions and compressions

Question 10

what are soundwaves?

Answer 10

sound waves are vibrations that pass through the molecules of a medium

Question 11

explain why sound can’t travel through a vacuum?

Answer 11

because sound waves need particles to be transmitted across,and in a vacuum there are no particles for the soundwaves to vibrate through.

Question 12

as sound waves pass through different mediums does their frequency change?

Answer 12

no

Question 13

true or false?
wavelength gets longer as sound speeds up

Answer 13

true-this also means wavelength gets shorter as sound slows down

Question 14

true or false?
sound can be refracted,absorbed and reflected

Answer 14

true

Question 15

what surfaces reflect sound the most?

Answer 15

hard flat surfaces-this is what creates echoes

Question 16

what 2 equations can be used to calculate the speed of sound?

Answer 16

speed=distance x time
wave speed=frequency x wavelength

Question 17

give stages 1-2 for how human hearing works?

Answer 17

1.the human ear detects sound
2.soundwaves enter the ear canal and cause the eardrum to vibrate

Question 18

give stages 3-4 for how human hearing works?

Answer 18

3.three small bones (the ossicles) transmit these vibrations to the cochlea
4.this produces electrical signals which pass through the auditory nerve to the brain where they are interpreted as sound

Question 19

higher frequencies are interpreted as…

Answer 19

higher pitches

Question 20

more intense signals are interpreted as..

Answer 20

being louder

Question 21

what is the range of human hearing frequencies?

Answer 21

humans can hear from 20hz to 20,000 hz

Question 22

why does the range of our hearing decrease as we get older?

Answer 22

this is mostly due to wear and tear of the cochlea and auditory nerve meaning they pick up fewer vibrations/electrical signals

Question 23

give the method for finding the wavelength of waves in a solid? (3 steps)

Answer 23

1.set the frequency so you get a standing wave
2.using a meter ruler measure the total length of the wave from the wooden bridge to the vibration generator
3.to calculate the wavelength divide the total length by the number of half wavelengths and then multiply this by two

Question 24

give the method for finding the wave speed of waves in a solid? (3 steps)

Answer 24

1.to calculate wave speed we need to use the wavelength results and the formula v=f x wavelength 2.read the frequency from the signal generator 3.input the frequency and the wavelength into the calculation,this will give you the wave speed

Question 25

what apparatus do you use for the waves in water r.p?

Answer 25

a ripple tank a ruler powerbank mobile phone

Question 26

give the method for finding the wavelength of waves in water? (5 steps)

Answer 26

1.place a ruler on the paper or on the bottom of the ripple tank 2.record a video using a mobile phone of the waves moving 3.freeze the video of the waves to get an image 4.measure the distance between one wave and 10 waves further 5.to find one wavelength now divide the distance by 10

Question 27

give the method for finding the frequency of waves in water? (3 steps)

Answer 27

1.to find the frequency we need to time the number of waves passing a certain point in 10 seconds 2.divide the number of waves by 10 to find out how many waves pass in one second 3.this will give you the frequency of the waves

Question 28

give the method for finding the wave speed of waves in water?

Answer 28

use the wave equation wave speed=frequency x wavelength to determine the speed with your previous results