Name: ___________________
HONORS GEOPHYSICAL SCIENCE
Chapter 10: Waves
Objectives:
1. Recognize mass-spring systems and pendulums and simple harmonic systems.
2. Define wave.
3. Distinguish between mechanical waves and electromagnetic waves.
4. Explain the relationship between particle vibration and wave motion.
5. Distinguish between transverse waves and longitudinal waves.
6. Identify the crest, trough, amplitude and wavelength of a wave.
7. Define the terms frequency and period.
8. Solve problems involving wave speed, frequency, and wavelength.
9. Distinguish between mechanical and nonmechanical waves.
10. Describe the Doppler effect.
11. Describe how waves behave when they pass meet an obstacle, pass into
another medium, or pass through another wave.
12. Determine how electromagnetic energy varies in wavelengths and frequencies
and therefore, energies.
13. Identify the range of electromagnetic radiation, from radio to gamma, along
with its uses and characteristics.
Vocabulary:
simple harmonic motion
period
wave
frequency
medium
wave speed
mechanical wave
Doppler effect
electromagnetic wave
reflection
transverse wave
diffraction
longitudinal wave
refraction
crest
interference
trough
constructive interference
amplitude
destructive interference
wavelength
standing wave
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I: The Nature of a Wave
A. Vibrations and harmonic motion
1. defining vibration and harmonic motion
2. measuring harmonic motion
a. period
b. frequency
B. Defining a wave
C. Categories of Waves
1. based on motion
a. longitudinal
b. transverse
2. mechanical
3. non mechanical (electromagnetic)
III: Properties of a Wave
A. Parts of a Wave
1. longitudinal
a. compression
b. rarefaction
c. amplitude
d. wavelength
2. transverse
a. crest
b. trough
c. amplitude
d. wavelength
B. Wave Motion and the Wave Equation
1. speed
2. frequency
3. period
III: Behavior of Waves
A. Boundary Behavior
1. reflection
2. diffraction
3. refraction
B. Wave Interaction
1. constructive interference
2. destructive interference
C. Motion (The Doppler Effect)
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Calculations
 If the frequency of a wave is 0.125 Hz, how long does it take one wave to pass a given
point?

If a given wave is 4 meters long and has a frequency of 0.1 Hz, what is the speed of the
wave?

A particular longitudinal wave has a speed of 340 m/s. If the wavelength is 7 m, what is
the frequency?

Given a speed of 1250 m/s and a frequency of 16 waves per second, what is the
wavelength?

If light travels 3 x 108 m/s with a wavelength of 700 nm, the light is violet. What is the
frequency of violet light?

Suppose you tie one end of a rope to a door knob and shake the other end with a
frequency of 2 Hz. The wave you create has a wavelength of 3 m. What is the speed
of the waves along the rope?

Ocean wave are hitting a beach at a rate of 2.0 Hz. The distance between wave
crests is 12m. Calculate the speed of the wave.

All electromagnetic waves have the same speed in empty space (3.0 x 108 m/s).
Calculate the wavelength give the following frequencies:
a. radio waves that travel at 660 kHz.
b. X rays at 3.0 x 1018 Hz
c. visible light at 6.0 x 1014 Hz
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
Microwaves range in wavelength from 1mm to 3 cm. Calculate their range of
frequcney. Remember, all electromagnetic radiation has a speed of
___________________.

What is the frequency of a wave if you tap your finger in a pool of water twice each
second?

If the waves from above travel away from your finger with a speed of 1 m/s, what is
their wavelength?

A musical note A above middle C has a frequency of 440 Hz. If the speed of sound is
350 m/s, what is the wavelength of this note?

A buoy bobs up and down in the ocean. The waves have a wavelength of 2.5 m, and
they pass the buoy at a speed of 4.0 m/s. What is the frequency and period of the
waves?

Waves in a lake are 6 m apart and pass a person on a raft every 2 s. What is the speed
of the wave?

A wave with a frequency of 60.0 Hz travels through vulcanized rubber with a
wavelength of 0.90 m. What is the speed of this wave?
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