Station # 1
Color Wheel
Problem: What is white light made of?
Hypothesis: Predict what you will see when a color wheel is spun
very quickly.
Procedure:
1. Loop one end of the string over each index finger so that the
color wheel is between your hands.
2. “Flip” the disk until the string is tightly twisted on both sides.
3. Steadily pull your hands apart to make the disk spin rapidly.
Move your hands inward as the disk slows down and then pull
them apart again.
Observations/Results: (Use article as a reference.)
1.
2.
3.
4.
Record your observations.
List the seven colors that make up white light.
Describe how refraction allows us to see the visible spectrum.
Explain why you think you observed what you did when the
color wheel was spun.
Station # 2
Disappearing Stamp
Problem: Why does an object seem to disappear when placed
under a beaker of water?
Hypothesis: Predict what happens to light that causes the stamp to
appear to disappear.
Procedure:
1. Place a stamp on the table.
2. Fill a beaker with water and set it on top of the stamp.
3. Look at the stamp through the sides of the beaker.
Observations/Results: (Use article as a reference.)
1. Record your observations.
2. Explain how refraction caused the stamp to “disappear”.
3. Draw a diagram with labels that supports your explanation.
Label the air, the water and which medium is more or less
dense.
4. Discuss why the angle at which light passes through a medium
affects how it bends.
Station # 3
Catch a Wave
Problem: How can the frequency of a
transverse wave be increased?
Hypothesis: Predict how you can increase the frequency of a wave.
Procedure:
1. Obtain a rope or slinky and set it on the floor or table top.
2. One person should hold securely onto one end.
3. Take hold of the other end and create a transverse wave by
moving your end back and forth.
4. Read the definition of frequency in the article.
5. Conclude how you and your partner can increase the frequency
of the wave you just created.
Observations/Results: (Use article as a reference.)
1. Use your notes and draw a diagram of a transverse wave. Label
the crest, trough and wavelength.
2. Describe how you increased the frequency of the wave.
3. Describe how the wave changed in appearance when the
frequency was changed.
4. Create a diagram to support your answer to #3.
5. What happens when the frequency of light waves increase or
decrease?
Station # 4
The Disappearing Penny
Problem: What causes a penny at the bottom of a glass to suddenly
appear as water is added to the glass?
Hypothesis: Predict what happens to light as water is added to the
glass. (You may need to read the procedure first before you make
your hypothesis.)
Procedure:
1. Get two cups. Fill one with water and leave the other one
empty.
2. Place a penny in the empty cup. The penny should be
positioned so that it is on the side closest to your partner. Your
partner should barely be able to see the edge of the penny in
the cup.
3. Slowly pour water from the second cup into the cup with the
penny until your partner tells you that he or she can see the
penny completely. Your partner should not move while you are
pouring.
Observations/Results: (Use article as a reference.)
1. Use the definition of refraction to describe the phenomenon
that you just observed.
2. Draw a diagram and label to show what occurred as light passed
from air into the water.
Station # 5
Bubble Vision
Problem: How is the interference of light demonstrated utilizing
bubbles?
Background Information: The brilliant colors you often see on soap
bubbles are created by an effect called interference. Light rays
reflect from both the outer and inner surfaces of the bubble. A ray
reflected from the inside of the bubble travels slightly farther than
one reflected from the outside, so when the waves of each ray meet,
they are slightly out of step, and “interfere” with each other. Some
colors cancel out and disappear; others combine, so bands of colors
form on the bubble’s surface.
Hypothesis: Predict how light waves cause the various colors seen
on the surface of bubbles made from soap solutions.
Procedure:
1. Take a wire loop and dip into bubble solution.
2. Slowly pull the loop up to form a bubble.
3. Examine the colors on the bubbles surface. Notice how the
colored bands change as the soap solution sinks to the
bottom of the shape.
Observations/Results: (Use article as a reference.)
1. Use colored pencils to draw the bands of color that you see in at
least one of the bubbles that you observed.
2. Use the book or glossary provided to define diffraction and
interference.
3. Read the article on the interference of light waves.
4. Explain how interference causes us to see the colors that you
observed on the soap bubbles.
Station #6
Web Quest: Physics Place
Procedure:
1. Go to www.physicsplace.com and click on the middle book in the top row
(Conceptual Physics 10/e.)
2. Enter the site using the following information:
1. User: bergmann12
2. Password: mustangs1
3. Once logged in, click on “Interactive Figures” on the left hand toolbar.
4. Use the following figures to help you answer the questions below:
 Fig. 26.03
 Fig. 26.04
 Fig. 27.09
Observation Questions:
1. Which type of waves span the greatest range on the EM Spectrum? (Fig. 26.03)
2. Which type of waves span the smallest range on the EM Spectrum? (Fig. 26.03)
3. What is the frequency range of X-Rays? (Fig. 26.03)
4. What is the speed of all types of EM radiation? (Fig. 26.03) (Fig. 26.04)
5. Which waves carry the most energy? (Fig. 26.03)
6. What is the approximate wavelength of the color red? (Fig. 26.04)
7. What is the approximate frequency of the color green? (Fig. 26.04)
8. Sketch a color wheel for light using the colored spotlights (Fig. 27.09)
9. What color do you get when you combine all colors of light? (Fig. 27.09)
10.What color do you get when you combine all colors of paint?
Station #7
Web Quest: Physics Place
Background Information:
Waves of light can interact or change in four ways.
1. Reflection: A wave that bounces off of an object
2. Refraction: A wave that bends through a new medium
3. Diffraction: A wave that bends around an object
4. Interference: A wave that crashes into other waves
Procedure:
1. Go to www.physicsplace.com and click on the middle book in the top row
(Conceptual Physics 10/e.)
2. Enter the site using the following information:
5. User: bergmann12
6. Password: mustangs1
3. Once logged in, click on “Interactive Figures” on the left hand toolbar.
4. Use the following figures to help you answer the questions below:
 Fig. 19.07
 Fig. 28.06
 Fig. 28.14
 Fig. 29.08
 Fig. 27.18
 Fig. 29.18
Observation Questions:
1. What happens to frequency as you increase the wavelength of a wave? (Fig. 19.07)
2. What happens to frequency as you increase the velocity of a wave? (Fig. 19.07)
3. A ray of light that hits a surface at an angle of 30 deg. would be expected to reflect
at what angle? (Fig. 28.06)
4. Draw a picture of a ray of light that is refracted as it enters water. Make sure you
label the angle of incidence and the angle of refraction. (Fig. 28.14)
5. As a hole in an object gets bigger, how will it affect the amount of diffraction as a
wave passes through it? (Fig. 29.08)
6. Explain why the sky is blue even though a combination of all colors (white light)
hits our atmosphere originally. Also explain why a sunset may appear red/orange in
color.
(Fig. 27.18)
7. What would be the result of two light waves colliding if the crest of each wave
match up with each other? (Fig. 29.18)
8. What would be the result of two light waves colliding if the crest of one wave
matched up with the trough of another wave? (Fig. 29.18)