SENIOR PHYSICS FINAL EXAM REVIEW KEY Spring 2015
1. Give 3 facts about wave energy. Waves are disturbances moving through space, waves transfer
energy from place to place without transporting particles, wave require an energy source to
create vibrations.
2. A pendulum demonstrates a wave in harmonic motion. What factor affects the frequency of a
pendulum? Length of the pendulum
3. List 3 types of mechanical waves. Water wave, vibrating string, sound
4. List a type of wave that is not a mechanical wave. Light wave
5. What is the difference between a transverse wave and a longitudinal wave? Particles of the
medium move perpendicular to the direction the transverse wave itself is moving,
longitudinal wave is moving parallel to the direction the particles are moving
6. A slinky can be used to demonstrate a longitudinal wave and a transverse wave. Draw 2
diagrams showing the slinky demonstrating the two types of waves.
7.
8.
9.
10.
What wave property is determined by the energy of the wave source? amplitude
What is the audible spectrum of human hearing? 20-20,000 Hz
Sound cannot be transmitted in what type of medium? vacuum
What is sound intensity? closely related to loudness of sound, can be measured in watts/m2,
decreases as the distance from the source increases
11. In what type of medium does the speed of sound travel the greatest? solid
12. What part of the electromagnetic spectrum matches the following:
a. Human eyes are sensitive to this
visible
b. Frequency after ultraviolet
x-ray
c. Produced by nuclear particles accelerating gamma
d. Animals radiate this type
infrared
e. Carries sound waves through amplitude or frequency modulation radio
f. Discovered by Roentgen
x-rays
g. Cooks food through resonance microwave
h. Produced by vibrating crystals radio
i. Makes up one-millionth of the EM spectrum
visible
j. Highest in energy and penetrating power
gamma
k. Stopped by the ozone layer
ultraviolet
l. ROYGBIV
visible
13. What type of mirror only reduces images? convex
14. What type of mirror can magnify or reduce an image dependent on the objects location?
concave
15. What type of mirror produces only virtual images the same size of the object but right and left
reversed? plane
16. What type of mirror is used as a makeup mirror? concave
17. What is static electricity? electric charge at rest, often caused by friction, charge confined to an
isolated space
18. Why are metals good conductors of electricity? They allow electrons to move freely
19. Rubber has a high attraction for electrons than fur. If a rubber rod is rubbed by fur what
happens? Strips electrons from the fur
20. What type(s) of charges are water molecules attracted to? Both positive and negative because
water is a polar molecule
21. What type of insulator would each of the following make (good or poor):
a. Rubber good b. glass good
c. moist air poor
d. dry air good
22. In what type of circuit is equivalent resistance less than the resistance of any of the branches?
parallel
23. In what type of circuit is there one path for a current to follow? series
24. In what type of circuit does the potential difference across the branches of the circuit add up to
the voltage supplied by the battery? neither
25. In what circuit is the total current equal to the sum of the currents in the separate branches?
parallel
26. In what circuit is the current the same in all the parts of the circuit? series
27. The first natural magnet was called what? Lodestone
28. The first natural magnet was made of what material and used by what people as a compass?
magnetite, used by the Chinese
29. How is magnetism produced? Charged particles in motion
30. Within an atom what 2 properties cause the production of magnetic properties? Spin and
electron pairing
31. Metallic elements whose atoms have unpaired electrons are called what? ferromagnetic
32. What are magnetic domains? Microscopic clusters of magnetically aligned atoms, do not exist in
substances like glass, paper, or air, exist in ferromagnetic substances that are randomly oriented
33. List 3 ways that a magnet can be destroyed? dropping it, heating it, crushing or hammering it
34. What are magnetic force lines? drawn to represent a magnetic field
35. What is the Aurora Borealis? Called the Northern Lights, originates as solar wind, is caused by
charged particles dipping into the earth’s atmosphere near the magnetic poles
36. What is the difference in the angle between the lines of magnetic and geographic poles called?
This is called declination
37. What is an electromagnet and how does it work? current carrying wire wrapped around a soft
iron core. A current is passed through the wire which causes the formation of a magnetic field as
the movement of the electrons continues
38. How is a current induced by a magnet? A closed wire is moved up and down inside a horseshoe
magnet, a magnet is moved in and out of a closed coil of wire
39. How can the magnitude of current in an electromagnet be increased? Increasing the rate of
motion between the coil and the magnetic field, increasing the number of coils, increase the
strength of the magnetic field
40. An electric generator converts what type of energy into what other type of energy? Mechanical
into electrical
41. What is a motor? converts electrical energy into mechanical, has similar parts as a generator