Reflection
Refraction
Colour
Models of Light
Transparency
Vocabulary 1
Vocabulary 2
100
What is the name of the angle shown in the attached diagram?
Angle of Incidence
100
What does the blue arrow represent?
The refracted ray.
100
What seven colours make up the visible light spectrum?
Red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet
100
Name one model scientists use to explain light.
- The Ray Model
- The Particle Model
- The Wave Model
100
What word describes materials that let light pass through easily?
Transparent
100
What is the straight path that light travels in called?
A ray
100
What is the distance between one crest and the next called?
Wavelength
200
If a light ray hits a mirror at a 30° angle from the normal, what is the angle of reflection?
30°
200
What is refraction?
The bending of light as it passes from one medium to another.
200
What makes an object appear black?
All the visible light is being absorbed.
200
What does the ray model of light help us explain?
How light moves in straight lines, which helps explain reflection and refraction.
200
What kind of material lets some light through but scatters it?
Translucent
200
What is the line drawn at a right angle to a mirror’s surface called?
The normal
200
What do we call the height of a wave from its rest position to its crest?
Amplitude
300
What law states that the angle of incidence equals the angle of reflection?
The Law of Reflection
300
When light slows down as it enters a denser medium, does it bend toward or away from the normal?
Toward the normal
300
Why does an object appear red when seen with white light?
Because the object reflects red light and absorbs the rest of the visible light spectrum.
300
What are the particles of light called in the Particle Model of Light?
Photons
300
What kind of material blocks all light from passing through?
Opaque
300
What do we call the incoming light ray that hits a surface?
The incident ray
300
Is light a compression or a transverse wave?
Transverse
400
What type of surface produces clear reflections (e.g. you can see yourself in them)?
Smooth, shiny surfaces, like mirrors
400
Compare the speed of light in air, water, and glass (fastest to slowest).
Fastest in air → slower in water → slowest in glass
400
Why does a green object appear green in white light?
The green light is being reflected, while the rest of the visible light spectrum is being absorbed.
400
What property of light would be explained using the Wave Model of Light?
Frequency or wavelength or amplitude
400
Give one example each of a transparent, translucent, and opaque object.
Transparent: glass; Translucent: frosted window; Opaque: wood
400
What term describes the bending of light as it enters a new medium?
Refraction
400
What is the process of light being taken in by a material instead of reflected or transmitted?
Absorption
500
Why does a rough surface scatter light in many directions instead of forming a clear reflection?
Because the surface’s irregularities make light reflect at many different angles
500
When a ray of light passes from air into water at an angle of incidence of 90°, which way does the ray of light bend?
The light does not bend - it is already perpendicualr (normal) to the surface of the water.
500
Why does a blue shirt look black in red light?
Because it absorbs red light and has no blue light to reflect
500
Explain why scientists use different models to describe light instead of just one.
No single model explains all behaviours of light; each model is useful for different phenomena (e.g., reflection vs. frequency)
500
Explain why frosted glass allows light but not clear images to pass through.
Because it scatters light in many directions, so the image becomes blurred
500
Define “medium” in the context of light waves.
A substance or material through which light travels (e.g., air, water, glass)
500
Define “scattering” in terms of light.
The process by which light is sent in many directions when it hits uneven surfaces or particles.