Wave Basics
What do Waves transfer?
Energy
What type of wave has crests and troughs?
Transverse
Which type of wave requires a medium?
Mechanical
What produces sound?
Vibrations
What is the unit used to measure frequency?
Hertz
What is the highest point of a transverse wave called?
Crest
What type of wave has compressions and rarefactions?
Longitudinal
Can electromagnetic waves travel through empty space?
Yes
Is sound transverse or longitudinal?
Longitudinal
Which has more energy: a wave with a large amplitude or a small amplitude?
Large amplitude
What is the distance between two consecutive crests called?
Wavelength
Is a sound wave mechanical or electromagnetic?
Mechanical
Are radio waves mechanical or electromagnetic?
Electromagnetic
What happens to the loudness of a sound when its amplitude increases?
It gets louder.
A sound wave has a low frequency. Will its pitch be high or low?
Low
What is the distance from the resting position to the crest called?
Amplitude
A wave's particles move perpendicular to the direction the wave travels. What type is it?
Transverse
A student says that sound can travel through space because light can. Explain the mistake.
Light is electromagnetic and can travel through a vacuum; sound is mechanical and needs a medium.
What happens to the pitch of a sound when its frequency increases?
The pitch gets higher.
At the same wave speed, what happens to wavelength when frequency increases?
Wavelength decreases
Explain why a wave transfers energy but does not transport matter from one place to another.
The particles vibrate around their positions while energy travels through the medium.
A wave needs matter to travel, and its particles vibrate parallel to the direction of travel. Classify it in two ways.
Mechanical and Longitudinal
Wave A travels through both matter and empty space. Wave B can only travel through matter. Classify each wave.
A ringing buzzer is placed in a sealed jar. As air is removed, the sound becomes quieter. Why?
Sound requires a medium. Fewer air particles are available to transfer vibrations.
Two sound waves travel through the same medium. Wave A has a greater amplitude, but Wave B has a higher frequency. Which is louder and which has a higher pitch?
Wave A is louder; Wave B has a higher pitch.