WAVE
BEHAVIOR
BEHAVIOR
What wave behavior happens when a wave bounces back from a surface?
Reflection
In which state does sound travel fastest?
Answer: Solid
Which medium lets light travel the fastest?
Answer: Air
Which is more dense: water or air?
Answer: Water
Inertia is resistance to being ______ or ______.
Answer: Moved or vibrated
What is it called when a wave bends because it enters a new medium?
Refraction
What happens to sound speed as particle spacing decreases?
Answer: It increases
What happens to light speed as density increases?
Answer: Light slows down
What does density measure?
Answer: Mass packed into a given space
Which gas has lower inertia: helium or carbon dioxide?
Answer: Helium
When waves spread out after passing through a narrow opening, what is this?
Answer: Diffraction
Which travels sound faster: a liquid or a gas?
Answer: Liquid
When light enters a denser medium, what happens to its direction?
Answer: It bends and creates a distorted image.
Which is denser: corn syrup or ethanol?
Answer: Corn syrup
Why does carbon dioxide have slower sound speed than helium?
Answer: Higher inertia slows vibration
When a material takes in (soaks up) energy from a wave, what behavior is this?
Answer: Absorption
Why does sound travel faster in water than in air?
Answer: Particles are closer together
Which slows light more: water or glass?
Answer: Glass
As density increases in liquids, how does sound usually change?
Answer: It gets faster
Why is sound still fast in steel even with high inertia?
Answer: Particles are extremely close
A wave moves through a medium with little change. What behavior is this?
Answer: Transmission
Why might a denser solid have slower sound speed than a less dense solid?
Answer: More inertia in the denser solid slows vibration
Why does light bend when entering a new medium?
Answer: Change in speed causes the wave to change direction
In the same state of matter, how can density affect sound speed?
Answer: Higher density can slow sound due to more inertia
Explain why inertia affects sound waves but not light waves.
Answer: Sound requires particle vibrations; light does not