Physics: Waves: Sound and Light Properties

A student taps a metal desk and hears a sound. Explain how the sound travels from the desk to the student's ear.

Light from the Sun can reach Earth through space, but sound from the Sun cannot. Explain why.

Two sound waves are shown. Wave A has a larger amplitude than Wave B, but both have the same frequency. Which sound is louder, and why?

A flute plays a note with a high pitch. A tuba plays a note with a low pitch. Compare the frequencies of the two sounds.

A student shines a flashlight at a mirror. The beam bounces off the mirror. Identify the wave behavior and describe what happens.

A pencil looks bent when it is placed in a glass of water. Identify the wave behavior that causes this effect and explain it.

A black shirt feels warmer than a white shirt in bright sunlight. Use wave properties to explain why.

Classify each material as mostly transparent, translucent, or opaque: clear window glass, wax paper, and a wooden door.

A teacher claps once in a gym and hears the sound repeat a moment later. What is this repeated sound called, and what causes it?

Visible light is part of the electromagnetic spectrum. Arrange these colors from shortest wavelength to longest wavelength: red, violet, green.

A siren seems higher-pitched as an ambulance moves toward you and lower-pitched as it moves away. Name this effect and explain what changes.

A student says, 'A louder sound must be traveling faster than a quieter sound in the same room.' Explain whether the student is correct.

Compare sound waves and light waves by listing one way they are similar and one way they are different.