Sound and Energy Investigation Quiz

Which of the following plans would be best for a classroom investigation about how sound transfers energy?

• Place 1/8 cup of uncooked rice on a paper plate. Have a student take a microphone and speak into it right next to the rice to observe how the rice moves. Then, have the student speak into the microphone farther from the rice, and observe how the rice moves.

• Turn a radio speaker sideways, and cover the face of it with plastic wrap. Place 1/8 cup of uncooked rice on top of the plastic wrap. Turn the radio on at a low volume, and observe how the rice moves. Then, turn the radio on at a high volume, and observe how the rice moves.

• Place 1/8 cup of uncooked rice on a table. Have a student hit the table hard near the rice, and observe how the rice moves. Then, have the student hit the table gently near the rice, and observe how the rice moves.

• Place 1/8 cup of uncooked rice in one side of a plastic tub. Have a student blow gently through a straw toward the rice, and observe how the rice moves. Then, have the student blow harder through the straw, and observe how the rice moves.

When a billiard player uses the cue stick to hit the white ball into the number 3 ball, the number 3 ball travels into the pocket in the corner of the table. What is the best explanation for this?

• The sound that is made when the white ball hits the number 3 ball pushes the number 3 ball into the pocket.

• The energy from the cue stick transfers straight into the number 3 ball to move it into the pocket.

Which of the following best demonstrates that energy can be transferred to other objects by waves in water?

• A motorboat moving quickly through the water

• A canoe being paddled through the water

• A person swimming through the water

• A buoy bobbing up and down on the surface of the water

When one person speaks to a second person from across the room, their voice can be heard. When the same person speaks into a plastic cup that is connected by a rope to another plastic cup, which the second person holds to their ear across the room, the person speaking can be heard more loudly than they were before even though they speak at the same volume. What could explain this?

• Sound waves travel better through solids than gases.

• Sound waves travel better through gases than solids.

A plastic tub is filled halfway with water, and a rubber duck is placed on top of the water to float, demonstrating how waves in water transfer energy. How could this model be improved?

• A larger rubber duck could be used.

• Air could be blown through a straw toward the surface of the water to create waves to move the rubber duck.

• The tub could be filled with deeper water.

• The tub could be filled with less water.

When a ball is kicked into another ball, it transfers energy to the second ball and causes it to roll. Look at the table. What can you conclude from this data? Select two correct answers.

• Kicking the first ball harder transfers more energy to the ball so that it can move faster.

• Kicking the first ball harder transfers less energy to the ball so that it can move faster.

• When the first ball moves faster, it has less energy to transfer to the second ball, which causes that ball to roll farther.

• When the first ball moves faster, it has more energy to transfer to the second ball, which causes that ball to roll farther.

• When the first ball moves faster, it has more energy to transfer to the second ball, which causes that ball to not roll as far.

To observe how energy can be transferred, you can fill a small aluminum tray with sand and point a hair dryer on a low setting toward the sand. What should you wear to stay safe during this investigation? Why?

• The hair dryer will transfer heat energy to the sand, so you should wear oven mitts to prevent the sand from burning your hands.

• The hair dryer will transfer sound energy to the sand, so you should wear earplugs so that the sound doesn’t damage your ears.

• The hair dryer will transfer electrical energy to the sand, so you should wear rubber gloves so that you don’t get shocked by electricity.

• The moving air from the hair dryer will transfer energy to the sand and cause it to move, so you should wear safety goggles to prevent sand from blowing in your eyes.

A tuning fork is a device made of steel. It has two prongs. When someone holds the handle and strikes the prongs, it causes the tuning fork to vibrate and produce a sound. Tuning forks of different sizes produce lower or higher pitches of sound. What would you observe if someone struck the prongs of a tuning fork and then placed the prongs into a bowl of water?

• The tuning fork would stop vibrating.

• The vibrations of the tuning fork would cause the water to become colder

• The sound waves coming from the vibrating tuning fork would transfer energy to create visible waves in

  the water.

• The sound waves coming from the vibrating tuning fork would become quieter in the water, causing you

  to hear a louder sound coming from the bowl.

What would happen if a vibrating tuning fork is placed in water?

• The tuning fork would stop vibrating.

• The vibrations of the tuning fork would cause the water to become colder.

• The sound waves coming from the vibrating tuning fork would transfer energy to create visible waves in the water.

• The sound waves coming from the vibrating tuning fork would become quieter in the water, causing you to hear a louder sound coming from the bowl.

Before someone jumps into a pool, an inner tube is located, as shown in the first picture. After the person jumps in, the inner tube is located as shown in the second picture. The person did not touch the inner tube at all. Use what you know about waves in water and the transfer of energy to explain why this happened.