Electromagnetic and Mechanical Waves Vocabulary

Which of the following is true for sound waves?

• They require a medium.

• They are unrelated to vibrations.

• They cannot travel through liquids

• They can travel in a vacuum

Tags

NGSS.MS-PS4-2

How do electromagnetic and mechanical waves compare?

• Mechanical waves can only travel through a vacuum, but electromagnetic waves can travel through a solid, liquid, or gas.

• Mechanical waves can travel through a solid, liquid, or gas, but electromagnetic waves can only travel through a gas.

• Mechanical waves can only travel through a solid, liquid, or gas, but electromagnetic waves can travel through a vacuum.

• Mechanical waves can travel through a solid, liquid, or gas, but electromagnetic waves can only travel through a solid.

A student asks a series of questions about a wave. The answer to which question will allow the student to determine whether the wave is electromagnetic or mechanical?

• Does it require a medium in order to travel?

• Can it pass through air and water?

• Does it have a measurable speed?

• Does it have a measurable frequency?

A student is measuring the distance between the crest and the rest position of both a mechanical wave and an electromagnetic wave. Which question is the student trying to answer?

• What is the speed of the waves?

• What is the amplitude of the waves?

• What is the wavelength of the waves?

• What is the frequency of the waves?

Which distance represents the wavelength?

• W

• X

• Y

• Z

Tags

NGSS.HS-PS4-1

Which distance represents the amplitude?

• W

• X

• Y

• Z

Tags

NGSS.HS-PS4-1

NGSS.HS-PS4-5

What do radio waves, microwaves, X-rays, and gamma rays all have in common?

• They all have the same wavelength.

• They are electromagnetic waves.

• They are detected in the same way.

• They store the same amount of energy.

Tags

NGSS.HS-PS4-3

A wave carries...?

• energy only
• matter only
• energy and matter
• neither

Tags

NGSS.HS-PS4-3

What is the measure of how many waves pass a point in a second?

• frequency
• wavelength
• midpoint
• crest and trough

Tags

NGSS.HS-PS4-1

In a longitudinal wave, the particles move...?

• back and forth
• up and down
• not at all
• at a 90 degree angle