ch11

Multiple Choice
Identify the choice that best completes the statement or answers the question.

____ 1. Which of the following is not an example of approximate simple harmonic motion?
a. a ball bouncing on the floor
b. a child swinging on a swing
c. a piano wire that has been struck
d. a car’s radio antenna waving back and forth
____ 2. Vibration of an object about an equilibrium point is called simple harmonic motion when the restoring force
is proportional to
a. time. c. a spring constant.
b. displacement. d. mass.
____ 3. Tripling the displacement from equilibrium of an object in simple harmonic motion will change the
magnitude of the object’s maximum acceleration by what factor?
a. one-third c. 3
b. 1 d. 9
____ 4. A mass attached to a spring vibrates back and forth. At the equilibrium position, the
a. acceleration reaches a maximum. c. net force reaches a maximum.
b. velocity reaches a maximum. d. velocity reaches zero.
____ 5. A mass attached to a spring vibrates back and forth. At maximum displacement, the spring force and the
a. velocity reach a maximum. c. acceleration reach a maximum.
b. velocity reach zero. d. acceleration reach zero.
____ 6. A simple pendulum swings in simple harmonic motion. At maximum displacement,
a. the acceleration reaches a maximum. c. the acceleration reaches zero.
b. the velocity reaches a maximum. d. the restoring force reaches zero.
____ 7. A mass-spring system can oscillate with simple harmonic motion because a compressed or stretched spring
has which kind of energy?
a. kinetic c. gravitational potential
b. mechanical d. elastic potential
____ 8. The angle between the string of a pendulum at its equilibrium position and at its maximum displacement is
the pendulum’s
a. period. c. vibration.
b. frequency. d. amplitude.
____ 9. For a mass hanging from a spring, the maximum displacement the spring is stretched or compressed from its
equilibrium position is the system’s
a. amplitude. c. frequency.
b. period. d. acceleration.
____ 10. A pendulum swings through a total of 28°. If the displacement is equal on each side of the equilibrium
position, what is the amplitude of this vibration? (Disregard frictional forces acting on the pendulum.)
a. 28° c. 56°
b. 14° d. 7.0°
____ 11. A child on a playground swings through a total of 32°. If the displacement is equal on each side of the
equilibrium position, what is the amplitude of this vibration? (Disregard frictional forces acting on the swing.)
a. 8.0° c. 32°
b. 16° d. 64°

____ 12. For a system in simple harmonic motion, which of the following is the time required to complete a cycle of
motion?
a. amplitude c. frequency
b. period d. revolution
____ 13. For a system in simple harmonic motion, which of the following is the number of cycles or vibrations per unit
of time?
a. amplitude c. frequency
b. period d. revolution
____ 14. How are frequency and period related in simple harmonic motion?
a. They are directly related.
b. They are inversely related.
c. Their sum is constant.
d. Both measure the number of cycles per unit of time.
____ 15. If a pendulum is adjusted so that its frequency changes from 10 Hz to 20 Hz, its period will change from n
seconds to
a. n/4 seconds. c. 2n seconds.
b. n/2 seconds. d. 4n seconds.
____ 16. By what factor should the length of a simple pendulum be changed in order to triple the period of vibration?
a. 3 c. 9
b. 6 d. 27
____ 17. Which of the following features of a given pendulum changes when the pendulum is moved from Earth’s
surface to the moon?
a. the mass c. the equilibrium position
b. the length d. the restoring force
____ 18. A wave travels through a medium. As the wave passes, the particles of the medium vibrate in a direction
perpendicular to the direction of the wave’s motion. The wave is
a. longitudinal. c. electromagnetic.
b. a pulse. d. transverse.
____ 19. Which of the following is a single nonperiodic disturbance?
a. pulse wave c. sine wave
b. periodic wave d. transverse wave
____ 20. One end of a taut rope is fixed to a post. What type of wave is produced if the free end is quickly raised and
lowered one time?
a. pulse wave c. sine wave
b. periodic wave d. longitudinal wave
____ 21. Each compression in the waveform of the longitudinal wave shown above corresponds to what feature of the
transverse wave below it?
a. wavelength c. troughs
b. crests d. amplitude
____ 22. Each stretched region in the waveform of the longitudinal wave shown above corresponds to what feature of
the transverse wave below it?
a. wavelength c. troughs
b. crests d. amplitude
____ 23. Which of the following most affects the wavelength of a mechanical wave moving through a medium?
Assume that the frequency of the wave remains constant.
a. the nature of the medium c. the height of a crest
b. the amplitude d. the energy carried by the wave
____ 24. Suppose that two sound waves passing through the same medium have different wavelengths. Which of the
following is most likely to be the reason for the differing wavelengths?
a. the nature of the medium c. differences in frequency
b. differences in amplitude d. the type of wave
____ 25. When a mechanical wave’s amplitude is tripled, the energy the wave carries in a given time interval is
increased by a factor of
a. 3. c. 9.
b. 6. d. 18.
____ 26. When a mechanical wave’s amplitude is reduced by half, the energy the wave carries in a given time interval
is
a. doubled. c. decreased to one-half.
b. increased by a factor of 1.4. d. decreased to one-fourth.
____ 27. Two mechanical waves can occupy the same space at the same time because waves
a. are matter. c. do not cause interference patterns.
b. are displacements of matter. d. cannot pass through one another.
____ 28. The superposition of mechanical waves can be observed in the movement of
a. bumper cars. c. electromagnetic radiation.
b. water waves in a ripple tank. d. violin bows in an orchestra.
____ 29. Two waves traveling in opposite directions on a rope meet and undergo complete destructive interference.
Which of the following best describes the waves a moment after the waves meet and coincide?
a. The waves no longer exist.
b. The waves continue unchanged.
c. The waves reflect and travel backward.
d. A single wave continues along the rope.
____ 30. When two mechanical waves coincide, the amplitude of the resultant wave is always ____ the amplitudes of
each wave alone.
a. greater than c. the sum of
b. less than d. the same as
____ 31. Two mechanical waves that have positive displacements from the equilibrium position meet and coincide.
What kind of interference occurs?
a. constructive c. complete destructive
b. destructive d. none
____ 32. Two mechanical waves meet and coincide. One wave has a positive displacement from the equilibrium
position, and the other wave has a negative displacement. What kind of interference occurs?
a. constructive c. complete constructive
b. destructive d. none

____ 33. Which of the following types of interference will occur when the pulses in the figure above meet?
a. no interference c. destructive interference
b. constructive interference d. total interference

____ 34. Which of the following types of interference will occur when the pulses in the figure above meet?
a. no interference c. destructive interference
b. constructive interference d. total interference
____ 35. Which of the following types of interference will occur when the pulses in the figure above meet?
a. no interference c. partial interference
b. complete constructive interference d. complete destructive interference
____ 36. Consider two identical wave pulses on a rope having a fixed end. Suppose the first pulse reaches the end of
the rope, is reflected back, and then meets the second pulse. When the two pulses overlap exactly, what will
be the amplitude of the resultant pulse?
a. zero
b. same as the original pulses
c. double the amplitude of the original pulses
d. half the amplitude of the original pulses
____ 37. Waves arriving at a fixed boundary are
a. neither reflected nor inverted. c. reflected and inverted.
b. reflected but not inverted. d. inverted but not reflected.
____ 38. Waves arriving at a free boundary are
a. neither reflected nor inverted. c. reflected and inverted.
b. reflected but not inverted. d. inverted but not reflected.
____ 39. A student sends a pulse traveling on a taut rope with one end attached to a post. What will the student
observe?
a. The pulse will not be reflected if the rope is free to slide up and down on the post.
b. The pulse will be reflected and inverted if the rope is free to slide up and down on the
post.
c. The pulse will be reflected and inverted if the rope is fixed to the post.
d. The pulse will not be inverted if the rope is fixed to the post.
____ 40. Standing waves are produced by periodic waves of
a. any amplitude and wavelength traveling in the same direction.
b. the same amplitude and wavelength traveling in the same direction.
c. any amplitude and wavelength traveling in opposite directions.
d. the same frequency, amplitude, and wavelength traveling in opposite directions.
____ 41. A 2.0 m long stretched rope is fixed at both ends. Which wavelength would not produce standing waves on
this rope?
a. 2.0 m c. 4.0 m
b. 3.0 m d. 6.0 m
____ 42. Which of the following wavelengths would produce standing waves on a string approximately 3.5 m long?
a. 2.33 m c. 3.75 m
b. 2.85 m d. 4.55 m
____ 43. Which of the following wavelengths would not produce standing waves on a rope whose length is 1 m?
a. 2/3 m c. 2 m
 b. 1 m d. 2 1/4 m

____ 44. The standing wave shown in the diagram above would be produced on a string of length L by a wave having
wavelength
a. 1/2 L. c. 2 L.
b. L. d. 4 L.

____ 45. How many nodes and antinodes are shown in the standing wave above?
a. two nodes and three antinodes c. one-third node and one antinode
b. one node and two antinodes d. three nodes and two antinodes
____ 46. A 3.0 m long stretched string is fixed at both ends. If standing waves with a wavelength of two-thirds L are
produced on this string, how many nodes will be formed?
a. 0 c. 3
b. 2 d. 4
____ 47. What is the fewest number of nodes a standing wave can have?
a. 1 c. 3
b. 2 d. 4

____ 48. How many nodes and antinodes are shown in the standing wave above?
a. four nodes and four antinodes c. four nodes and five antinodes
b. four nodes and three antinodes d. five nodes and four antinodes
____ 49. In the diagram above, use the superposition principle to find the resultant wave of waves W and Z.
a. a c. c
b. b d. d
____ 50. In the diagram above, use the superposition principle to find the resultant wave of waves X and Y.
a. a c. c
b. b d. d

____ 51. In the diagram above, use the superposition principle to find the resultant wave of waves Q and R.
a. a c. c
b. b d. d

Problem

52. If a force of 52 N stretches a spring 0.36 m, what is the spring constant?

53. A 0.35 kg mass suspended from a spring moves with simple harmonic motion. At the instant the mass is
displaced from equilibrium by –0.105 m, what is its acceleration? (The spring constant is 11.8 N/m.)

54. How much displacement will a coil spring with a spring constant of 110 N/m achieve if it is stretched by a 70
N force?

55. A mass on a spring that has been compressed 0.29 m has a restoring force of 82 N. What is the spring
constant?

56. An amusement park ride has a frequency of 0.064 Hz. What is the ride’s period?
57. Imagine that you could transport a simple pendulum from Earth to another planet or moon, where the free-fall
acceleration is one-fifth that on Earth. By what factor would the pendulum’s frequency be changed? Express
the answer with one significant figure.

58. An amusement park ride swings back and forth once every 17.4 s. What is the ride’s frequency?

59. A mass on a spring vibrates in simple harmonic motion at an amplitude of 8.0 cm. If the mass of the object is
0.65 kg and the spring constant is 120 N/m, what is the frequency?

60. A truck with bad shock absorbers bounces up and down after hitting a bump. The truck has a mass of 1700 kg
and is supported by four springs, each having a spring constant of 6200 N/m. What is the period for each
spring?

61. What is the period of a 6.93 m long pendulum with a bob of mass 68.0 kg? Assume the acceleration due to
gravity is 9.81 m/s .

62. On the planet Xenos, an astronaut observes that a 1.88 m long pendulum has a period of 1.85 s. What is the
free-fall acceleration on Xenos?

63. A student wishes to construct a mass-spring system that will oscillate with the same frequency as a swinging
pendulum with a period of 3.99 s. The student has a spring with a spring constant of 77.1 N/m. What mass
should the student use to construct the mass-spring system?

64. A periodic wave has a wavelength of 0.58 m and a speed of 14 m/s. What is the wave frequency?

65. A musical tone sounded on a piano has a frequency of 215.1 Hz and a wavelength of 1.47 m. What is the
speed of the sound wave?

66. Radio waves from an FM station have a frequency of 95.9 MHz. If the waves travel with a speed of 3.00 ´ 10
m/s, what is the wavelength?

67. Bats chirp at high frequencies that humans cannot hear. They use the echoes to detect objects, such as insects,
that are as small as one wavelength. If a bat emits a chirp at a frequency of 45.4 kHz and the speed of sound
waves in air is 340 m/s, what is the size in millimeters of the smallest insect that the bat can detect?

68. Waves propagate along a stretched string at a speed of 6.9 m/s. The end of the string vibrates up and down
once every 3.6 s. What is the wavelength of the waves traveling along the string?

69. Vibration of a certain frequency produces a standing wave on a stretched string that is 1.6 m long. The
standing wave has 7 nodes and 5 antinodes. What is the wavelength of the wave that produces this standing
wave?
ch11
Answer Section

MULTIPLE CHOICE

1. ANS: A PTS: 1 DIF: I OBJ: 11-1.1

2. ANS: B PTS: 1 DIF: II OBJ: 11-1.1
3. ANS: C PTS: 1 DIF: II OBJ: 11-1.2
4. ANS: B PTS: 1 DIF: I OBJ: 11-1.2
5. ANS: C PTS: 1 DIF: I OBJ: 11-1.2
6. ANS: A PTS: 1 DIF: I OBJ: 11-1.2
7. ANS: D PTS: 1 DIF: II OBJ: 11-1.2
8. ANS: D PTS: 1 DIF: I OBJ: 11-2.1
9. ANS: A PTS: 1 DIF: I OBJ: 11-2.1
10. ANS: B PTS: 1 DIF: II OBJ: 11-2.1
11. ANS: B PTS: 1 DIF: II OBJ: 11-2.1
12. ANS: B PTS: 1 DIF: I OBJ: 11-2.2
13. ANS: C PTS: 1 DIF: I OBJ: 11-2.2
14. ANS: B PTS: 1 DIF: I OBJ: 11-2.2
15. ANS: B PTS: 1 DIF: II OBJ: 11-2.2
16. ANS: C PTS: 1 DIF: IIIB OBJ: 11-2.3
17. ANS: D PTS: 1 DIF: IIIA OBJ: 11-2.3
18. ANS: D PTS: 1 DIF: I OBJ: 11-3.1
19. ANS: A PTS: 1 DIF: I OBJ: 11-3.2
20. ANS: A PTS: 1 DIF: I OBJ: 11-3.2
21. ANS: B PTS: 1 DIF: I OBJ: 11-3.3
22. ANS: C PTS: 1 DIF: I OBJ: 11-3.3
23. ANS: A PTS: 1 DIF: II OBJ: 11-3.4
24. ANS: C PTS: 1 DIF: II OBJ: 11-3.4
25. ANS: C PTS: 1 DIF: I OBJ: 11-3.5
26. ANS: D PTS: 1 DIF: II OBJ: 11-3.5
27. ANS: B PTS: 1 DIF: I OBJ: 11-4.1
28. ANS: B PTS: 1 DIF: I OBJ: 11-4.1
29. ANS: B PTS: 1 DIF: II OBJ: 11-4.1
30. ANS: C PTS: 1 DIF: I OBJ: 11-4.2
31. ANS: A PTS: 1 DIF: I OBJ: 11-4.2
32. ANS: B PTS: 1 DIF: I OBJ: 11-4.2
33. ANS: B PTS: 1 DIF: I OBJ: 11-4.2
34. ANS: C PTS: 1 DIF: I OBJ: 11-4.2
35. ANS: D PTS: 1 DIF: I OBJ: 11-4.2
36. ANS: A PTS: 1 DIF: IIIA OBJ: 11-4.3
37. ANS: C PTS: 1 DIF: I OBJ: 11-4.3
38. ANS: B PTS: 1 DIF: I OBJ: 11-4.3
39. ANS: C PTS: 1 DIF: II OBJ: 11-4.3
40. ANS: D PTS: 1 DIF: I OBJ: 11-4.4
 41. ANS: B PTS: 1 DIF: IIIA OBJ: 11-4.4
42. ANS: A PTS: 1 DIF: IIIC OBJ: 11-4.4
43. ANS: D PTS: 1 DIF: I OBJ: 11-4.4
44. ANS: B PTS: 1 DIF: II OBJ: 11-4.4
45. ANS: D PTS: 1 DIF: I OBJ: 11-4.5
46. ANS: D PTS: 1 DIF: II OBJ: 11-4.5
47. ANS: B PTS: 1 DIF: I OBJ: 11-4.5
48. ANS: D PTS: 1 DIF: I OBJ: 11-4.5
49. ANS: B PTS: 1 DIF: II OBJ: 11-4.1
50. ANS: A PTS: 1 DIF: II OBJ: 11-4.1
51. ANS: B PTS: 1 DIF: II OBJ: 11-4.1

PROBLEM

52. ANS:
140 N/m

Given

Solution

PTS: 1 DIF: IIIA OBJ: 11-1.3

53. ANS:
3.5 m/s

Given
m = 0.35 kg
k = 11.8 N/m
x = –0.105 m

Solution
F = -kx and F = ma
ma = -kx

a = 3.5 N/kg = 3.5 m/s

PTS: 1 DIF: IIIA OBJ: 11-1.3

54. ANS:
–0.6 m
 Given
k = 110 N/m
F = 70 N

Solution
F = –kx

x = –0.6 m

PTS: 1 DIF: IIIA OBJ: 11-1.3

55. ANS:
280 N/m

Given
x = –0.29 m
F = 82 N

Solution
F = –kx

k = 280 N/m

PTS: 1 DIF: IIIB OBJ: 11-1.3

56. ANS:
16 s

Given
f = 0.064 Hz

Solution

PTS: 1 DIF: IIIA OBJ: 11-2.3

57. ANS:
0.4

Given

Solution
 PTS: 1 DIF: IIIB OBJ: 11-2.3
58. ANS:
5.75 ´ 10 Hz

Given
T = 17.4 s

Solution

PTS: 1 DIF: IIIA OBJ: 11-2.3

59. ANS:
2.1 Hz

Given
x = 8.0 cm
m = 0.65 kg
k = 120 N/m

Solution
 PTS: 1 DIF: IIIB OBJ: 11-2.3
60. ANS:
1.6 s

Given
m = 1700 kg
k(per spring) = 6200 N/m

Solution
Assume that the total mass of 1700 kg is supported equally on the four springs. Each spring then supports
1700/4 kg.

PTS: 1 DIF: IIIB OBJ: 11-2.3

61. ANS:
5.28 s

Given
L = 6.93 m
m = 68.0 kg
g = 9.81 m/s

Solution

PTS: 1 DIF: IIIB OBJ: 11-2.3

62. ANS:
21.7 m/s

Given
L = 1.88 m
T = 1.85 s

Solution
 PTS: 1 DIF: IIIB OBJ: 11-2.3
63. ANS:
31.1 kg

Given
T = 3.99 s
k = 77.1 N/m

Solution
If both systems have the same frequency, they will also have the same period.
Therefore, the given period may be substituted into the equation for a mass-spring system.

PTS: 1 DIF: IIIC OBJ: 11-2.3

64. ANS:
24 Hz

Given
v = 0.58 m/s
l = 14 m

Solution
v = fl

f= = 24 Hz

PTS: 1 DIF: IIIA OBJ: 11-3.4

65. ANS:
316 m/s

Given
f = 215.1 Hz
l = 1.47 m

Solution
 v = fl
v = (215.1 Hz)(1.47 m) = 316 m/s

PTS: 1 DIF: IIIA OBJ: 11-3.4

66. ANS:
3.13 m

Given
f = 95.9 MHz = 0.959 ´ 10 Hz
v = 3.00 ´ 10 m/s

Solution

PTS: 1 DIF: IIIA OBJ: 11-3.4

67. ANS:
7.5 mm

Given
f = 45.4 kHz
v = 340 m/s

Solution

PTS: 1 DIF: IIIB OBJ: 11-3.4

68. ANS:
25 m

Given
v = 6.9 m/s
T = 3.6 s

Solution

PTS: 1 DIF: IIIB OBJ: 11-3.4

69. ANS:
0.64 m

Given
L = 1.6 m
The standing wave has 5 antinodes, i.e., 5 loops.

Solution
A single loop (antinode) is produced by a wavelength equal to 2L. Two loops (one complete wavelength) are
produced by a wavelength of L. A wavelength of 2/3 L results in 3 antinodes. The following pattern emerges.

1 loop l = 2L/1 = 2L
2 loops l = 2L/2 = L
3 loops l = 2L/3 = 2/3 L
4 loops l = 2L/4 = 1/2 L
5 loops l = 2L/5 = 2/5 L

therefore,

PTS: 1 DIF: IIIC OBJ: 11-4.5