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Chapter 12 Worksheet: Sound waves

Questions 1–3
(A) Amplitude (B) Frequency (C) Resonance (D) Wave speed
(E) Oscillation
1. The brightness of light and the volume of sound are associated with which wave characteristic?
2. Which wave property is controlled by the medium that the wave propagated through?
3. Which wave property remains constant when light waves enter a medium that has a greater
density?

4. A sound source is moving away from an observer. As compared with the actual wavelength and
frequency of the waves, how would the observer describe the waves?
(A) They have shorter wavelengths and a lower frequency.
(B) They have shorter wavelengths and a higher frequency.
(C) They have shorter wavelengths and the same frequency.
(D) They have longer wavelengths and a lower frequency.
(E) They have longer wavelengths and a higher frequency.
Questions 5-7
The following diagrams depict sound waves moving outward from a sound source.

5. Which diagram depicts the sound waves created by a source moving with a speed v that is equal
to the speed of sound?
6. Which diagram depicts the sound waves created by a source moving with a speed v that is less
than the speed of sound?
7. Which diagram depicts the sound waves created by a source moving with a speed v that is
greater than the speed of sound?
8. A sound wave emitted by a source has a frequency f , a velocity v , and a wavelength λ. If the
frequency is doubled, how will the speed and wavelength be affected?
1 1
(A) v , λ (B) 2v , λ (C) v , 2λ (D) 𝑣, 𝜆 (E) 𝑣, 𝜆
2 2

9. The two wave pulses shown above are moving toward one another. Which diagram depicts the
waveform at the instant that the waves overlap and superimpose?

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10. A guitar string vibrates in a manner resulting in a standing wave having a wavelength λ being
formed in the string. A listener hears the fundamental frequency, f 1 , for this particular string.
The string is plucked a second time in a manner that produces the second harmonic for this
string. How does the wavelength for the second harmonic compare with the wavelength at the
fundamental frequency?
1 √2
(A) 𝜆 (B) 𝜆 (C) λ (D) √2𝜆 (E) 2λ
2 2

11. A 5-meter-long string is set into a vibration that creates the standing wave pattern in the
diagram above. The speed of the wave in the string is 420 meters per second. What is the
frequency of this vibration?
(A) 84 Hz (B) 105 Hz (C) 140 Hz (D) 210 Hz (E) 420 Hz
12. In a standing wave, a node is the position where
(A) constructive interference occurs (B) destructive interference occurs
(C) amplitude is maximum (D) Both A and C (E) Both B and C
13. Two waveforms interfere with each other in a manner that creates a beat frequency. One wave
has a frequency of 12 Hz, and the other has a frequency of 8.0 Hz. Determine the beat
frequency.
(A) 0.67 Hz (B) 1.5 Hz (C) 4.0 Hz (D) 10 Hz (E) 20 Hz
Questions 14-15
Ocean waves moving toward a beach have a speed of 10 meters per second and a frequency of 2
per second.
14. the wavelength of the waves is most nearly
(A) 0.2 m (B) 0.5 m (C) 5 m (D) 10 m (E) 20 m
15. the waves are observed by a child sitting in a rowboat offshore. Wich of the following
properties of the waves seen by the child would be greater when the boat is moving away from
the beach than when the boat is stationary with respect to the beach?
I. Speed of the waves with respect to the boat.
II. frequency at which the boat encounters successive wave crests.
III. distance between adjacent wave crests.
(A) I only (B) III only (C) I and II only (D) II and III only (E) I, II and III

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16. Two cylindrical vases, I and II are open at the top and have equal cross sections but vase II
taller than vasc I as shown figure Both vases are filled to equal heights with water The
frequencies of the fundamental standing waves in the air columns are fI and fII respectively.
Which of these is greater?
(A) fI (B) fII (C) Neither is greater : the frequencies are equal.
(D) It cannot be determined without knowing the exact amount of water.
(E) It cannot be determined without knowing the exact dimensions of the vases.

Questions 17-20 relate to the following properties of waves

(A) Frequency (B) wavelength (C) Speed (D) Intensity (E) Direction of prpagation.
17. which property is inversely propotional to the sequare of the distance from a point source of a
wave?
1
18. which property is equal to , where T is the period of the wave?
𝑇

19. which property is equal to the product of two of the others for a traveling wave?
20. which property is a minimum along a nodal line created by waves from two points sources?

21. the following graphs show displacement as a function of distance for pairs of traveling waves.
Which pair of waves would result in total destructive interference when superimposed?

Questions 22-23 relate to the figure below that represents a photograph of a wave propagating
along a string.

22. this wave is an example of a

(A) tosional wave (B) transverse wave (C) diffracted wave
(D) longitudinal wave (E) refracted wave
23. if the frequency of the wave is 80 Herts, the speed of the wave is
(A) 640 cm/s (B) 320 cm/s (C) 20 cm/s (D) 10 cm/s (E) 0.1 cm/s
24. A source emits sound of frequency fo in air. A person moving toward this source at a uniform
speed would measure a frequency that is
(A) constant and lower than fo (B) constant and the same as fo
(C) constant and higher than fo (D) continually decreasing (E) continually increasing
Questions 24-25 relate to the folloing drawing of a wave.

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24. what is the wavelength of the wave
(A) 0.1 m (B) 0.2 m (C) 0.5 m (D) 1.0 m (E) 2.0 m
25. what is the amplitude of the wave?
(A) 0.1 m (B) 0.2 m (C) 0.5 m (D) 1.0 m (E) it varies
between -0.1 and +0.1 m

26. two waves pulses travel toward the left on a taut string, as shown above. If the string is tightly
attached to the rigid post at the left, which of the following correctly shows the reflection of
these pulses?

27. A guitar string vibrates with a frequency of 400 hertz. If the tension in the string is increased
but the length of the string is fixed, which of the following will change?
I. wavelength of the fundamental standing wave on the string.
II. the frequency of the fundamental standing wave on the string.
III. the pitch of the sound produced.
(A) I only (B) II only (C) I and III only (D) II and III only (E) I, II, and III

28. the figure above shows two pulses on a string approaching each other. Which of the following
statements about the pulses is true?
(A) They will reflect off each other, reversing their directions.
(B) they will pass through each other without changing their directions.
(C) they will completely cancel each other and afterward there will be no pulse on the string.
(D) they will combine to form a single pulse with amplutide twice that of each original pulse.
(E) they will combine to form a standing wave on the string.