Fill in the blanks.

1. The distance from the crest of one wave to the crest of the next wave is the ____________________.

2. _______________, the number of waves produced in a given amount of time, is expressed in Hertz.

3. The maximum distance that the particles of a medium move away from their rest position is a measure
of a wave’s ____________________.

Choose the correct answer

1. How can the speed of a mechanical wave be calculated?
A. Add the wavelength and the period.
B. Divide the period by the wavelength.
C. Divide the wavelength by the period.
D. Multiply the wavelength and the period.

2. A wave like the one shown in the diagram below is called a transverse wave. Such a wave is typical of
light waves and other types of electromagnetic waves. Every transverse wave has certain properties,
including wavelength. One measure of wavelength is the distance from B to D.
What is another measure of wavelength?
A. distance from A to D
B. distance from A to C
C. distance from B to C
D. distance from A to B

3. A wave is produced from a vibrating string on a violin. Two observers are standing 20 m and 40 m
away from the musician. The observer that is further away states that the violin sounds quiet but the
other observer disagrees. What best explains the different experiences of the two observers?
A. The energy of the sound wave increased as it moved away from the source.
B. The energy of the sound wave decreased as it moved away from the source.
C. The energy of the sound wave remained the same as it moved away from the source.
D. The energy of the sound wave increased, then decreased as it moved away from the source.

4. Through which of these media do sound waves travel most slowly?

A. iron B. wood
C. water D. cold air
5. The speed of a mechanical wave through a medium depends on the type of medium. It also depends
on the type of mechanical wave. Which statement is true?
A. All waves travel at the same speed through any medium.
B. All waves travel at the same speed if no medium is present.
C. Electromagnetic waves require a medium, but mechanical waves do not.
D. Mechanical waves require a medium, but electromagnetic waves do not.

6. The diagram below shows a wave pattern. One wave property that is shown is amplitude. Amplitude
is the vertical distance from the rest position to either the crest or the trough of a wave.
What is the rest position of a wave in the diagram?
A. E
B. F
C. distance from G to H
D. point that is halfway between G and H

7. Brianna reported a measurement in units of hertz. What property of a wave was she measuring?
A. period B. frequency
C. amplitude D. wavelength

8. During a thunderstorm, Sanjay saw lightning and then heard thunder 5 seconds later. What would be
different if the air had been warmer?
A. He would have seen the lightning and heard the thunder at the same time.
B. He would have heard the thunder before seeing the lightning.
C. He would have heard the thunder sooner.
D. He would have heard the thunder later.

9. Aimee and Patrick are playing hide-and-seek on a summer day. Aimee gives Patrick a clue to her
location by knocking three times every 30 seconds. Which characteristic of waves makes this a useful
clue to help Patrick find Aimee?
A. Wave energy increases with distance.
B. Wave energy decreases with distance.
C. Sound waves travel faster in cold air than in warm air.
D. Sound waves travel faster in warm air than in cold air.

10. Sashita uses the volume control on her TV to make the sound louder or softer. Which property of
waves is Sashita’s volume control changing?
A. amplitude B. wave period
C. wavelength D. wave speed
11. Which statement best explains what waves are?
A. wavy lines on graph paper
B. disturbances that transfer energy
C. light energy that changes into particles of matter
D. circles that move out from a central place

12. The diagram shows the shape and different measurements of a wave.

What property of the wave does F measure?

A. period C. amplitude
B. frequency D. wavelength

13. Frequency equals the number of wavelengths per unit of time.

Wavelengths
Frequency
Unit of time
Which unit is used to measure frequency as cycles per second?
A. hertz C. crest
B. period D. minutes

14. Which statement about the effects of medium on the speed of a mechanical wave is true?
A. Medium has no effect on the speed of a mechanical wave.
B. A mechanical wave generally travels faster in solids than liquids.
C. A mechanical wave generally travels faster in gases than liquids.
D. A mechanical wave always travels through liquids at the speed of light.

15. What is the term for the distance from the highest part of one wave to the highest part of the next
wave?
A. period B. frequency
C. amplitude D. wavelength

16. Caleb is at the beach. He counts the number of wave peaks that pass a given point on the beach in a
certain amount of time. What property of waves does Caleb measure?
A. speed B. frequency
C. amplitude D. wavelength
17. An earthquake sends out mechanical waves in all directions from its source. In answering the
following question, assume the wave starts carrying energy equally in all directions. The wavefront
reaches each of the different locations as shown in the diagram.
At which location does a point on the wavefront have the least energy?
A. 1
B. 2
C. 3
D. 4

18. Through which medium does a mechanical wave travel most quickly?
A. solid B. liquid
C. less dense gas D. very dense gas

19. What is the speed of a wave with a wavelength of 4 cm and a frequency of 8 hertz?
A. 0.5 cm/s B. 2 cm/s
C. 12 cm/s D. 32 cm/s

20. Which term describes the length between two adjacent crests of a wave?
A. period B. frequency
C. amplitude D. wavelength

21. Brenda is listening for a beacon when she hears a continuous series of beeps. The time between the
beeps is 2 seconds. What is the best way for her to enter her observations in her log book?
A. The amplitude of the beacon is 2.
B. The speed of the beacon is 2 m/s.
C. The frequency of the beacon is 0.5 Hz.
D. The wavelength of the beacon is 0.5 nm.

22. A devastating earthquake occurs in a heavily populated area, releasing waves in all directions from its
source. In answering the following question, assume the wave starts carrying energy equally in all
directions. The wavefront reaches each of the different locations shown in the diagram.
The mayor wants to send medical personnel to the area that likely experienced the most damage.
Which location should the mayor send the personnel first?
A. 1
B. 2
C. 3
D. 4
23. Wave speed depends on the properties of the medium through which a wave travels. In which medium
will a mechanical wave travel fastest?
A. hot air B. cold air
C. a liquid D. a solid

24. What is the speed of a wave with a wavelength of 10 cm and a frequency of 4 hertz?
A. 0.4 cm/s
B. 2.5 cm/s
C. 14 cm/s
D. 40 cm/s

25. The medium through which a mechanical wave passes can be a solid, a liquid, or a gas. Properties of a
wave might change when it moves from one medium to another. What happens to the speed of a wave
when it moves from a gas to a solid?
A. It speeds up.
B. It slows down.
C. It remains the same.
D. It speeds up and then slows down.

26. Chang noticed that it took 2 s for a wave to pass where he was swimming. What property of a wave
did he measure?
A. period B. speed
C. amplitude D. wavelength

27. Mei knows the wavelength and the frequency of a wave. How will she use this information to
calculate the speed of the wave?
A. Add frequency and wavelength.
B. Divide frequency by wavelength.
C. Divide wavelength by frequency.
D. Multiply wavelength and frequency.

28. Some waves carry more energy than others. Which wave has more energy, a loud sound or a quiet
sound? Why?
29. Tafari worked one summer on a ship that set weather buoys in the ocean. He watched how one of the
buoys moved in the water.
Which wave property describes why the buoy bobs up and down?

Which wave property determined how fast the buoys bobbed in the water?

He observed that when the wind blew harder, the ocean waves were larger, and the buoys moved
away from the ship. What effect, if any, did the waves have on how far the buoys moved? Explain
your answer.

30. Jung arrived at a concert in the park so late that the only seat she could get was almost a block from
the stage. The music sounded much fainter to Jung than it did to people near the stage. She could hear
the drums and bass guitar fairly well, but she had trouble hearing higher sounds from the singer.
Explain the properties and behavior of waves that affected how Jung heard the music.
Fill in the blanks.
1. The distance from the crest of one wave to the crest of the next wave is the wavelength.

2. frequency, the number of waves produced in a given amount of time, is expressed in Hertz.

3. The maximum distance that the particles of a medium move away from their rest position is a measure
of a wave’s amplitude.

Choose the correct answer

1. How can the speed of a mechanical wave be calculated?
A. Add the wavelength and the period.
B. Divide the period by the wavelength.
C. Divide the wavelength by the period.
D. Multiply the wavelength and the period.

2. A wave like the one shown in the diagram below is called a transverse wave. Such a wave is typical of
light waves and other types of electromagnetic waves. Every transverse wave has certain properties,
including wavelength. One measure of wavelength is the distance from B to D.
What is another measure of wavelength?
A. distance from A to D
B. distance from A to C
C. distance from B to C
D. distance from A to B

3. A wave is produced from a vibrating string on a violin. Two observers are standing 20 m and 40 m
away from the musician. The observer that is further away states that the violin sounds quiet but the
other observer disagrees. What best explains the different experiences of the two observers?
A. The energy of the sound wave increased as it moved away from the source.
B. The energy of the sound wave decreased as it moved away from the source.
C. The energy of the sound wave remained the same as it moved away from the source.
D. The energy of the sound wave increased, then decreased as it moved away from the source.

4. Through which of these media do sound waves travel most slowly?

A. iron B. wood
C. water D. cold air
5. The speed of a mechanical wave through a medium depends on the type of medium. It also depends
on the type of mechanical wave. Which statement is true?
A. All waves travel at the same speed through any medium.
B. All waves travel at the same speed if no medium is present.
C. Electromagnetic waves require a medium, but mechanical waves do not.
D. Mechanical waves require a medium, but electromagnetic waves do not.

6. The diagram below shows a wave pattern. One wave property that is shown is amplitude. Amplitude
is the vertical distance from the rest position to either the crest or the trough of a wave.
What is the rest position of a wave in the diagram?
A. E
B. F
C. distance from G to H
D. point that is halfway between G and H

7. Brianna reported a measurement in units of hertz. What property of a wave was she measuring?
A. period B. frequency
C. amplitude D. wavelength

8. During a thunderstorm, Sanjay saw lightning and then heard thunder 5 seconds later. What would be
different if the air had been warmer?
A. He would have seen the lightning and heard the thunder at the same time.
B. He would have heard the thunder before seeing the lightning.
C. He would have heard the thunder sooner.
D. He would have heard the thunder later.

9. Aimee and Patrick are playing hide-and-seek on a summer day. Aimee gives Patrick a clue to her
location by knocking three times every 30 seconds. Which characteristic of waves makes this a useful
clue to help Patrick find Aimee?
A. Wave energy increases with distance.
B. Wave energy decreases with distance.
C. Sound waves travel faster in cold air than in warm air.
D. Sound waves travel faster in warm air than in cold air.

10. Sashita uses the volume control on her TV to make the sound louder or softer. Which property of
waves is Sashita’s volume control changing?
A. amplitude B. wave period
C. wavelength D. wave speed
11. Which statement best explains what waves are?
A. wavy lines on graph paper
B. disturbances that transfer energy
C. light energy that changes into particles of matter
D. circles that move out from a central place

12. The diagram shows the shape and different measurements of a wave.

What property of the wave does F measure?

A. period C. amplitude
B. frequency D. wavelength

13. Frequency equals the number of wavelengths per unit of time.

Wavelengths
Frequency
Unit of time
Which unit is used to measure frequency as cycles per second?
A. hertz C. crest
B. period D. minutes

14. Which statement about the effects of medium on the speed of a mechanical wave is true?
A. Medium has no effect on the speed of a mechanical wave.
B. A mechanical wave generally travels faster in solids than liquids.
C. A mechanical wave generally travels faster in gases than liquids.
D. A mechanical wave always travels through liquids at the speed of light.

15. What is the term for the distance from the highest part of one wave to the highest part of the next
wave?
A. period B. frequency
C. amplitude D. wavelength

16. Caleb is at the beach. He counts the number of wave peaks that pass a given point on the beach in a
certain amount of time. What property of waves does Caleb measure?
A. speed B. frequency
C. amplitude D. wavelength
17. An earthquake sends out mechanical waves in all directions from its source. In answering the
following question, assume the wave starts carrying energy equally in all directions. The wavefront
reaches each of the different locations as shown in the diagram.
At which location does a point on the wavefront have the least energy?
A. 1
B. 2
C. 3
D. 4

18. Through which medium does a mechanical wave travel most quickly?
A. solid B. liquid
C. less dense gas D. very dense gas

19. What is the speed of a wave with a wavelength of 4 cm and a frequency of 8 hertz?
A. 0.5 cm/s B. 2 cm/s
C. 12 cm/s D. 32 cm/s

20. Which term describes the length between two adjacent crests of a wave?
A. period B. frequency
C. amplitude D. wavelength

21. Brenda is listening for a beacon when she hears a continuous series of beeps. The time between the
beeps is 2 seconds. What is the best way for her to enter her observations in her log book?
A. The amplitude of the beacon is 2.
B. The speed of the beacon is 2 m/s.
C. The frequency of the beacon is 0.5 Hz.
D. The wavelength of the beacon is 0.5 nm.

22. A devastating earthquake occurs in a heavily populated area, releasing waves in all directions from its
source. In answering the following question, assume the wave starts carrying energy equally in all
directions. The wavefront reaches each of the different locations shown in the diagram.
The mayor wants to send medical personnel to the area that likely experienced the most damage.
Which location should the mayor send the personnel first?
A. 1
B. 2
C. 3
D. 4
23. Wave speed depends on the properties of the medium through which a wave travels. In which medium
will a mechanical wave travel fastest?
IMPORTANT NOTE
A. hot air B. cold air
This answer is from the answer key of
C. a liquid D. a solid
the assessment guide, yet it seems to be
wrong.

Here’s the explanation of the answer:

You have to contact your teacher to

follow his instructions regarding this
type of questions (comparing speed of
mechanical wave while changing 2
factors that affect the speed such as
medium and temperature)

24. What is the speed of a wave with a wavelength of 10 cm and a frequency of 4 hertz?
A. 0.4 cm/s
B. 2.5 cm/s
C. 14 cm/s
D. 40 cm/s

25. The medium through which a mechanical wave passes can be a solid, a liquid, or a gas. Properties of a
wave might change when it moves from one medium to another. What happens to the speed of a wave
when it moves from a gas to a solid?
A. It speeds up.
B. It slows down.
C. It remains the same.
D. It speeds up and then slows down.

26. Chang noticed that it took 2 s for a wave to pass where he was swimming. What property of a wave
did he measure?
A. period B. speed
C. amplitude D. wavelength

27. Mei knows the wavelength and the frequency of a wave. How will she use this information to
calculate the speed of the wave?
A. Add frequency and wavelength.
B. Divide frequency by wavelength.
C. Divide wavelength by frequency.
D. Multiply wavelength and frequency.
28. Some waves carry more energy than others. Which wave has more energy, a loud sound or a quiet
sound? Why?
A loud sound wave has more energy than a quiet sound. This is because the loud sound wave has a
higher amplitude and transfers more energy to the eardrum.

29. Tafari worked one summer on a ship that set weather buoys in the ocean. He watched how one of the
buoys moved in the water.
Which wave property describes why the buoy bobs up and down?
The passing of a wave caused the buoy to bob up and down. When the crest of a wave passed, the buoy rose
up; when a trough passed, the buoy dipped down.

Which wave property determined how fast the buoys bobbed in the water?
The shorter a wave period and higher the frequency, the more rapidly the buoys would bob up and
down.

He observed that when the wind blew harder, the ocean waves were larger, and the buoys moved
away from the ship. What effect, if any, did the waves have on how far the buoys moved? Explain
your answer.
The waves did not directly move the buoys or the water, because waves only move through the water.
Waves only transfer energy, not matter such as the water itself or the buoys.

30. Jung arrived at a concert in the park so late that the only seat she could get was almost a block from
the stage. The music sounded much fainter to Jung than it did to people near the stage. She could hear
the drums and bass guitar fairly well, but she had trouble hearing higher sounds from the singer.
Explain the properties and behavior of waves that affected how Jung heard the music.
The band playing set up vibrations in air that traveled to Jung as sound waves.
The band sounded fainter to Jung and other listeners far from the stage because the energy of the sound waves
decreased as they moved farther from the band. High frequency waves (singer’s voice) typically lose energy
more readily than low frequency waves (drums and bass).
The energy of the sound waves decreased for two reasons. The sound waves moved through air by causing
air particles to vibrate. Some energy is lost as particles rubbed against each other, creating friction that took
energy from the sound waves. In addition, the waves spread out in circles called wavefronts. As the
wavefronts expanded, the energy in the waves was spread out over a larger area and are therefore, reduced
at any specific point on the wavefront.