A light source blinks with a certain frequency in its own frame of reference, and the
speed of light in that frame is c. When the light source approaches you, you observe an
increase in
A) both speed of light and frequency of blinking.
B) speed of light, but not frequency of blinking.
C) frequency of blinking, but not speed of light.
If a freely falling object were equipped with a speedometer, its speed reading would
increase each second by about
A) 5 m/s.
B) 10 m/s.
C) 15 m/s.
D) a variable amount.
E) depends on its initial speed
If you are driving at 20 m/s and slam on your brakes and skid at 0.5g to a full stop, the
skidding time is about
A) 3 s.
B) 4 s.
C) 5 s.
D) 6 s.
E) greater than 6 s.
A pair of toy freight cars, one twice the mass of the other, fly apart when a compressed
spring that joins them is released. The spring exerts the greater force on the
A) heavier car.
B) lighter car.
C) same on each.
Over geologic history the Earth’s magnetic field
A) has been relatively stable.
B) has increased in strength exponentially.
C) has reversed direction many times.
D) is unknown.
The idea in fission-bomb design is to
A) form a supercritical mass from one or more subcritical masses.
B) bring neutrons and subcritical uranium together.
C) both of these
D) neither of these
An open freight car rolls friction free along a horizontal track in a pouring rain that falls
vertically. As water accumulates in the car, the car’s speed
1) increases.
2) decreases.
3) remains the same.
This is best explained by the principle of
4) inertia.
5) momentum conservation.
6) energy conservation.
7) Newton’s 2nd law.
Looking forward, common consensus will likely agree that the wisest use of fossil fuels
is to
A) convert them to heat and smoke.
B) save them for tomorrow’s materials.
C) extract and sell them as quickly as possible.
D) all of the above
The force exerted on an electron moving in a magnetic field is maximum when the
electron moves
A) parallel to the magnetic field.
B) perpendicular to the magnetic field.
C) either of these
D) neither of these
The force that acts between a pair of magnetic poles depends on
A) magnetic pole strength.
B) separation distance.
C) both of these
D) neither of these
If your mass, the mass of Earth, and the mass of everything in the solar system were
twice as much as it is now, yet everything stayed the same size, your weight on Earth
would
A) be the same.
B) double.
C) quadruple.
D) be eight times as much as now.
E) none of the above
If an object is placed exactly halfway between Earth and the Moon, it would fall toward
the
A) Earth.
B) Moon.
C) neither of these
You can swing your legs to and fro more frequently when your legs are
A) straight.
B) bent.
C) same either way
A beam of electrons can be deflected by a
A) magnetic field.
B) electric field.
C) both of these
D) neither of these
The critical angle for a transparent material is the angle at and beyond which all light
within the material at its upper surface is
A) refracted.
B) reflected.
C) absorbed.
D) dispersed.
E) diffused.
If several balls are thrown straight up with different initial speeds, the quantity that will
have the same value along their paths is their
A) initial momentum.
B) maximum height.
C) time of travel.
D) acceleration.
E) none of the above
A granite block is mostly empty space because the atoms in the granite are
A) in perpetual motion.
B) mostly empty space themselves.
C) held together by electrical forces.
D) not as close together as they could be.
E) invisible.
All places on Earth would have high tides at the same instant if the
A) Moon did not revolve.
B) Moon did not rotate.
C) Sun did not revolve.
D) Sun did not rotate.
E) none of the above
As a balloon high in the atmosphere descends, it undergoes a decrease in
A) volume.
B) density.
C) weight.
D) mass.
E) none of the above
On a planet in the solar system where the sky normally scatters light of lower
frequencies, its sunsets would be
A) reddish.
B) yellow-greenish.
C) bluish.
D) whitish.
An open freight car rolls friction free along a horizontal track in a pouring rain that falls
vertically. As water accumulates in the car, the car’s speed
A) increases.
B) decreases.
C) doesn’t change.
D) need more information
The dimmest part of sunlight is
A) red.
B) yellow.
C) yellow-green.
D) green.
E) violet.
A dolphin perceives its environment by the sense of
A) sight.
B) sound.
C) both of these
D) neither of these
A tightrope walker more easily balances on a tight wire if her pole
A) is held high.
B) droops.
C) is short but heavy.
Physicists today consider the Bohr model of the atom to be
A) an accurate picture of a hydrogen atom.
B) totally useless of historical interest only.
C) oversimplified, but nevertheless useful.
Neon atoms in a glass tube can be excited
A) once per atom.
B) repeatedly.
C) by infrared light.
The sky is usually the deepest blue
A) just before a rainstorm.
B) during a rainstorm.
C) just after a rainstorm.
D) just before sunset.
E) when the air is humid.
Adiabatic processes occur in Earth’s
A) atmosphere.
B) oceans.
C) mantle.
D) all of the above
E) none of the above
A single raindrop illuminated by sunshine disperses
A) a single color.
B) mainly light of mid-frequency colors.
C) all the colors of the rainbow.
If vertically falling rain makes slanted 45o streaks on the side windows of a moving car,
the speed of the car
A) is less than the speed of the falling drops.
B) equals the speed of the falling drops.
C) exceeds the speed of the falling drops.
D) need more information
Rub electrons from your hair with a comb and the comb becomes
A) negatively charged.
B) positively charged.
C) discharged.
A skipper on a boat sees wave crests passing the anchor chain every 5 seconds and
estimates the distance between crests is 15 m. What is the speed of the water waves?
A) 3 m/s
B) 5 m/s
C) 15 m/s
D) need more information