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SAT Subject Test: hysics

Subjects : sat, science, physics
Instructions:
  • Answer 50 questions in 15 minutes.
  • If you are not ready to take this test, you can study here.
  • Match each statement with the correct term.
  • Don't refresh. All questions and answers are randomly picked and ordered every time you load a test.

This is a study tool. The 3 wrong answers for each question are randomly chosen from answers to other questions. So, you might find at times the answers obvious, but you will see it re-enforces your understanding as you take the test each time.
1. An image created by a mirror or lens in such a way that light does not actually come from where the image appears to be.






2. In oscillation - a cycle occurs when an object undergoing oscillatory motion completes a "round-trip." For instance - a pendulum bob released at angle has completed one cycle when it swings to and then back to again. In period motion - a cycle is the






3. The cancellation of one wave by another wave that is exactly out of phase with the first. Despite the dramatic name of this phenomenon - nothing is "destroyed" by this interference—the two waves emerge intact once they have passed each other.






4. Heat transfer via electromagnetic waves.






5. Linear momentum - p - commonly called "momentum" for short - is a vector quantity defined as the product of an object's mass - m - and its velocity - v.






6. When electromagnetic radiation shines upon a metal - the surface of the metal releases energized electrons. The way in which these electrons are released contradicts classical theories of electromagnetic radiation and supports the quantum view accord






7. A transfer of thermal energy. We don't speak about systems "having" heat - but about their "transferring" heat - much in the way that dynamical systems don't "have" work - but rather "do" work.






8. Occurs when every point in the rigid body moves in a circular path around a line called the axis of rotation.






9. Heat transfer by molecular collisions.






10. For a heat engine - the ratio of work done by the engine to heat intake. Efficiency is never 100%.






11. In radioactive substances - the number of nuclei that decay per second. Activity - A - will be larger in large samples of radioactive material - since there will be more nuclei.






12. A unit of measurement for energy on atomic levels. 1 eV = J.






13. In the Bohr model of the atom - the state in which an electron has the least energy and orbits closest to the nucleus.






14. The property by which a changing current in one coil of wire induces an emf in another.






15. A unit for measuring angles; also called a "rad." 2p rad = 360º.






16. The points of maximum displacement along a wave. In traveling waves - the crests move in the direction of propagation of the wave. The crests of standing waves - also called anti-nodes - remain in one place.






17. Done when energy is transferred by a force. The work done by a force F in displacing an object by s is W = F · s.






18. States that the net work done on an object is equal to the object's change in kinetic energy.






19. A vector of magnitude 1 along one of the coordinate axes. Generally - we take the basis vectors to be and - the vectors of length 1 along the x- and y-axes - respectively.






20. The building blocks of all matter - quarks are the constituent parts of protons - neutrons - and mesons.






21. A form of radioactivity where an excited atom releases a photon of gamma radiation - thereby returning to a lower energy state. The atomic structure itself does not change in the course of gamma radiation.






22. A device that breaks incoming light down into spectral rays - so that one can see the exact wavelength constituents of the light.






23. The force between two surfaces moving relative to one another. The frictional force is parallel to the plane of contact between the two objects and in the opposite direction of the sliding object's motion.






24. The distance between successive wave crests - or troughs. Wavelength is measured in meters and is related to frequency and wave speed by = v/f.






25. The center of a mirror or lens.






26. The energy of a particle moving in space. It is defined in s of a particle's mass - m - and velocity - v - as (1/2)mv2.






27. The points on a standing wave where total destructive interference causes the medium to remain fixed at its equilibrium position.






28. The unit for measuring pressure. One Pascal is equal to one Newton per meter squared - 1 Pa = 1 N/m2.






29. Waves produced by a source that is moving with respect to the observer will seem to have a higher frequency and smaller wavelength if the motion is towards the observer - and a lower frequency and longer wavelength if the motion is away from the obse






30. The building blocks of all matter - atoms are made up of a nucleus consisting of protons and neutrons - and a number of electrons that orbit the nucleus. An electrically neutral atom has as many protons as it has electrons.






31. A property common to both vectors and scalars. In the graphical representation of a vector - the vector's magnitude is equal to the length of the arrow.






32. A mirror that is curved such that its center is farther from the viewer than the edges - such as the front of a spoon. Concave mirrors reflect light through a focal point.






33. In an interference or diffraction pattern - the places where there is the least light.






34. The force necessary to maintain a body in uniform circular motion. This force is always directed radially toward the center of the circle.






35. A wedge or a slide. The dynamics of objects sliding down inclined planes is a popular topic on SAT II Physics.






36. The principle stating that for any isolated system - linear momentum is constant with time.






37. The disorder of a system.






38. The speed at which a wave crest or trough propagates. Note that this is not the speed at which the actual medium (like the stretched string or the air particles) moves.






39. The principle by which the displacements from different waves traveling in the same medium add up. Superposition is the basis for interference.






40. A particle - which consists of two protons and two neutrons. It is identical to the nucleus of a helium atom and is ejected by heavy particles undergoing alpha decay.






41. When an object is held in circular motion about a massive body - like a planet or a sun - due to the force of gravity - that object is said to be in orbit. Objects in orbit are in perpetual free fall - and so are therefore weightless.






42. A nuclear reaction in which a high-energy neutron bombards a heavy - unstable atomic nucleus - causing it to split into two smaller nuclei - and releasing some neutrons and a vast amount of energy at the same time






43. A vector quantity - - that reflects the change of angular displacement with time - and is typically given in units of rad/s. To find the direction of the angular velocity vector - take your right hand and curl your fingers along the particle or body






44. The ratio of the size of the image produced by a mirror or lens to the size of the original object. This number is negative if the image is upside-down.






45. A frequency - f - defined as the number of revolutions a rigid body makes in a given time interval. It is a scalar quantity commonly denoted in units of Hertz (Hz) or s-1.






46. A collision in which the colliding particles stick together.






47. The amount of heat necessary to transform a liquid at a given temperature into a gas of the same temperature - or the amount of heat needed to be taken away from a gas of a given temperature to transform it into a liquid of the same temperature.






48. The points of maximum negative displacement along a wave. They are the opposite of wave crests.






49. A transfer of thermal energy from one system to another.






50. For a reflected light ray - . In other words - a ray of light reflects of a surface in the same plane as the incident ray and the normal - and at an angle to the normal that is equal to the angle between the incident ray and the normal.