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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. A means of defining the direction of the cross product vector. To define the direction of the vector - position your right hand so that your fingers point in the direction of A - and then curl them around so that they point in the direction of B. Th






2. In the graphical representation of vectors - the tip of the arrow is the pointy end.






3. The mass difference between a nucleus and the sum of the masses of the constituent protons and neutrons.






4. A reference frame in which Newton's First Law is true. Two inertial reference frames move at a constant velocity relative to one another. According to the first postulate of Einstein's theory of special relativity - the laws of physics are the same i






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






6. An equation - PV = nRT - that relates the pressure - volume - temperature - and quantity of an ideal gas. An ideal gas is one that obeys the approximations laid out in the kinetic theory of gases.






7. The angle between a reflected ray and the normal.






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






9. A wave with wave crests that propagate down the length of the medium - in contrast to stationary standing waves. The velocity at which a crest propagates is called the wave speed.






10. An object cannot be cooled to absolute zero.






11. The number of hydrogen atoms in one gram of hydrogen - equal to . When counting the number of molecules in a gas - it is often convenient to count them in moles.






12. An almost massless particle of neutral charge that is released along with a beta particle in beta decay.






13. The two shorter sides of a right triangle that meet at the right angle.






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






15. A measure of force per unit area. Pressure is measured in N/m2 or Pa.






16. 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.






17. 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.






18. A mirror that is curved such that its center is closer to the viewer than the edges - such as a doorknob. Convex mirrors reflect light away from a focal point.






19. 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.






20. The stable position of a system where the net force acting on the object is zero.






21. Heat transfer via the mass movement of molecules.






22. An experiment by Ernest Rutherford that proved for the first time that atoms have nuclei.






23. 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.






24. For a gas held at constant pressure - temperature and volume are directly proportional.

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25. The force that causes simple harmonic motion. The restoring force is always directed toward an object's equilibrium position.






26. The number of digits that have been accurately measured. When combining several measurements in a formula - the resulting calculation can only have as many significant digits as the measurement that has the smallest number of significant digits.






27. A principle derived by Werner Heisenberg in 1927 that tells us that we can never know both the position and the momentum of a particle at any given time.






28. A class of elementary particle whose mass is between that of a proton and that of an electron. A common kind of meson is the pion.






29. The process by which unstable nuclei spontaneously release particles and/or energy so as to come to a more stable arrangement. The most common forms of radioactive decay are alpha decay - beta decay - and gamma decay.






30. A vector quantity defined as the product of the force acting on a body multiplied by the time interval over which the force is exerted.






31. Two materials are in thermal equilibrium if they are at the same temperature.






32. The process by which a solid turns directly into gas - because it cannot exist as a liquid at a certain pressure.






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






34. Energy associated with the state of motion. The translational kinetic energy of an object is given by the equation .






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






36. A vector quantity - equal to the rate of change of the angular velocity vector with time. It is typically given in units of rad/s2.






37. 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.






38. The mass number - A - is the sum of the number of protons and neutrons in a nucleus. It is very close to the weight of that nucleus in atomic mass units.






39. An area of high air pressure that acts as the wave crest for sound waves. The spacing between successive compressions is the wavelength of sound - and the number of successive areas of compression that arrive at the ear per second is the frequency -






40. 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.






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






42. The energy stored in a thermodynamic system.






43. If two systems - A and B - are in thermal equilibrium and if B and C are also in thermal equilibrium - then systems A and C are necessarily in thermal equilibrium.






44. A vector quantity - commonly denoted by the vector s - which reflects an object's change in spatial position. The displacement vector points from the object's starting position to the object's current position in space. If an object is moved from poi






45. A positively charged particle that - along with the neutron - occupies the nucleus of the atom.






46. A constant in the numerator of a formula.






47. A number - Z - associated with the number of protons in the nucleus of an atom. Every element can be defined in s of its atomic number - since every atom of a given element has the same number of protons.






48. The spectrum containing all the different kinds of electromagnetic waves - ranging in wavelength and frequency.






49. A pulley is a simple machine that consists of a rope that slides around a disk or block.






50. The particles and energy released by the fission or fusion of one atom may trigger the fission or fusion of further atoms. In a chain reaction - fission or fusion is rapidly transferred to a large number of atoms - releasing tremendous amounts of ene