+ANSWERS TO:

 

_____________________________Physics 109   Test 1   Thursday 26 February 2004

(your name)                  Circle the correct letter or write in the correct answer

 

 

Please note also, you are expected to log in to “webassign” at least once each week to stay current with the homework assignments. 

 

1. You have built a bungee-jumping amusement that permits your customers to enjoy a seven second free-fall (you may assume that g = 10m/s). After that fall,

  1. they will have fallen less than 70m but will have speed 70 m/s.
  2. they will have fallen 70 m exactly and will have speed 70 m/s.
  3. they will have fallen more than 70 m but will have speed less than 70m/s.
  4. they will have fallen more than 70 m but will have speed 70 m/s.

 

(Ans. = d.)  Since there is no initial x or initial v, v = at and x = ½ at2

 

2. The reason that a pendulum clock keeps good time is:

  1. the pendulum oscillates back and forth with a constant frequency determined principally by the amount of mass at the end of the pendulum.
  2. the pendulum oscillates back and forth with a constant frequency which depends principally on the length of the pendulum and the acceleration due to gravity.
  3. the pendulum oscillates back and forth with a constant frequency determined principally by the pendulum's length.
  4. the pendulum oscillates back and forth with a constant frequency determined principally by the acceleration of gravity.

 

(Ans. = b.) See the text page 234.

 

3. The radiation from the surface of our sun, which is at about 6000K, is:

  1. peaked in the infrared.
  2. peaked in the visible.
  3. peaked in the ultraviolet.
  4. not peaked but emitting about the same energy at all wavelengths.

 

Ans. = b.  (see Fig 6.2.4, page 200))

 

4. A man and a small child are sitting at the center of a perfectly slippery ice skating rink but do not have skates. They are not moving and the man realizes that the only way for them to get off the rink is for the pair to push one another off the ice. Before the man can act, the child pushes hard on the man and the man begins to slide across the ice toward the edge. The man had no time to push the boy and, therefore:

  1. the boy will remain at the center of the rink.
  2. the boy will slide in the same direction as the man, but much more slowly than the man.
  3. the boy will slide in the opposite direction as the man, but much more slowly than the man.
  4. the boy will slide in the opposite direction as the man, but faster than the man.

 

Ans. = d; they will have equal and opposite momentum

 

5. When you drop a rubber ball on the floor and its bounces, the direction of its velocity reverses because:

  1. the ball can't stop moving and the floor blocks its path.
  2. the ball's momentum is conserved.
  3. the ball's energy is conserved.
  4. the floor exerts an upward support force on the ball and this force stops the ball's descent and eventually propels it upward.

 

Ans. = d.

 

6.  Moment of inertia is the measure of an object’s rotational inertia. If you wanted to figure out which of two round, symmetric objects has the largest moment of inertia, you should

(a)    spin each object in your hand and then drop it to the floor. The one that falls fastest while spinning has the larger moment of inertia.

(b)    lift each object and see which one takes the most force to lift upward at constant velocity.

(c)    twist each object back and forth about its center and see which one responds least rapidly.

(d)    spin each object in your hand and then drop it to the floor. The one that falls slowest while spinning has the larger moment of inertia.

 

Ans.= c; Large moment of inertia => large resistance to angular acceleration.

 

7. A large truck breaks down out on the road and receives a push back into town by a small compact car. While the car pushing the truck is speeding up to get up to cruising speed:

  1. the amount of force of the car pushing against the truck is greater than that of the truck pushing against the car.
  2. the amount of force of the car pushing against the truck is equal to that of the truck pushing against the car.
  3. the amount of force of the car pushing against the truck is less than that of the truck pushing against the car.
  4. neither the car nor the truck exerts any force on the other; the truck is pushed forward simply because it is in the way of the car.

 

Ans. = b; Newton’s Third!

 

8. Dew that forms on the grass and ground:

  1. cools the grass and surroundings as a result of condensation.
  2. warms the air when it evaporates.
  3. absorbs the latent heat from grass and ground.
  4. gives up heat on condensing on the grass and ground.

 

Ans. = d.  Heat is required to evaporate water and thus we expect heat to be given up when water vapor condenses.

 

9 You are pushing a refrigerator across a wood floor in a straight line and at a steady speed. Therefore,

  1. the magnitude of the force you are exerting on the refrigerator must be greater than the magnitude of its weight.
  2. the magnitude of the force you are exerting on the refrigerator must be exactly equal to its weight.
  3. the magnitude of the force you are exerting on the refrigerator must be equal to the magnitude of the force that friction exerts on it.
  4. the magnitude of the force you are exerting on the refrigerator must be greater than the magnitude of the force that friction is exerting on it.

 

Ans. = c; No net horiz. force so you and friction are equal and opposite.

 

10. When we increased the temperature of a hot filament in an incandescent light in class we noted that the thermal radiation:

  1. brightens and shifts to lower frequencies.
  2. shifts to shorter wavelengths while the brightness stays constant
  3. brightens while the wavelengths remain unchanged
  4. brightens and shifts to shorter wavelengths

 

Ans. = d.  Hoitter surfaces both emit more radiant energy (per square meter) but also shift their peak radiation to higher frequencise (and thus to shorter wavelengths)

 

11. Energy from the sun reaches the earth

  1. by radiation only.
  2. by a combination of radiation and conduction
  3. by a combination of radiation and convection
  4. by conduction only.

 

Ans. = a.  Radiation only

 

12. Suppose the river next to a power plant rises in temperature by 20 degrees C in summer. Would you then expect the efficiency of the power plant which uses that river for cooling water to:

  1. increase in efficiency
  2. decrease in efficiency
  3. experience no change in efficiency as a result of the rise in the river's temperature.

 

Ans. = b.  When the “low side temperature” of a heat engine is raised (or the “hot” side lowered) the ideal efficiency is reduced.

 

13. A diver whose mass is 40kg steps off a diving board that is 10m above the water. The diver hits the water with kinetic energy of (approximately):

  1. 100J
  2. 400J
  3. 4000J
  4. 5000J
  5. more than 5000J

 

Kat bottom = Pat top = mgh => Answer c.

 

14. A 1000 kg car moving at 50m/s south on slick ice hits a 5000 kg truck and the pair are stuck together and at rest immediately after the collision. The truck velocity before the collision was:

  1. 50 m/s north
  2. 50 m/s south
  3. 250 m/s south
  4. 10 m/s north
  5. 10 m/s south

 

Ans. = d.  Total momentum of this system before collision must have been zero.

 

15. A two-kilogram mass is held by a vertical spring. The spring is stretched by that mass 16 centimeters from its equilibrium length. If you now add 1.5 kilograms to the existing mass, how far will the spring be stretched from its equilibrium length?

a. 20 cm.    b. 24 cm.    c. 26 cm.    d. 28 cm.

Ans. = d.  F = -kx  ; F has been increased from 20N to 35N

 

16. If you drop a golf ball and a bowling ball simultaneously from the roof of your house, they will both hit the ground simultaneously. The two balls travel downward side by side because gravity gives them identical:

a. Downward momenta.

b. Downward acceleration

c. Masses

d. Downward force

 

Ans. = b.

 

17. If you try to cook vegetables with warm air at 150 degrees C., it takes a very long time. But when you cook those same vegetables with 100 degrees C. steam, they cook very rapidly. This is because the steam:

a. condenses on the colder vegetables, releasing a large amount of heat.

b. causes moisture inside the vegetables to boil and transfer heat to the vegetables.

c. condenses on the colder vegetables and absorbs a large amount of heat from the vegetables.

d. causes moisture inside the vegetables to boil and absorb heat from the vegetables.

 

Ans. = a.  Condensing steam releases much more heat than an equal mass of air at the same temperature.

 

18. You were heading forward in your car before coming to a complete stop at a red light. The careless driver of the car behind you fails to stop and his car crashes into your car from behind. You suddenly find your head shifted deep into the elastic cushion of your seat's headrest. During the period when your head is deep in the cushion, the net force on your head is

a)    backward and its acceleration is backward.

b)    forward and its acceleration is forward.

(c)    backward and its acceleration is forward.

(d)    zero and it is not accelerating.

 

Ans. = b.

 

19.  A woman leaps off the high diving board during a swimming competition and does a series of flips and spins in the air. As she plunges toward the water, her

(a)    angular velocity is constant.

(b)    angular momentum is constant.

(c)    momentum is constant.

(d)    velocity is constant.

 

Ans. = b.  With no external torques, her ang. mom. is constrant.  She does experience an external force (gravity)

 

 

20.  Suppose you have two identical-looking sticks, each with exactly the same total mass. In one stick, most of the mass is located at its ends. In the other stick, most of the mass is located at the middle. If you grip both sticks at the middle and exert equal torques on them with your wrists,

(A)    the sticks will undergo equal accelerations because they have equal masses.

(B)    the stick with its mass near its ends will undergo more angular acceleration.

(C)    the stick with its mass near its middle will undergo more angular acceleration.

(D)    the sticks will undergo equal accelerations because they have equal moments of inertia.

 

Ans. = c.  More mass at the ends means greater moment of inertia meaning less angular accel.for the same applied torque.

 

 

 

21.  You shoot an arrow at a target and it heads for the bullseye. After the arrow has left the bow, which of the following most accurately describes the force pushing it forward during its flight?

(A) The arrow experiences no forward force.
(B) The forward force is constant all the way to the bullseye.
(C) The forward force increases to the midway point and then decreases to zero just as the arrow hits the bullseye.
(D) The forward force decreases steadily, reaching zero just as the arrow hits the bullseye.

 

Ans. = a.  (But b is not wrong and was accepted)

 

22.  A helicopter is hovering motionless above a disabled boat, while rescue workers use a rope to lift an injured sailor. While that sailor is being lifted upward, the net force on the motionless helicopter is

(A) downward and equal to the sailor's weight.
(B) zero.
(C) upward and equal to the sailor's weight.
(D) downward and equal to the sailor's weight plus the helicopter's weight.

 

Ans. = b.  Motionless => no net force.

 

23.  You're heading northward in your car. The light turns red in front of you, so you step on the brake. As you do,

(A) your car's velocity is southward.

(B) your car accelerates northward.

(C) your car accelerates southward.

(D) the net force on your car is zero.

 

Ans. = C.  The brakes are exerting a southward accel in order to slow the car.

 

24.  When an ice skater begins to spin on the point of one skate, her arms are outstretched. She then pulls in her arms and spins much more rapidly because

(A) her angular momentum can't change but her moment of inertia decreases.

(B) her mass decreases so the force of her momentum causes her to accelerate.

(C) her angular velocity can't change so her angular acceleration must increase.

(D) her angular acceleration can't change so her angular velocity must increase.

 

 

Ans. = A. 

 

 

25.  You are walking your dog on a leash. The dog sees a rabbit and begins to run after it. The two of you run across the park, with the dog in the lead and you following. The leash is tight. As the two of you run,

(A) you are transferring equal amounts of energy to one another.

(B) there is no transfer of energy between you and the dog.

(C) the dog transfers energy to you.

(D) you transfer energy to the dog.

 

Ans. = c.  The dog is pulling you in the direction you are moving and thus the leash must be doing work on you.

 

26.  During the power stroke in one cylinder of a car's engine, the burned fuel and air gases push the piston out of the cylinder. In accordance with Newton's third law, the piston pushes back on the burned gases. Overall,

(A) the burned gases do work on the piston and they experience a drop in temperature.

(B) the burned gases do work on the piston and they experience a rise in temperature.

(C) the piston does work on the burned gases and they experience a drop in temperature.

(D) the piston does work on the burned gases and they experience a rise in temperature.

Ans. = a.  Gasses push on the piston; expanding gas will drop in temperature.

 

27.  A friend suggests that you invest in a new invention that apparently absorbs heat from the room and converts it into electricity. It supposedly sits in the middle of the room, gradually cooling the room air while providing a steady and endless supply of electric power. You wisely choose not to invest because in order to work as described, this device would have to do something impossible-it would have to

(A) violate the conservation of energy.

(B) lower the total entropy of its environment.

(C) turn stored energy into power.

(D) turn work into heat, or more precisely, into thermal energy.

 

Ans. = B

 

28.  You’re operating a propane gas grill from a fuel tank that’s located below the grill. This tank is half filled with liquid propane. As the grill consumes gaseous propane, the tank’s temperature drops below room temperature. This refrigerating effect occurs because

(A) heat naturally flows from a cooler object to a hotter object.

(B) heat is needed to initiate and sustain combustion in the grill.

(C) thermal energy is being used to convert liquid propane into gaseous propane in the tank.

(D) heat naturally rises from the tank to the grill above it.

 

Ans. = C.  Whenever we turn a liquid into a gas we must supply heat.

 

29.  A heat engine produces useful work as it transfers heat from a hot region to a cold region. If the cold region's temperature increases and the hot region's temperature stays constant, the heat engine will

(A) need to transfer more heat to produce the same amount of useful work as before.

(B) become more efficient than before at converting heat into useful work.

(C) have the same efficiency as before at converting heat into useful work.

(D) be able to produce more useful work while transferring the same amount of heat as before.

 

Ans. = a.  Efficiency is lowered when either high temp drops or lower temp increases.

 

30.  The temperature of a glass of ice water (a mixture of ice and water)

(A) is proportional to the ratio of water to ice.

(B) depends on the total volume of ice and water in the glass.

(C) is 0 °C.

(D) is proportional to the ratio of ice to water.

 

Ans. = c.

 

 

 

31.  A heat engine provides usable work by permitting:

            A. Heat to flow from a colder object to a hotter object.

B. Work to be completely transformed into heat.

C. Heat to be completely transformed into work.

D. Heat to flow from a hotter object to a colder object.

 

Ans. = D.

 

 

33.  The heat capacity of liquid water is 1 calorie per gram per degree Celsius (or 1 Calorie = kilocalorie per kg. per degree Celsius). This means that:

A.      If I have 10 g of water, I can raise its temperature 1 degree Celsius by adding one calorie of heat.

B.     If I have 10 g of water, I can raise its temperature 10 degrees Celsius by adding 10 calories of heat.

C.     If I have 1000 kg of water, I can raise its temperature by 10 degree Celsius by adding 1 Calorie of heat.

D.     None of the above.

 

Ans. = D.

 

SHORT, DIRECT ANSWERS PLEASE

 

34. A compact tumbling space satellite suddenly extends a very long boom-antenna while rotating in space. Its speed of rotation (in revolutions per second) will: (state why you give the answer below)

  1. increase
  2. decrease
  3. stay constant

Ans = b. Because: We have increased the moment of inertia and thus, in the absence of an external torque, the angular momentum remains constant and the angular velocity slows. ________________________________

 

 

 

 

35. What was the particular physical observation made by Benjamin Thompson (Count Rumford) in his drilling of canon that caused him to correctly deduce the origins of thermal energy?

 

 

Ans. = Drilling a canon with a very dull drill appeared to release the same amount of heat as when using a very sharp drill.  Thus, heating was not the result of the “release of caloric”.