Physical Science Review Flashcards

Flashcards generated from the Physical Science lecture transcript covering motion, light phenomena, special and general relativity, and cosmology.

Which thinker taught that a force is needed to keep an object moving horizontally?

Aristotle

Which statement best compares Aristotle and Galileo on horizontal motion?

Aristotle required continuous force, while Galileo emphasized inertia when friction is absent.

A toy car rolls on a very smooth floor after a push. Which idea best explains why it keeps moving for a while?

Natural place

A ball slows on rough ground but travels farther on smooth ground. What factor mainly causes the difference?

Friction

Which claim is better supported by a puck moving almost steadily on smooth ice?

Less friction allows motion to continue longer.

In a vacuum, falling objects have what kind of acceleration near Earth?

Uniform acceleration

Why do a coin and a feather fall together in a vacuum?

There is no air resistance to slow the feather.

A ball is dropped in a vacuum. Which description is correct?

Its speed increases as it falls.

A paper sheet falls slower than a coin in air, but both fall together in a vacuum. What explains the difference?

Air resistance

Which test best supports Galileo's idea about falling objects?

Drop different objects in a vacuum chamber.

What is another name for Newton's First Law?

Law of Inertia

What does the Law of Inertia state about an object at rest?

It stays at rest unless acted on by a net external force.

Passengers move forward when a bus stops suddenly. Which concept explains this?

Inertia

Galileo said continuous force is not needed for sustained horizontal motion. Newton's First Law extends this idea by including what?

Both objects at rest and objects moving at constant velocity

Which statement correctly distinguishes the ideas of Galileo and Newton on motion?

Galileo focused on sustained horizontal motion, while Newton stated a general law of inertia.

The bouncing of light from a surface is called what?

Reflection

Why does a straw seem bent in a glass of water?

Light is refracted as it passes between air and water.

Which device mainly uses reflection to let a person see an image?

Plane mirror

Light changes direction when entering glass from air. Which phenomenon is shown?

Refraction

Which model best explains interference and diffraction?

Wave model

A packet of light energy is called what?

Photon

How is photon energy related to frequency?

Higher frequency means higher energy.

Which light has higher-energy photons?

Ultraviolet light

Why is red light used in photographic dark rooms?

Because red photons have relatively lower frequency and lower energy than visible blue light

Which explanation best accounts for easy sunburn from ultraviolet light?

Ultraviolet photons carry more energy than visible-light photons.

The separation of white light into colors is called what?

Dispersion

The spreading of light after passing through a narrow opening is called what?

Diffraction

The combining of waves to form brighter and darker regions is called what?

Interference

Why does the sky usually look blue during the day?

Blue light is scattered more strongly by the atmosphere.

A prism produces a rainbow-like band from white light. What phenomenon is being applied?

Dispersion

Light passes through two narrow slits and forms alternating bright and dark bands. Which phenomenon is responsible?

Interference

Which observation is the best evidence of diffraction?

Light spreads after passing through a very narrow slit.

A rainbow is commonly produced by dispersion of sunlight in what?

Water droplets

A mirage mainly involves the bending of light, known as what?

Refraction

Why can a soap bubble show many colors?

Light waves reflected from thin layers interfere.

Why are sunsets often reddish?

More blue light is scattered away over the long path through the atmosphere.

A compact disc shows rainbow colors when light strikes its closely spaced tracks. Which two ideas are most involved?

Diffraction and interference

Who proposed the theory of Special Relativity?

Albert Einstein

According to Special Relativity, what is the speed of light in a vacuum?

Constant for all inertial observers

What is an inertial reference frame?

A frame moving at constant velocity or at rest

Two observers move at constant velocities. Each measures a light beam in vacuum. What speed should each obtain?

The same speed of light

If the laws of physics are the same in all inertial frames, which situation fits an inertial frame?

A train moving straight at constant speed

Which statement agrees with the postulates of Special Relativity regarding inertial observers?

No inertial observer is preferred for describing the laws of physics.

General Relativity describes gravity as the curvature of what?

Spacetime

How does a clock near a very massive object run compared with a clock farther away?

More slowly

Why can light bend near a massive object?

Mass curves spacetime, changing the path of light.

Which observation is an application of General Relativity?

Correcting satellite clocks in GPS systems

A star appears shifted when its light passes near the Sun. What is the best explanation?

The Sun's gravity bends the light path.

Which evidence best supports General Relativity?

Gravitational bending of light near a massive body

The change in observed wavelength due to motion is called what?

Doppler effect

The distance light travels in one year is called what?

Light-year

What does redshift usually indicate about a distant galaxy?

It is moving away from the observer.

A galaxy's spectral lines shift toward longer wavelengths. What motion is indicated?

The galaxy is moving away.

Galaxy A has a greater redshift than Galaxy B. What can be concluded using Hubble's relationship?

Galaxy A is generally receding faster and is farther away.

Which method is most suitable for estimating the distance to a very far galaxy?

Use its redshift with Hubble's relationship.

How is a rainbow formed using light phenomena?

A rainbow forms when sunlight undergoes refraction and dispersion as it enters water droplets, reflects off the back surface of the droplets, and undergoes refraction again as it exits.

Which thinker taught that a force is needed to keep an object moving horizontally?

Aristotle

How do Aristotle and Galileo compare on horizontal motion?

Aristotle required continuous force, while Galileo emphasized inertia when friction is absent.

Which idea best explains why a toy car rolls on a very smooth floor for a while after a push?

Natural place

What factor mainly causes a ball to slow on rough ground but travel farther on smooth ground?

Friction

Which claim about friction is best supported by a puck moving almost steadily on smooth ice?

Less friction allows motion to continue longer.

In a vacuum, what kind of acceleration do falling objects near Earth have?

Uniform acceleration

Why do a coin and a feather fall together in a vacuum?

There is no air resistance to slow the feather.

When a ball is dropped in a vacuum, how does its speed change?

Its speed increases as it falls.

What explains why a paper sheet falls slower than a coin in air, but both fall together in a vacuum?

Air resistance

Which test best supports Galileo's idea about falling objects?

Drop different objects in a vacuum chamber.

What is another name for Newton's First Law?

Law of Inertia

What does the Law of Inertia state about an object at rest?

It stays at rest unless acted on by a net external force.

Which concept explains why passengers move forward when a bus stops suddenly?

Inertia

How does Newton's First Law extend Galileo's idea that continuous force is not needed for sustained horizontal motion?

By including both objects at rest and objects moving at constant velocity.

How are the ideas of Galileo and Newton distinguished regarding motion?

Galileo focused on sustained horizontal motion, while Newton stated a general law of inertia.

What is the bouncing of light from a surface called?

Reflection

Why does a straw seem bent in a glass of water?

Light is refracted as it passes between air and water.

Which device mainly uses reflection to let a person see an image?

Plane mirror

Which phenomenon is shown when light changes direction entering glass from air?

Refraction

Which model best explains interference and diffraction?

Wave model

What is a packet of light energy called?

Photon

How is photon energy related to frequency?

Higher frequency means higher energy.

Which light has higher-energy photons?

Ultraviolet light

Why is red light used in photographic dark rooms?

Red photons have relatively lower frequency and lower energy than visible blue light.

Which explanation best accounts for easy sunburn from ultraviolet light?

Ultraviolet photons carry more energy than visible-light photons.

What is the separation of white light into colors called?

Dispersion

What is the spreading of light after passing through a narrow opening called?

Diffraction

What is the combining of waves to form brighter and darker regions called?

Interference

Why does the sky usually look blue during the day?

Blue light is scattered more strongly by the atmosphere.

What phenomenon is applied when a prism produces a rainbow-like band from white light?

Dispersion

Which phenomenon is responsible when light passes through two narrow slits and forms alternating bright and dark bands?

Interference

Which observation is the best evidence of diffraction?

Light spreads after passing through a very narrow slit.

A rainbow is commonly produced by dispersion of sunlight in what?

Water droplets

A mirage mainly involves the bending of light, known as what?

Refraction

Why can a soap bubble show many colors?

Light waves reflected from thin layers interfere.

Why are sunsets often reddish?

More blue light is scattered away over the long path through the atmosphere.

Which two light ideas are most involved when a compact disc shows rainbow colors on its closely spaced tracks?

Diffraction and interference

Who proposed the theory of Special Relativity?

Albert Einstein

According to Special Relativity, what is the speed of light in a vacuum?

Constant for all inertial observers

What is an inertial reference frame?

A frame moving at constant velocity or at rest.

What speed of light should two observers moving at constant velocities each obtain when measuring a light beam in vacuum?

The same speed of light

Which situation fits an inertial frame if the laws of physics are the same in all inertial frames?

A train moving straight at constant speed

Which statement agrees with the postulates of Special Relativity regarding reference frames?

No inertial observer is preferred for describing the laws of physics.

General Relativity describes gravity as the curvature of what?

Spacetime