Teaching Physics with the Physics Suite

Edward F. Redish

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Waves and velocities

In the four pictures labeled (A)-(D) at the right are shown snapshots of waves on a long, taut string. The dashed line shows a picture of a part of the string at the time t = 0. The solid line is a picture at a time a little bit later. Each of these pictures looks the same at t = 0, but the results differ because the parts of the string have different velocities at t = 0 in each case.

For each of the four cases above, select one of the six patterns below as the correct velocity pattern to lead to the solid line displayed. (Note the arrows indicate mainly direction. Their lengths are scaled somewhat in proportion to their magnitude, but not strictly so.) 


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Page last modified October 30, 2002: O18