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CRIntPhysSciCh15Voc
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| a physical environment in which phenomena occur | medium |
| a wave that requires a medium though which to travel | mechanical wave |
| a wave that consists of oscillating electric and magnetic fields, which radiate outward at the speed of light | electromagnetic wave |
| a wave in which the particles of the medium move perpendicularly to the direction the wave is traveling | transverse wave |
| a wave in which the particles of the medium vibrate parallel to the directions of the wave motion | longitudinal wave |
| the highest point of a wave | crest |
| the lowest point of a wave | trough |
| the maximum distance that the particles of a wave's medium vibrate from their rest position | amplitude |
| the distance from any point on a wave to an identical point on the next wave | wavelength |
| the time that it takes a complete cycle or wave oscillation to occur | period |
| the number of cycles or vibrations per unit of time; also the number of waves produced in a given amount of time | frequency |
| an observed change in the frequency of a wave when the source or observer is moving | Doppler Effect |
| the bouncing back of a ray of light, sound, or heat when the rays hit a surface that it does not go through | reflection |
| a change in the direction of a wave when the wave finds an obstacle or an edge, such as an opening | diffraction |
| the bending of a wave front as the wave front passes between two substances in which the speed of the wave differs | refraction |
| the combination of two or more waves that results in a single wave | interference |
| a superposition of two or more waves that produces an intensity equal to the sum of the intensities of the individual waves | constructive interference |
| a superposition of two or more waves that produces an intensity equal to the difference of the intensities of the individual waves | destructive interference |
| a pattern of vibration that simulates a wave that is standing still | standing wave |