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Chapter 10 Vocab
Term | Definition |
---|---|
amplitude | related to the energy carried by a wave. |
compressional wave | matter in the medium moves back and forth along the same direction that the wave travels. |
crest | an alternating high point |
diffraction | occurs when an object causes a wave to change direction and bend around it. |
frequency | the number of wavelengths that pass a fixed point each second. |
interference | when two or more waves overlap and combine to form a new wave. |
medium | the matter the waves travel through. |
period | the amount of time it takes one wavelength to pass a point. |
rarefaction | less-dense region of a compressional wave. |
refraction | the bending of a wave caused by a change in its speed as it moves from one medium to another. |
resonance | the process by which an object is made to vibrate by absorbing energy at its natural frequencies. |
standing wave | a special type of wave pattern that forms when waves equal in wavelength and amplitude, but traveling in opposite directions, continuously interfere with each other. |
transverse wave | matter in the medium moves back and forth at right angles to the direction that the wave travels. |
trough | an alternating low point |
wave | a repeating disturbance or movement that transfers energy through matter or space. |
wavelength | the distance between one point on a wave and the nearest point just like it. |