Earthquake+Waves

__**CE-11 (When the Earth Shakes)

Waves Reading Questions**__ We used pages 510-525 in the blue Physical Science books to complete this assignment. Use complete sentences as well as include labeled pictures to answer the following questions in our science journals. (The answers are written in in italics.)

1. What is meant by the ‘medium’ of a wave?

//The medium of a wave is the material that the energy of the wave moves through.//

2. What are the 2 types of waves and how are they different? Give an example of each type of these two waves.

//Transverse waves move perpendicular (across) to the direction that the wave is traveling. Water, light and Secondary earthquake waves (S-waves) are examples of transverse waves.//

//Longitudinal waves cause the medium to vibrate back and forth along the path the wave is traveling. Sound waves and Primary earthquake waves (P-waves) move as longitudinal waves.//

3. Amplitude, Wavelength, Frequency – a. What are they (describe each one)? b. How is each one related to the waves energy?

//Amplitude is the maximum distance the wave moves from its rest position. This is seen as how big/high the wave reaches.

Wavelength is the distance between two neighboring crest (or troughs). This is described as how far part the waves are from one another or how long each waves is.

Frequency is the number of waves produced in a given amount of time (usually per second). In other words, how often do the waves get made or pass by.//

4. Reflection, Refraction, Diffraction, Interference – What is happening to the wave for each of these?

• //Reflection occurs when a wave bounces back after striking a barrier. (Like looking into a mirror.) • Refraction is when a wave bends as it moves from one medium (substance) to different medium. (Like looking into a pool of water and looking at objects on the bottom.) • Diffraction is when waves spread around an object. (Like sound traveling around – to the other side – of a wall.) • Interference occurs when waves overlap to either build each other up (like singers in a choir) or cancel each other out (like noise canceling headphones).//

5. Pick at least 5 terms that you learned today in the reading and write their definitions in the glossary of your science journal.

//Answer may vary but should include many of the terms to describe waves in questions #1-4.//