The sound waves travel fastest:
- AIn solids.
- BIn liquids.
- CIn gases.
- DIn vacuum.
Question types
Sound question types
464 questions across 8 question groups — pick any mix to generate a Science paper with step-by-step answer keys.
464
Questions
8
Question groups
5
Question types
01
M.C.Q. [1 M]
162 Q→02Fill in the blank
13 Q→03true or false
4 Q→04One word answer.
113 Q→05Que-Ans (Each of 2 Mark )
117 Q→06Que-Ans (Each of 3 Mark )
32 Q→07Que-Ans (Each of 4 Mark )
18 Q→08Case study ( 4 Marks )
5 Q→Sample Questions
Sound questions
One sample from each question group in this chapter. Select any group above to see the full set with answer keys.
The velocities of sound waves in four media P. Q, R and S are 18,000km/h, 900km/h, 0km/h, and 1200km/h respectively. Which medium could be a liquid substance?
- AP
- BQ
- CR
- DS
In an auditorium, when a speech is going on, a window is opened beside the audience, then the absorption of sound:
- AIncreases
- BDecreases
- CRemains Same
- DBecomes zero
Sound cannot travel through:
- ASolids
- BLiquids
- CVacuum
- DGases.
Rahul is playing the drums. Then which of the following characteristics of sound would result in increase in loudness?
- AAmplitude
- BSpeed
- CPitch
- DQuality
Echoes are caused by the __________ of sound. (Reflection, Refraction, Diffraction)
A sound wave consists of places of higher pressure called compressions and places of lower pressure called __________. (Rarefactions, Compressions, Nodes)
Sound is caused by __________. (Vibrations, Air, Pressure)
Bats detect their prey with the help of __________ squeaks. (Echolocation, Ultrasonic, Infrared)
The speed of sound in a solid is __________ than the speed of sound in air. (Lesser, Greater, Equal)
Sound waves travel slower in vacuum than in water.
Ultrasound can be used to test planeness of metal sheets.
Echo can be heard in every room.
Sound produced by a vibrating body travels to our ears by the actual movement of air.
What is the audible range of the average human ear?
In which of the three media, air, water or iron, does sound travel the fastest at a particular temperature?
Why are sound waves called mechanical waves?
Explain how sound is produced by your school bell.
What is sound and how is it produced?
Why are the ceilings of concert halls curved?
An echo is heard in 3 s. What is the distance of the reflecting surface from the source, given that the speed of sound is $342 m s ^{-1}$?
View full solution →A person is listening to a tone of 500Hz sitting at a distance of 450m from the source of the sound. What is the time interval between successive compressions from the source?
Calculate the wavelength of a sound wave whose frequency is 220Hz and speed is 440m/s in a given medium.
How are the wavelength and frequency of a sound wave related to its speed?
What is the range of frequencies associated with (a) infrasound (b) audible sound, and (c) ultrasound?
What are wavelength, frequency, time period and amplitude of a sound wave?
Distinguish between loudness and intensity of sound.
A stone is dropped from the top of a tower 500m high into a pond of water at the base of the tower. When is the splash heard at the top? Given, g = 10ms–2 and speed of sound = 340ms–1.
Give one difference between longitudinal and transverse wave.
What is a soundboard? Explain the working of a soundboard with the help of a labelled diagram.
How does sound from a sound producing body travel through air to reach our ears? Illustrate your answer with the help of a labelled diagram.
Explain the terms 'compression' and 'rarefactions' of a wave. What type of waves consist of compressions and rarefactions?
Sound bounces off a solid or a liquid like a rubber ball bounces off a wall. Like light, sound
gets reflected at the surface of a solid or liquid and follows the same laws of reflection. The directions in which the sound is incident and is reflected make equal angles with the normal to the reflecting surface at the point of incidence, and the three are in the same plane. If we clap near a suitable reflecting object such as a tall building or a mountain, we will hear the same sound again a little later. This sound which we hear is called an echo. The sensation of sound persists in our brain for about 0.1 s. To hear a distinct echo the time interval between the original sound and the reflected one must be at least 0.1s. Hence, for hearingdistinct echoes, the minimum distance of theobstacle from the source of sound must be 17.2 m. Thisdistance will change with the temperature ofair. Another phenomenon of reflection of sound is reverberation.A sound created in a big hall will persist byrepeated reflection from the walls until it isreduced to a value where it is no longeraudible. The repeated reflection that resultsin this persistence of sound is called reverberation. Excessive reverberation is highly undesirable.
(i) Which of the following is true related to reflection of sound?
(a) Directions in which the sound is incident and is reflected make equal angles with the normal to the reflecting surface at the point of incidence.
(b) Incident wave reflected wave and normal lies in same plane
(c) Both a and b are true.
(d) None of these
(ii)For hearing distinct echoes, the minimum distance of the obstacle from the source of sound must be
(a) 10m
(b) 20m
(c) 17.2m
(d) None of these
(iii) Excessive reverberation is
(a) Desirable phenomenon
(b) Undesirable phenomenon
(c) Does not exist
(d) None of these
(iv) A person makes sound near a obstacle and heard the echo after 1 s. What is the distance of the obstacle from the person if the speed of the sound, v is taken as 346 m/s?
(v) State law of reflection of sound.
A violin and a flute may both be played the same time in an orchestra. Bothsounds travel through the same medium,that is, air and arrive at our ear at the sametime. Both sounds travel at the same speedirrespective of the source. But the soundswe receive are different. This is due to thedifferent characteristics associated with thesound. Pitch is one of the characteristics.How the brain interprets the frequency ofan emitted sound is called its pitch. The fasterthe vibration of the source, the higher is the frequency and the higher is the pitch. The magnitude of the maximumdisturbance in the medium on either side ofthe mean value is called the amplitude of thewave. It is usually represented by the letter (A).
The loudness or softness of a sound isdetermined basically by its amplitude. Theamplitude of the sound wave depends uponthe force with which an object is made tovibrate. If we strike a table lightly, we hear asoft sound because we produce a sound waveof less energy (amplitude).
The quality or timber of sound is thatcharacteristic which enables us to distinguishone sound from another having the same pitchand loudness. The sound which is morepleasant is said to be of a rich quality. A sound of single frequency is called a tone. The sound which is produced due to a mixture of several frequencies is called a note and is pleasant to listen to. Noise is unpleasant to the ear! Music is pleasant to hear and is of rich quality.
(i) Pitch of sound is higher when
(a) Vibration of source of sound is higher
(b) Vibration of source of sound is Lower
(c) Independent of vibration of source of sound
(d) None of these
(ii) Loudness and softness of sound depends upon
(a) Frequency of sound
(b) Amplitude of sound
(c) Wavelength of sound
(d) None of these
(iii) Sound of single frequency is called
(a) Note
(b) Tone
(c) Noise
(d) None of these
(iv)If we strike a table lightly, we hear asoft sound. If we hit the tablehard we hear a louder sound up to large distance. Why?
(v) Determine which of the following has higher pitch railway horn or guitar?
The individual particlesof the medium move in a direction parallel tothe direction of propagation of thedisturbance. The particles do not move fromone place to another but they simply oscillateback and forth about their position of rest.This is exactly how a sound wave propagates;hence sound waves are longitudinal waves.There is also another type of wave, calleda transverse wave. In a transverse waveparticles do not oscillate along the direction of wave propagation but oscillate up and downabout their mean position as the wave travels.Thus, a transverse wave is the one in whichthe individual particles of the medium move about their mean positions in a directionperpendicular to the direction of wavepropagation.
(i) Sound waves are
(a) Transverse waves
(b) Longitudinal wave
(c) Both a and b
(d) None of these
(ii) Light is
(a) Transverse waves
(b) Longitudinal wave
(c) Both a and b
(d) None of these
(iii) In case of Longitudinal waves
(a) The particles do not move fromone place to another but they simply oscillateback and forth about their position of rest
(b) The particles move fromone place to another
(c) The particles move up and down.
(d) None of these
(iv) When stone is dropped in water; waves are generated of which types?
(v) Differentiate between longitudinal wave and transverse waves.
Sound is produced by vibrating objects. The matter or substance through which sound is transmitted is called a medium. It can be solid, liquid or gas. Sound moves through a medium from the point of generation to the listener. When an object vibrates, it sets the particles of the medium around it vibrating. The particles do not travel all the way from the vibrating object to the ear. Sound waves are characterized by the motion of particles in the medium and are called mechanical waves.When a vibrating objectmoves forward, it pushes and compresses theair in front of it creating a region of highpressure; this region is called a compression(C).When the vibrating object moves backwards,it creates a region of low pressure calledrarefaction (R). Hence sound is longitudinal wave.
(i) Sound waves are
(a) Mechanical waves
(b) Electromagnetic wave
(c) Transverse waves
(d) None of these
(ii) Sound travel in medium with
(a) Compression and rare fraction
(b) Crest and trough
(c) Both can be possible
(d) None of these
(iii) Compression is the region of
(a) High pressure
(b) Low pressure
(c) Medium pressure
(d) None of these
(iv) What is sound and how is it produced?
(v) Why sound wave is called as longitudinal wave?
- The distance between two consecutivecompressions (C) or two consecutiverarefactions (R) is called the wavelength.The wavelength is usually represented by λ (Greek letter lambda). Its SI unit is meter (m).
•If we can count the number of the compressions or rarefactions that cross us per unit time, we will get the frequency of the sound wave. It is usually represented by υ (Greek letter, nu). SI unit is hertz (symbol, Hz).
•The time taken for one complete oscillation is called the time period of the sound wave. It is represented by the symbol T. Its SI unit is second (s).Frequency and time period are related asfollows: υ=1/λ
•The speed of sound is defined as the distance which a point on a wave, such as a compression or a rarefaction, travels per unit time.
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