| A | B |
|---|
| wave | a disturbance in a solid, liquid or a gas in which energy passes through |
| medium | the matter through which a wave travels |
| mechanical waves | waves that require a medium to travel through |
| electromagnetic waves | waves that DO NOT need a medium to travel through |
| transverse waves | wave in which the motion of the particles is perdendicular to the motion of the wave |
| longitudinal waves | waves in which the motion of the particles is parallel to the motion of the wave |
| sine curves | used to represent waves and to describe their characteristics |
| crest | the highest part of a transverse wave |
| trough | the lowest part of a transverse wave |
| amplitude | the greatest distance that particles are displaced from their normnal resting place |
| wavelength | the distance from one crest to the next crest, or from one trough to the next trough |
| period | the time for one full wavelength of a wave to pass a certain point |
| frequency | the number of cycle or vibrations per unit of time |
| Doppler effect | an observed change in the frequency of a wave when the source or observer is moving |
| reflection | the bouncing back of a ray of light, sound, or heat, when the ray hits a surface that it does not go through |
| diffraction | waves seen to bend around an object or opening |
| refraction | the bending of waves as they pass from one medioum to another |
| interference | when several waves are in the same location and combine to produce a single new wave that is different from the original wave |
| superposition | crests are considered positive and troughs are considered negative. Adding these together is call the principle of ___ |
| constructive interference | when two waves line up so their crests line up, they add together to make a larger wave |
| destructive interference | when the crest of a wave overlaps with a trough, subtraction occurs |
| standing wave | a pattern of vibration that simulates a wave that is standing still |
| nodes | points of no vibration in a standing wave |
| antinodes | a point of maximum vibration in a standing wave |
