3. Physics Practice Questions - Reflection And Refraction

3) The incident light ray, the reflected light ray, and the normal between them A) lie in the same plane. B) may or may not lie in the same plane. C) lie in planes that are perpendicular to one another.

4) Object and image for a plane mirror lie A) along the same plane. B) equal distances from the mirror. C) at right angles to each other. D) all of these E) none of these

5) The law of reflection holds for A) plane mirrors. B) curved mirrors. C) both of these D) neither of these

7) Diffuse reflection occurs when the size of surface irregularities is A) small compared to the wavelength of the light used. B) large compared to the wavelength of the light used. C) microscopic.

9) When light reflects from a surface, there is a change in its A) frequency. B) wavelength. C) speed. D) all of these E) none of these

10) If you walk towards a mirror at a certain speed, the relative speed between you and your image is A) half your speed. B) your speed. C) twice your speed. D) none of these

13) As you face a plane mirror on the wall of your room, you raise your left hand. Your image raises A) its left hand. B) its right hand. C) both hands. D) neither hand.

14) You wish to photograph the image of your little sister, who is standing 2 meters from a plane mirror. Holding the camera beside her head, you should set the distance for A) 1 meter. B) 2 meters. C) 3 meters. D) 4 meters. E) none of these

15) A diver shines light up to the surface of a smooth pond at a 10 degree angle to the normal. Some light passes into the air above, and the part that reflects back into the water makes an angle to the normal of A) less than 10 degrees. B) 10 degrees. C) more than 10 degrees.

24) A pair of plane mirrors are at right angles to each other. A coin placed near the mirrors has A) A total of one image . B) More than one image.

25) As a light ray enters or exits a water-air interface at an angle of 15 degrees with the normal, it A) always bends toward the normal. B) always bends away from the normal. C) sometimes bends towards the normal. D) does not bend.

26) When light passes through an ordinary window pane, its angle of emergence is A) usually less than its angle of incidence. B) always less than its angle of incidence. C) the same as its angle of incidence. D) usually more than its angle of incidence. E) always more than its angle of incidence.

27) Light travels fastest in A) warm air. B) cool air. C) a vacuum.

28) Atmospheric refraction makes the daylight hours a bit A) longer. B) shorter. C) longer in summer but shorter in winter.

29) A mirage is a result of atmospheric A) reflection. B) refraction. C) scattering. D) dispersion. E) aberrations.

30) The twinkling of the stars is a result of atmospheric A) reflection. B) refraction. C) scattering. D) dispersion. E) aberrations.

31) Refraction results from differences in light's A) frequency. B) incident angles. C) speed. D) all of these E) none of these

32) Light refracts when traveling from air into glass because light A) has greater intensity in air than in glass. B) has greater intensity in glass than in air. C) has greater frequency in air than in glass. D) has greater frequency in glass than in air. E) travels slower in glass than in air.

33) At night an underwater scuba diver aims his flashlight beam toward the surface at an angle of 45 degrees with the normal. Upon emerging, the beam angle will be A) less than 45 degrees. B) 45 degrees. C) more than 45 degrees. D) impossible to predict.

34) When a light beam emerges from water into air, the average light speed A) increases. B) decreases. C) remains the same.

35) Refraction causes the bottom of a swimming pool to appear A) farther down than it actually is. B) closer to the surface than it actually is. C) neither.

36) In glass or water, the average speed of light is greatest for: A) red light. B) orange light. C) green light. D) blue light. E) is the same in all of these

37) Different colors are dispersed by a prism because different colors in the prism have different A) frequencies. B) speeds. C) directions. D) energies. E) none of these

38) Rainbows are not usually seen as complete circles because A) the ground is usually in the way. B) they are actually elliptical. C) they have no bottom part. D) raindrops are not perfectly round. E) rainbows are actually arched shaped.

39) A single raindrop illuminated by sunshine disperses A) a single color. B) either low, middle, or high frequency colors in most cases. C) all the colors of the rainbow.

40) When you view a distant rainbow, you view from each single water drop that contributes to the bow A) a single color. B) either low, middle, or high frequency colors in most cases. C) all the colors of the rainbow.

42) The critical angle for a transparent material is the angle at and beyond which all light within the material is A) refracted. B) reflected. C) absorbed. D) dispersed. E) diffused.

43) The critical angle is least in which of the following? A) glass B) water C) diamond D) vacuum

44) In optical fibers of uniform density, light actually A) curves in a direction parallel to the central axis of the fiber. B) travels in straight-line segments. C) travels along the outer surface of the fiber. D) None of the above choices are correct.

47) Your image in a plane mirror is A) virtual. B) real. C) both of these D) neither of these

49) Which of the following can be projected onto a viewing screen? A) a real image B) a virtual image C) both D) neither

57) When a light ray passes, at a non-90 degree angle, from water into air, it A) bends toward the normal. B) bends away from the normal. C) travels much slower.

60) A beam of light travels fastest in A) Glass B) Water C) Plastic D) Air E) is the same in each of these

63) Which of the following are consequences of light's traveling at different speeds in different media? A) mirages B) rainbows C) internal reflection D) all of these E) none of these

64) Stars twinkle when seen from the Earth. When seen from the moon, stars A) twinkle more. B) twinkle less. C) don't twinkle.

65) Atmospheric refraction tends to make daytimes A) longer. B) shorter. C) no change in day length

68) Rainbows exist because light is A) reflected. B) refracted. C) both of these D) neither of these

69) A person standing waist-deep in a swimming pool appears to have short legs because of light A) reflection. B) absorption. C) interference. D) diffraction. E) refraction.

70) Different colors of light travel at different speeds in a transparent medium. In a vacuum, different colors of light travel at A) different speeds. B) the same speed. C) light travels at the same speed everywhere.

71) When white light goes from air into water, the color that refracts the most is A) red. B) orange. C) green. D) violet. E) All refract the same amount.

76) If you wish to spear a fish with a regular spear, you should compensate for refraction between the air and water and throw your spear A) directly at the sighted fish. B) above the sighted fish. C) below the sighted fish.

78) If you wish to hit a fish with laser beam, you should compensate for refraction between the air and water by aiming your laser A) directly at the sighted fish. B) above the sighted fish. C) below the sighted fish.

80) If you wish to send a beam of laser light to a space station that is just above the atmosphere near the horizon, you should aim your laser A) above your line of sight. B) below your line of sight. C) along your line of sight.

83) A mirage occurs for road surfaces that are A) warm. B) cold. C) wet. D) hard. E) snowy.

86) When a pulse of white light is incident on a piece of glass, strictly speaking,the first color to emerge is A) red. B) orange. C) green. D) violet. E) They all emerge at the same time.