1. Which
color is associated with the highest frequency of visible
electromagnetic waves?
(a) blue
(b) red
(c) green
(d) violet
(e) magenta
2. The
speed of light
(a) has
never been measured
(b) is
about the same as that of sound
(c) is
infinitely fast
(d) is
very fast, but not infinite
3. Consider
light energy that is momentarily absorbed in glass and then re-emitted. Compared to the absorbed light, the frequency
of the re-emitted light is
(a) considerably
less
(b) slightly
less
(c) the
same
(d) slightly
more
(e) considerably
more
4. You
are standing on the earth viewing a total eclipse of the sun. In which shadow of the moon are you standing?
(a) the
penumbra
(b) the
umbra
(c) the
conundrum
(d) the
partial
5. If he
(she) says "I love you" and the pupils of his (her) eyes are
large, then most likely he (she) means it.
(a) True
(b) False
6. Mark
the incorrect statement.
(a) the cones in the human eye can sense color
(b) the rods in the human eye provide our black
and white vision
(c) the rods in the human eye detect low
intensity light better than the cones
(d) the diameter of the pupil in the human eye
never changes for a person of normal vision
7. Why
can't we see stars in the middle of the day?
(a) the sun is much brighter than any star
(b) our atmosphere is more turbulent and the
starlight is refracted away
(c) scattered sunlight hides the stars from our
view
(d) our atmosphere totally absorbs the starlight
8. When
light is behaves like a particle, we call it
(a) a proton
(b) a phonon
(c) a photon
(d) an electron
(e) a wavicle
9. A beam
of red light and a beam of blue light have exactly the same energy. Which beam has the greater number of photons?
(a) red
(b) blue
(c) they
both have the same number of photons
10. The
energy levels of an atom are continuous because an electron can occupy any of
an infinite number of orbits about the nucleus of an atom.
(a) True
(b) False
11. What
type of spectrum would you expect to obtain if sodium is burned and analyzed by
a spectroscope?
(a) an emission spectra of sodium
(b) an absorption spectra of sodium
(c) a continuous spectrum
12. Which
is hottest?
(a) a red hot object
(b) a blue hot object
(c) a white hot object
13. What
type of spectrum would you expect to obtain if white light is shined through
sodium vapor?
(a) an emission spectrum of sodium
(b) an absorption spectrum of sodium
(c) a continuous spectrum
14. Atoms of
a phosphorescent material on the average stay excited longer than atoms of a
fluorescent material.
(a) True
(b) False
15. The
light from a laser is coherent. This
means that all of the light has
(a) the same phase
(b) the same frequency
(c) the same direction
(d) all of the above
(e) none of the above
16. The
color of an opaque object is the same as the light that
(a) is
transmitted
(b) is
absorbed
(c) is
reflected
(d) all
of these
(e) none
of these
17. A
green shirt is green because
(a) electrons
spontaneously de-excite and radiate light in the frequency range of green
(b) all
except green frequencies are reflected when white light shines on the shirt
(c) green
light is reflected when white light shines on the shirt
(d) the
dyes in the shirt have phosphors
18. A red
filter will warm more from light.
(a) red
(b) cyan
19. Magenta
light is really a mixture of
(a) red and blue light
(b) red and cyan light
(c) red and yellow light
(d) yellow and green light
20. What
is the resulting color of equal intensities of blue light and green light
combined?
(a) cyan
(b) yellow
(c) red
(d) magenta
(e) white
21. If
sunlight were green instead of white, the most comfortable color to wear on a
hot day would be
(a) magenta
(b) yellow
(c) green
(d) blue
(e) none of these
22. Mixing
yellow paint and magenta paint gives what color?
(a) red
(b) green
(c) blue
(d) cyan
23. Which
color is not in the spectrum of white light?
(a) magenta
(b) blue
(c) green
(d) yellow
(e) orange
24. What
color would you expect to see if you remove the green light from white light?
(a) yellow
(b) cyan
(c) magenta
25. The
sun appears slightly yellowish when viewed from the earth’s surface because
(a) that is its natural color
(b) its surface emits more yellow light than any
other color
(c) the sunlight cools off as it passes through
the earth’s atmosphere
(d) the earth’s atmosphere scatters more blue
light than it does red light
26. The after
image of an object shows the complementary colors of the object.
(a) True
(b) False
27. Light
will almost always travel from one place to another along a path of least
(a) distance
(b) time
(c) effort
(d) expense
(e) complication
28. Which
type of specular reflector can focus light?
(a) convex shoplifting mirror
(b) flat mirror
(c) concave make-up mirror
(d) diffuse mirror
29. What
is the difference between a real image and a virtual image?
(a) a real image is always erect; a virtual image
can be inverted
(b) a real image is always bigger than the
object; a virtual image can be smaller
(c) a real image can be formed on a screen; a
virtual one cannot
(d) there is no difference; what you get depends
only on the type of mirror
30. The
law of reflection requires that the sum of the angle of incidence and the angle
of reflection equals 90o.
(a) True
(b) False
31. The
screen in a microwave oven door that allows one to see the food inside the oven
is a specular reflector for
(a) visible light
(b) infrared heat
(c) microwaves
(d) ultraviolet light
32. If
rays of light parallel to the optic axis (principal axis) are incident on a
mirror, they converge to a point after leaving the mirror.
(a) flat
(b) convex
(c) concave
(d) diffuse
33. The image in a plane mirror is real because you
can see it with the naked eye.
(a) True
(b) False
34. A wire
mesh screen is a diffuse reflector for which of the following
frequencies?
(a) visible
(b) microwave
(c) radio
35. An oar
partially immersed in water appears "broken" because of
(a) refraction
(b) diffraction
(c) polarization
(d) interference
(e) absorption
36. Refraction
results from differences in light’s
(a) frequency
(b) incident angles
(c) speed
(d) all of these
(e) none of these
37. In
mirages the air next to the ground must be than the air above it.
(a) more reflective
(b) warmer
(c) cooler
(d) thicker
38. Which
of the following is due to refraction of light?
(a) squatty body images of people standing in
water
(b) mirages
(c) looming
(d) all of the above
(e) none of the above
39. For
the drawing below which ray is most likely red?
(a) 1
(b) 2
(c) 3
40. Two
people standing next to each other are looking at the same raindrop in a
regular rainbow. One sees green from
that drop and the other sees orange.
Which person is taller?
(a) the one who sees green
(b) the one who sees orange
(c) both are the same height
(d) height has nothing to do with this phenomenon