Wave Behaviour Vocabulary

Question 1

A beam of sunlight hits a clean glass window at a 30° angle to the surface normal. Some of the light is reflected and some passes into the glass. Which statement correctly describes what happens to the reflected ray and to the refracted ray?

Accepted Answer

The reflected ray leaves the surface at the same 30° angle on the opposite side of the normal and its speed stays unchanged; the refracted ray bends toward the normal, enters the glass at a smaller angle, and travels more slowly inside the glass.

Answer

The reflected ray bends toward the normal and slows down, while the refracted ray bounces off the surface at the same angle it arrived.

Answer

Both the reflected and refracted rays travel at the same speed; the reflected ray bends away from the normal and the refracted ray stays at the same angle as the incoming ray.

Answer

The reflected ray continues in the same direction as the incoming ray but with lower intensity, while the refracted ray changes direction but keeps the same speed as in air.

Question 2

Alex watches a metal spoon that is partly in a clear glass of juice. The part underwater looks like it is at a different angle than the part in the air. Which statement correctly uses the idea of refraction to explain what Alex sees?

Accepted Answer

When light enters the juice it slows down and bends, so the spoon appears shifted at the surface.

Answer

The juice pulls the spoon down, actually bending the metal.

Answer

Light reflects off the juice surface, creating a mirror image of the spoon.

Answer

The juice absorbs some colors, making the spoon look distorted.

Question 3

When Leo looks at a clear plastic ruler that is half‑submerged in a clear glass of water, the part under the water looks like it is pointing in a different direction. Which explanation correctly uses the word “refraction” to describe why the ruler appears bent?

Accepted Answer

When light passes from air into water it slows down and bends toward the normal, so the ruler looks bent at the water’s surface.

Answer

The light is reflected off the water’s surface, so the brain sees the ruler at a new angle.

Answer

The water absorbs some of the light, making the submerged part look dimmer and therefore shifted.

Answer

The water’s particles scatter the light in many directions, causing the ruler to look distorted.

Try three questions

A beam of sunlight hits a clean glass window at a 30° angle to the surface normal. Some of the light is reflected and some passes into the glass. Which statement correctly describes what happens to the reflected ray and to the refracted ray?

Alex watches a metal spoon that is partly in a clear glass of juice. The part underwater looks like it is at a different angle than the part in the air. Which statement correctly uses the idea of refraction to explain what Alex sees?

When Leo looks at a clear plastic ruler that is half‑submerged in a clear glass of water, the part under the water looks like it is pointing in a different direction. Which explanation correctly uses the word “refraction” to describe why the ruler appears bent?

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