A student moves the end of a compressed coiled spring up and down to demonstrate wave motion. She then moves the compressed coiled spring faster but keeps everything else the same. Which characteristic will increase?(1 point)
Responses
amplitude
amplitude
wavelength
wavelength
crest
crest
frequency
frequency
The characteristic that will increase when the student moves the compressed coiled spring faster is the frequency.
Frequency refers to the number of complete cycles or vibrations of a wave that occur in a given amount of time. When the student moves the spring faster, it means that they are creating more cycles or vibrations in the same amount of time, therefore increasing the frequency.
To understand this concept, you can visualize waves in terms of their crests and troughs. A crest represents the peak or highest point of a wave, while a trough represents the lowest point. Amplitude, on the other hand, refers to the distance from the equilibrium position (resting point) to the crest or trough of a wave.
Wavelength, on the other hand, refers to the distance between two crests or two troughs of a wave. In this scenario, the wavelength is not affected by the speed at which the spring is moved, so it remains the same.
Therefore, in this case, the amplitude and wavelength will not increase when the student moves the compressed coiled spring faster. Only the frequency will increase.