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174 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
absolute zero
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The temperature at which the atoms of a substance have their minimum kinetic engery
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absorption spectrum
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continuous spectrum interupted by dark lines or bands
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acoustics
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study of the properties of sound, especially its transmision
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additive primary colors
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colors of light- red,blue,and green. when added will produce any color of the spectrum
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alpha particle
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nucleus of a helium atom which consists of two neutrons and two protons, ejeted by certain radioactive nuclei
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alternating current (ac)
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electric current that rapidly reverses in direction
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ampere(A)
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flow of 6.25x10 to the 18th electrons per second
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angle of incidence
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angle between an incident ray and the normal to the surface it encounters
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angle of reflection
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angle between a reflected ray and the normal surface at which it is refracted
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angle of refraction
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angle between a refracted ray and the normal to the surface at which it is refracted
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antinode
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any part of a standing wave with maximum displacement and maximum energy
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atom
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smallest particle of an element that has all the element's chemical properties
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atomic mass
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the average of the masses of the existing isotopes of an element
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mass number
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the number of nucleons (protons and neutrons) in an atom
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atomic number
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number of protons in an atom's nucleus
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Avogadro's number
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(1 Mole) 6.02x10 to the 23 power)
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beta particle
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electron emmited during radioactive decay of certain neutron
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boiling
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change from liquid to gas occurring beneath the surface of the liquid; rapid vaporization
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Calorie(cal)
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unit of heat. one calorie is the heat required to raise the temperature of one gram of water 1 Celsius degree
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Celsius Scale
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temperature scale that assigns 0 to the melt-freeze point for water and 100 to the boil-condense point of water at standard pressure
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chain reaction
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self-sustaining reaction that, once started steadily provides the energy and matter necessary to continue the reaction
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charging by contact
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Transfer of electric charge between objects by rubbing or simple touching
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charging by induction
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redistribution of electric charges in and on objects caused by the electrical influence of a charged object close by but not in contact
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circuit
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any complete path along which electric charge can flow
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circuit breaker
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device in an electric circuit that breaks the circuit when the current gets high enough to risk causing a fire
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compound
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chemical substance made of atoms of two or more different elements combined in a fixed proportion
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compresion
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In soud, the region of increased pressure in a longitudinal wave.
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concave mirror
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mirror that curves inward like a "cave"
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condensation
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change of phase of a gas into a liquid
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conduction
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from one material to another when the two are in direct contact
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conductor
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material through which heat can be transferred;through which electric charge can flow
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constructive interference
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combination of waves so that two or more waves overlap to produce a resulting wave of increased amplitude
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convection
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means of heat transfer by movement of the heated substance itself, such as by currents in a fluid
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convex mirror
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mirror that curves outward
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crest
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part of a wave where the disturbance is highest at greatest
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critical mass
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minimum mass of fissionable material in a nuclear reactor or nuclear bomb that will sustain a chain reaction
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cyclotron
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particle accelerator
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de Broglie matter waves
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all particles have wave properties
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destructive interference
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combination of waves so that crest parts of one wave overlap trough parts of another, resulting in a wave of decreased amplitude
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deuterium
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isotope of hydrogen whose atom has a proton, a neutron, and an electron... has more mass
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diffraction
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bending of light that passes around an obstacle or through a norrow slit
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direct current (dc)
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Electric current whose flow of charge is always in one direction
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Doppler Effect
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change in frequency of a wave of sound or light due to the motion of the source or the receiver
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electric charge
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fundamental electrical property to which the mutual attractions or repulsions between electrons or protons is attributed
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electric current
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flow of electric charge that transports energy from one place to another
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electric field
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force field that fills the space around every electric charge or group of charges
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electric potential
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electric potential energy(joules)per unit of charge (in coulombs) at the location in an electric field.. messured in volts
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electric potential energy
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energy a charge has due to its location in an electric field
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electrical force
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force that one charge exerts on another
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electrical resistance
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resistance of a material to the flow of electric charge through it; measured in ohms
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electrode
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terminal through which electric current can pass
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electrodynamics
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study of moving electric charge
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em induction
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inducing a voltage in a conductor by changing the magnetic field near the conductor
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electromagnetic radiation
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transfer of frequenciesover which electromagnetic radiation can be propagated
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electromotive force (emf)
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any voltage that gives rise to an electric current
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electrostatics
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study of electric charges at rest
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element
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substance composed of atoms that all hae the same atomic number and, therefore, the same chemical properties
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elementary particles
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subatomic particles
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evaporation
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change of phase from liquid to gas that takes place at the surface of a liquid
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excitation
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process of boosting one or more electrons in an atom or molecule from a lower to a higher energy level
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Fahrenheit scale
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32 is the melt-freeze point of water, 212 is the boil-condense point of water
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freezing
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change in phase from liquid to solid; the opposite of melting
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frequency
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number of vibratios or the number of crests that passs a particular point per unit of time. It is measured in hertz
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fuse
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device in an electric circuit that breaks the circuit when the current gets high enough to risk cauing a fire
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galvanometer
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instrument used to detect electric current
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gamma ray
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high-frequency electromagnetic radiation emitted by atomic nuclei
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gas
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molecules fill whatever space is available to them, taking no definate shape
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generator
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machine that produces electric current, usually by rotating a coil within a stationary magnetic field
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grounding
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allowing charges to move freely along a connection from a conductor to the ground
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group
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elements in the same column of the periodic table
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half-life
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time required for half the atoms of a radioactive isotope of an element to decay
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heat of fusion
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amount of energy that must be added to a kilogram of a solid to melt it
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heat of vaporization
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amount of energy that must be added to a kilogram of liquid to vaporize it
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Hertz
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Si unit of frequency
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induction
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charging of an object without direct contact
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infrared
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em waves of frequencies lower than the red of visible light
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infrasonic
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sound frequencies below 20 hertz, the normal lower limit of human hearing
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parallel
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electric circuit that are connectred at two points
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insulator
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material that is a poot conductor of heat and that delays the transfer of heat. Also, it is the material that is a poor conductor of electricity
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ion
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atom (or ground of atoms bound together) with a net electric charge, which is due to the loss or gain of electrons
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ionization
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process of adding or removing electrons to or from the atomic nucleus
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isotopes
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atoms whose nuclei have the same number of protons buut different numbers of neutrons
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Kelvin Scale
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absolute zero is the temperature at which it is impossible to extract any more internal energy from a material.
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Kilowatt-hour
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amount of energy consumed in 1 hour at the rate of 1 kilowatt
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laser
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light with all waves of the same frequency, phase, and direction
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light
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visible part of em spectrum
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liquid
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phase of matter between the solid and gaseous phases in which the matter possesses a definite volume but no definite shape
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longitudinal wave
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wave in which the individual particles of a medium vibrate back and forth in the direction in which the wave travels
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magnet
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any object that has magnetic properties, that is the ablility to attract objects made of iron or other magnetic substances
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magnetic domain
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microscopic cluster of atoms with their magnetic fields aligned
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magnetic field
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region of magnetic influence around a magnetic pole or a moving charged particle
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magnetic monopole
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hypothetical particle having a single north or a single outh magnetic pole
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melting
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change in phase from solid to liquid
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microwaves
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electromagnetic waves with frequencies great than radio waves but less than infrared waves.
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mixture
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substances mixed together without combining chemically
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molecule
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two or more atoms of the same or different elements bonded to form a larger particle
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neutron
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electrically neutral particle that is one of the two kinds of nucleons that compose an atomic nucleus
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normal
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right angles to, or perpendicular to
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nuclear fission
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splitting of an atomic nucleus.
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nucleon
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a neutron or a proton
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nucleus
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positively charged center of an atom
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Ohm
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si unit of electrical resistance
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opaque
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materials that absorbe light without re-emission and do not allow light through them
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oscillation
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vibration
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parallel circuit
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two or more devices connected in such a way that the same voltage act across each one
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periodic table
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lists elements by atomic number and by electron arrangements, so that elements with similar chemical properties
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photoelectric effect
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ejection of electrons from certain metals when exposed to certain frequencies of light
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pitch
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highness or lowness of a tone related to the frequency of the tone
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Planck's constant (h)
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multiplied by the frequency of radiation gives the energy of a photon. h=6.6 x 10 to the -34 power joule per second
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plane mirror
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flat surfaced mirror
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polarization
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aligning of vibrations in tranverse wave
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potential difference
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voltage
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prism
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triangular solid of a transparent material such as glass that seperates incident light by refraction
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proton
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positively charged particle that is one of the two kinds of nucleons in the nucleus of an atom
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quantum
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photon
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quantum mechanics
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branch of physics concerned with the atomic microworld based on wave functions and probabilities
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radiation
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energy transmitted by em waves
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radioactive
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atom having an unstable nucleus that can spontaneously emit a particle and become the nucleus of another element
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radioactivity
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process of the atomic nucleus that results in the emission of energetic particles
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radiotherapy
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use of radiotherapy as a treatment to kill cancer cells.
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rarefaction
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region of reduced pressure in a longitudinal wave
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reflection
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return of light rays from a surface
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refraction
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bending of an oblique ray of light when it passes from one transparent medium to another
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resistor
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designed to resist the flow of charge
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Schrodinger's wave equation
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interprets the wave nature of material particles in terms of probability wave amplitudes
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semiconductor
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properties of a coductor or an insulator with conditions depending on radioactivity
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series circuit
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electric circuit with devices connected in such a way that the electric current through each of them is the same
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shock wave
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cone-shaped wave produced by an object moving at supersonic speed
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solid
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phase of matter characterized by definite volume and shape
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sound
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longitudinal wave of successive compressions and rarefactions
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sound barrier
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pile up of sound waves in front of an aircraft approaching or reaching the speed of sound
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standing wave
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stationary wave pattern formed in a medium when two sets of identical waves pass through the medium in opposite directions. the wave appears not to be traveling
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sublimation
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direct conversion of a substance from the solid to the vapor phase, or vice versa, without passng through the liquid phase
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superconductor
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perfect conductor with zero resistance to the flow of electric charge
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supersonic
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traveling faster than the speed of sound
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temperature
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measure of the average translational kinetic energy per molecule of a substance
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thermodynamics
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study of heat and its transformation to mechanical energy
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thermometer
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device used to measure temperature
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transformer
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device for increasing or decreasing voltage
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transmutation
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conversion of one element into an another through a loss or gain in the number of protons
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transparent
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materials that allow light to pass through them in straight lines
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transuranic element
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element with an atomic number above 92
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transverse wave
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wave with vibration at right angles to the direction that the wave is traveling
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tritium
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unstable, raioactive isotope of hydrogen whose atom has a prton, two neutrons and an electron
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trough
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wave where the wave is the lowest or the disturbance is greatest in the opposite direction from a crest
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ultrasonic
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term applied to sound frequencies above the normal upper limit of human hearing
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ultraviolet (UV)
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em waves of frequencies higher than those of violet light
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uncertainty principle
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it is not possible to measure exactly both the position and the momentum of a particle at the same time
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vibration
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oscillation
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visable light
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electromagnetic spectrum that the human eye can see
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volt(v)
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si unit of electric potential
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voltage source
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device, batter or generator, that provides a potential difference
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watt
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SI unit of power
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WAVE
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A disturbance hat repeats regularly in space "a wiggle in space and time"
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wave speed
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wave speed = wavelength x frequency
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wavelength
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distance between sucessive crest, troughs, or identical parts of a wave
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weak force
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force within a nucleus that allows for radioactivity
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strong force
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part of the nuclear force that holds the nucleus together
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white light
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combination of all colors
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X ray
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em radiation higher in frequency han ultraviolet
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electricity
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electrical phenomena
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em spectrum
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range of frequencies over which electromagnetic radiation can be propagated
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heat
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the energy that flows from one object to another by virtue of difference in temperature
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in series
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portions of an eletric circuit that are connected in a row sothat the current that goes through one must go through all of them
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magnetic pole
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one of the refions on a magnet that produces magnetic forces
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magnetosphere
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earths magnetic field
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natural frequency
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frequency at which an elastic object naturally tends to vibrate if it is distrubed and the disturbing force is removed
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node
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any part of a standing wave that remains stationary; a region of minimal or zero energy
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noise
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sound that corresponds to an irregular vibration of the eardrum
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nuclear force
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attractive force within a nucleus that hjolds neutrons and protons together
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nuclear fusion
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combining of nuclei of lght atoms
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photon
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quantum; paquet of energy
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radient energy
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any energy that is transmitted by radiation. occurs in the form of em waves
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radio waves
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em waves of the longest frequency
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