G11 Physics Questions on

Unit 1 and 2 [129 marks]

1. Which of the following is a scalar quantity? [1 mark]
A. Velocity
B. Momentum
C. Kinetic energy
D. Acceleration

2. A stone falls from rest to the bottom of a water well of depth d. The time t [1 mark]
taken to fall is 2.0 ±0.2 s. The depth of the well is calculated to be 20 m
using d = 12 at 2. The uncertainty in a is negligible.
What is the absolute uncertainty in d?
A. ± 0.2 m
B. ± 1 m
C. ± 2 m
D. ± 4 m

3. A sphere fits inside a cube. [1 mark]

The length of the cube and the diameter of the sphere are 10.0±0.2cm.
percentageuncertaintyofthevolumeofthesphere
What is the ratio ?
percentageuncertaintyofthevolumeofthecube

A. 43 . B. 1. C. 2. D. 8
π
4. Which of the following is a derived unit? [1 mark]
A. Mole
B. Kelvin
C. Coulomb
D. Ampere

5. A student models the relationship between the pressure p of a gas and its [1 mark]
temperature T as p = x + yT.
The units of p are pascal and the units of T are kelvin. What are the fundamental
SI units of x and y?

6. An object has a weight of 6.10 × 102 N. What is the change in [1 mark]

gravitational potential energy of the object when it moves through 8.0 m
vertically?
A. 5 kJ
B. 4.9 kJ
C. 4.88 kJ
D. 4.880 kJ

7. Which is a unit of force? [1 mark]

A. Jm
B. J m–1
C. J m s–1
D. J m–1 s
8. The velocities vX and vY of two boats, X and Y, are shown. [1 mark]

Which arrow represents the direction of the vector vX – vY?

9. How many significant figures are there in the number 0.0450? [1 mark]
A. 2
B. 3
C. 4
D. 5

10. An object is positioned in a gravitational field. The measurement of [1 mark]

gravitational force acting on the object has an uncertainty of 3 % and the
uncertainty in the mass of the object is 9 %. What is the uncertainty in the
gravitational field strength of the field?
A. 3 %
B. 6 %
C. 12 %
D. 27 %
11. Two stationary objects of mass 1kg and 2kg are connected by a thread [1 mark]
and suspended from a spring.

The thread is cut. Immediately after the cut, what are the magnitudes of the
accelerations of the objects in terms of the acceleration due to gravity g?

12. A student of weight 600N climbs a vertical ladder 6.0m tall in a time of [1 mark]
8.0s. What is the power developed by the student against gravity?
A. 22W
B. 45W
C. 220W
D. 450W
13. A student draws a graph to show the variation with time t of the [1 mark]
acceleration a of an object.

What can the student deduce from this graph only, and what quantity from the
graph is used to make this deduction?

14. A stone is falling at a constant velocity vertically down a tube filled with [1 mark]
oil. Which of the following statements about the energy changes of the
stone during its motion are correct?
I. The gain in kinetic energy is less than the loss in gravitational potential
energy.
II. The sum of kinetic and gravitational potential energy of the stone is constant.
III. The work done by the force of gravity has the same magnitude as the work
done by friction.

A. I and II only
B. I and III only
C. II and III only
D. I, II and III

=0
15. An object is at rest at time t = 0. The variation with t of the acceleration [1 mark]
a of the object is shown from t = 0 to t = 20 s.

What is the speed of the object when t = 15 s?

A. 25 m s−1
B. 50 m s−1
C. 75 m s−1
D. 100 m s−1

16. An object of mass m is initially at rest. When an impulse I acts on the [1 mark]
object its final kinetic energy is EK . What is the final kinetic energy when
an impulse of 2I acts on an object of mass 2m initially at rest?
EK
A. 2
B. EK
C. 2EK
D. 4EK

17. A heat engine does 300 J of work during one cycle. In this cycle 900 J of [1 mark]
energy is wasted. What is the efficiency of the engine?
A. 0.25
B. 0.33
C. 0.50
D. 0.75
18. An object is dropped from rest. Air resistance is not negligible. What is [1 mark]
the acceleration of the object at the start of the motion?
A. Zero
B. Increasing
C. Decreasing
D. Constant

19. A student throws a stone with velocity v at an angle θ to the vertical from [1 mark]
the surface of a lake. Air resistance can be ignored. The acceleration due
to gravity is g .

What is the time taken for the stone to hit the surface of the lake?
A. v sin θ
g
v cos θ
B. g
2v sin θ
C. g
2v cos θ
D. g

20. An object is released from a stationary hot air balloon at height h above [1 mark]
the ground.
An identical object is released at height h above the ground from another balloon
that is rising at constant speed. Air resistance is negligible. What does not
increase for the object released from the rising balloon?
A. The distance through which it falls
B. The time taken for it to reach the ground
C. The speed with which it reaches the ground
D. Its acceleration

21. An inelastic collision occurs between two bodies in the absence of [1 mark]
external forces.
What must be true about the total momentum of the two bodies and the total
kinetic energy of the two bodies during this interaction?
A. Only momentum is conserved.
B. Only kinetic energy is conserved.
C. Both momentum and kinetic energy are conserved.
D. Neither momentum nor kinetic energy are conserved.
22. A block of weight W is suspended by two strings of equal length. The [1 mark]
strings are almost horizontal.

What is correct about the tension T in one string?

W
A. T< 2
W
B. T= 2

C. W
2 <T ⩽W
D. T >W

23. A block of mass 1.0 kg rests on a trolley of mass 4.0 kg. The coefficient of [1 mark]
dynamic friction between the block and the trolley is 0.30.

A horizontal force F = 5.0 N acts on the block. The block slides over the trolley.
What is the acceleration of the trolley?
A. 5.0 m s–2
B. 1.0 m s–2
C. 0.75 m s–2
D. 0.60 m s–2

24. A stationary nucleus of polonium-210 undergoes alpha decay to form [1 mark]

lead-206. The initial speed of the alpha particle is v. What is the speed of
the lead-206 nucleus?
A. 206
4
v
B. v
C. 206
210
v
4
D. 206 v
25. An object, initially at rest, is accelerated by a constant force. Which [1 mark]
graphs show the variation with time t of the kinetic energy and the
variation with time t of the speed of the object?
26. The graph shows the variation of momentum with time for an object. [1 mark]

What net force acts on the object for the first 2.0 s and for the second 2.0 s of the
motion?

27. A truck has an initial speed of 20 m s–1. It decelerates at 4.0 m s–2. What is [1 mark]
the distance taken by the truck to stop?

A. 2.5 m
B. 5.0 m
C. 50 m
D. 100 m
28. A projectile is fired at an angle to the horizontal. Air resistance is [1 mark]
negligible. The path of the projectile is shown.

Which gives the magnitude of the horizontal component and the magnitude of
the vertical component of the velocity of the projectile between O and P?

29. A compressed spring is used to launch an object along a horizontal [1 mark]

frictionless surface. When the spring is compressed through a distance x
and released, the object leaves the spring at speed v. What is the distance
through which the spring must be compressed for the object to leave the spring at
v
2?

A. x
4
B. x
2
C. x
√2

D. x√2
30. A box is accelerated to the right across rough ground by a horizontal [1 mark]
force Fa. The force of friction is Ff. The weight of the box is Fg and the
normal reaction is Fn. Which is the free-body diagram for this situation?

31. A ball of mass m collides with a vertical wall with an initial horizontal [1 mark]
speed u and rebounds with a horizontal speed v. The graph shows the
variation of the speed of the ball with time.

What is the magnitude of the mean net force on the ball during the collision?
m(u−v)
A.
(t2+t1)
m(u−v)
B.
(t2−t1)
m(u+v)
C.
(t2+t1)
m(u+v)
D.
(t2−t1)

32. The variation of the displacement of an object with time is shown on a [1 mark]
graph. What does the area under the graph represent?
A. No physical quantity
B. Velocity
C. Acceleration
D. Impulse
 A girl on a sledge is moving down a snow slope at a uniform speed.

33a. Draw the free-body diagram for the sledge at the position shown on the [2 marks]
snow slope.

33b. After leaving the snow slope, the girl on the sledge moves over a [3 marks]
horizontal region of snow. Explain, with reference to the physical origin
of the forces, why the vertical forces on the girl must be in equilibrium as she
moves over the horizontal region.

33c. When the sledge is moving on the horizontal region of the snow, the girl [2 marks]
jumps off the sledge. The girl has no horizontal velocity after the jump.
The velocity of the sledge immediately after the girl jumps off is 4.2 m s–1. The
mass of the girl is 55 kg and the mass of the sledge is 5.5 kg. Calculate the speed
of the sledge immediately before the girl jumps from it.

33d. The girl chooses to jump so that she lands on loosely-packed snow [3 marks]
rather than frozen ice. Outline why she chooses to land on the snow.

The sledge, without the girl on it, now travels up a snow slope that makes an
angle of 6.5˚ to the horizontal. At the start of the slope, the speed of the sledge is
4.2 m s–1. The coefficient of dynamic friction of the sledge on the snow is 0.11.

33e. Show that the acceleration of the sledge is about –2 m s–2. [3 marks]

33f. Calculate the distance along the slope at which the sledge stops [2 marks]
moving. Assume that the coefficient of dynamic friction is constant.

33g. The coefficient of static friction between the sledge and the snow is [2 marks]
0.14. Outline, with a calculation, the subsequent motion of the sledge.
 The diagram below shows part of a downhill ski course which starts at point A, 50
m above level ground. Point B is 20 m above level ground.

A skier of mass 65 kg starts from rest at point A and during the ski course some of
the gravitational potential energy transferred to kinetic energy.

34a. From A to B, 24 % of the gravitational potential energy transferred to [2 marks]

kinetic energy. Show that the velocity at B is 12 m s–1.

34b. Some of the gravitational potential energy transferred into internal [2 marks]
energy of the skis, slightly increasing their temperature. Distinguish
between internal energy and temperature.

At the side of the course flexible safety nets are used. Another skier of mass 76 kg
falls normally into the safety net with speed 9.6 m s–1.

34c. Explain, with reference to change in momentum, why a flexible safety [2 marks]
net is less likely to harm the skier than a rigid barrier.

A glider is an aircraft with no engine. To be launched, a glider is uniformly

accelerated from rest by a cable pulled by a motor that exerts a horizontal force
on the glider throughout the launch.

35a. The glider reaches its launch speed of 27.0 m s–1 after accelerating for [2 marks]
11.0 s. Assume that the glider moves horizontally until it leaves the
ground. Calculate the total distance travelled by the glider before it leaves the
ground.
35b. The glider and pilot have a total mass of 492 kg. During the [3 marks]
acceleration the glider is subject to an average resistive force of 160 N.
Determine the average tension in the cable as the glider accelerates.

35c. The cable is pulled by an electric motor. The motor has an overall [3 marks]
efficiency of 23 %. Determine the average power input to the motor.

35d. The cable is wound onto a cylinder of diameter 1.2 m. Calculate the [2 marks]
angular velocity of the cylinder at the instant when the glider has a
speed of 27 m s–1. Include an appropriate unit for your answer.

35e. After takeoff the cable is released and the unpowered glider moves [2 marks]
horizontally at constant speed. The wings of the glider provide a lift
force. The diagram shows the lift force acting on the glider and the direction of
motion of the glider.

Draw the forces acting on the glider to complete the free-body diagram. The
dotted lines show the horizontal and vertical directions.

35f. Explain, using appropriate laws of motion, how the forces acting on the [2 marks]
glider maintain it in level flight.

35g. At a particular instant in the flight the glider is losing 1.00 m of vertical [3 marks]
height for every 6.00 m that it goes forward horizontally. At this instant,
the horizontal speed of the glider is 12.5 m s –1. Calculate the velocity of the
glider. Give your answer to an appropriate number of significant figures.
 A chicken’s egg of mass 58 g is dropped onto grass from a height of 1.1 m. The
egg comes to rest in a time of 55 ms. Assume that air resistance is negligible and
that the egg does not bounce or break.

36a. Determine the magnitude of the average decelerating force that the [4 marks]
ground exerts on the egg.

36b. Explain why the egg is likely to break when dropped onto concrete from [2 marks]
the same height.

An elastic climbing rope is tested by fixing one end of the rope to the top of a
crane. The other end of the rope is connected to a block which is initially at
position A. The block is released from rest. The mass of the rope is negligible.

The unextended length of the rope is 60.0 m. From position A to position B, the
block falls freely.

37a. At position B the rope starts to extend. Calculate the speed of the block [2 marks]
at position B.

At position C the speed of the block reaches zero. The time taken for the block to
fall between B and C is 0.759 s. The mass of the block is 80.0 kg.

37b. Determine the magnitude of the average resultant force acting on the [2 marks]
block between B and C.
37c. Sketch on the diagram the average resultant force acting on the block [2 marks]
between B and C. The arrow on the diagram represents the weight of
the block.

37d. Calculate the magnitude of the average force exerted by the rope on [2 marks]
the block between B and C.

For the rope and block, describe the energy changes that take place

37e. between A and B. [1 mark]

37f. between B and C. [1 mark]

37g. The length reached by the rope at C is 77.4 m. Suggest how energy [2 marks]
considerations could be used to determine the elastic constant of the
rope.

A girl rides a bicycle that is powered by an electric motor. A battery transfers

energy to the electric motor. The emf of the battery is 16 V and it can deliver a
charge of 43 kC when discharging completely from a full charge.
The maximum speed of the girl on a horizontal road is 7.0 m s–1 with energy from
the battery alone. The maximum distance that the girl can travel under these
conditions is 20 km.

38a. Show that the time taken for the battery to discharge is about 3 × 103 s. [1 mark]
38b. Deduce that the average power output of the battery is about 240 W. [2 marks]

38c. Friction and air resistance act on the bicycle and the girl when they [2 marks]
move. Assume that all the energy is transferred from the battery to the
electric motor. Determine the total average resistive force that acts on the bicycle
and the girl.

The bicycle and the girl have a total mass of 66 kg. The girl rides up a slope that is
at an angle of 3.0° to the horizontal.

38d. Calculate the component of weight for the bicycle and girl acting down [1 mark]
the slope.

38e. The battery continues to give an output power of 240 W. Assume that [2 marks]
the resistive forces are the same as in (a)(iii).
Calculate the maximum speed of the bicycle and the girl up the slope.

38f. On another journey up the slope, the girl carries an additional mass. [2 marks]
Explain whether carrying this mass will change the maximum distance
that the bicycle can travel along the slope.

A student strikes a tennis ball that is initially at rest so that it leaves the racquet
at a speed of 64 m s–1. The ball has a mass of 0.058 kg and the contact between
the ball and the racquet lasts for 25 ms.

39a. Calculate the average force exerted by the racquet on the ball. [2 marks]

39b. Calculate the average power delivered to the ball during the impact. [2 marks]
 The student strikes the tennis ball at point P. The tennis ball is initially directed at
an angle of 7.00° to the horizontal.

The following data are available.

Height of P = 2.80 m
Distance of student from net = 11.9 m
Height of net = 0.910 m
Initial speed of tennis ball = 64 m s-1

39c. Calculate the time it takes the tennis ball to reach the net. [2 marks]

39d. Show that the tennis ball passes over the net. [3 marks]

39e. Determine the speed of the tennis ball as it strikes the ground. [2 marks]

39f. A student models the bounce of the tennis ball to predict the angle θ at [3 marks]
which the ball leaves a surface of clay and a surface of grass.

The model assumes

• during contact with the surface the ball slides.
• the sliding time is the same for both surfaces.
• the sliding frictional force is greater for clay than grass.
• the normal reaction force is the same for both surfaces.
Predict for the student’s model, without calculation, whether θ is greater for a clay
surface or for a grass surface.
 Data analysis question.
An experiment is undertaken to investigate the relationship between the
temperature of a ball and the height of its first bounce.
A ball is placed in a beaker of water until the ball and the water are at the same
temperature. The ball is released from a height of 1.00 m above a bench. The
maximum vertical height h from the bottom of the ball above the bench is
measured for the first bounce. This procedure is repeated twice and an average
hmean is calculated from the three measurements.

The procedure is repeated for a range of temperatures. The graph shows the
variation of h mean with temperature T .

A student hypothesizes that h mean is proportional to T 2.

40a. Comment, using two points on your line of best-fit, whether or not this [3 marks]
is a valid hypothesis.

40b. Suggest why using two points cannot confirm that h mean is proportional [2 marks]
to T 2 .

40c. The temperature is measured using a liquid in glass thermometer. [2 marks]

Explain why it is likely that the uncertainty in T is constant.
41. A liquid is vaporized to a gas at a constant temperature. [1 mark]
Three quantities of the substance are the
I. total intermolecular potential energy
II. root mean square speed of the molecules
III. average distance between the molecules.
Which quantities are greater for the substance in the gas phase compared to the
liquid phase?

A. I and II only
B. I and III only
C. II and III only
D. I, II and III

42. A piece of metal at a temperature of 100 °C is dropped into an equal [1 mark]

mass of water at a temperature of 15 °C in a container of negligible
mass. The specific heat capacity of water is four times that of the metal. What is
the final temperature of the mixture?
A. 83 °C
B. 57 °C
C. 45 °C
D. 32 °C

43. A mass m of water is at a temperature of 290 K. The specific heat [1 mark]

capacity of water is c. Ice, at its melting point, is added to the water to
reduce the water temperature to the freezing point. The specific latent heat of
fusion for ice is L. What is the minimum mass of ice that is required?
A. 17mc
L
B. 290mc
L

C. 17mL
c

D. 290cmL
44. A 700 W electric heater is used to heat 1 kg of water without energy [1 mark]
losses. The specific heat capacity of water is 4.2 kJ kg–1 K–1. What is the
time taken to heat the water from 25 °C to 95 °C?

A. 7 s
B. 30 s
C. 7 minutes
D. 420 minutes

45. A 1.0 kW heater supplies energy to a liquid of mass 0.50 kg. The [1 mark]
temperature of the liquid changes by 80 K in a time of 200 s. The specific
heat capacity of the liquid is 4.0 kJ kg–1 K–1. What is the average power lost by the
liquid?
A. 0
B. 200 W
C. 800 W
D. 1600 W

46. A mass m of ice at a temperature of –5 °C is changed into water at a [1 mark]

temperature of 50 °C.
Specific heat capacity of ice = ci
Specific heat capacity of water = cw
Specific latent heat of fusion of ice = L
Which expression gives the energy needed for this change to occur?
A. 55 m c w + m L
B. 55 m c i + 5 m L
C. 5 m c i + 50 m c w + m L
D. 5 m c i + 50 m c w + 5 m L
 47. Energy is supplied at a constant rate to a fixed mass of a material. The [1 mark]
material begins as a solid. The graph shows the variation of the
temperature of the material with time.

The specific heat capacities of the solid, liquid and gaseous forms of the material
are cs cl and cg respectively. What can be deduced about the values of cs cl and
cg ?
A. cs > cg > cl
B. cl > cs > cg
C. cl > cg > cs
D. cg > cs > cl

48. What are the units of the ratio specific heat capacity of copper [1 mark]
?
specific latent heat of vaporization of copper
A. no units
B. k
C. k–1
D. k–2

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