Light


1. How could you explain "light" is to someone who has never even heard of light?
2. The beam of a searchlight is easy to see when it's foggy, harder to see when the weather is clear. Why?
3. Why do precious stones glitter?
4. Why don't we see stars during the day?
5. Near-sighted people squint to see better. How does that help?
6. A lighted candle sits on a table in a large room. The light from the candle reaches how far?
7. Does light travel in straight line or not? Give examples to support your answer.
8. Why can you sometimes see yourself in a window but not see through it easily?
9. Can anything travel the speed of light?
10. Does light always travel "the speed of light", 3 x 10⁸ m/s?
11. A light year is a unit of distance used in astronomy. What is it?

Shadows


12. How does the size of a cloud compare to its shadow? Why?
13. Do all planets have lunar and solar eclipses like ours?
14. What is the color on the screen at each letter?



Mirrors

15. What would you see in the world around you if there were no reflections?
16. What is the length of a plane mirror flat against the wall that you would need to see all of yourself?
17. Do mirrors reflect 100% of the light hitting them? How can you prove it?
18. What is true about the center image in 2 mirrors perpendicular to each other? Where is this idea used in everyday life?
19. A man approaches a mirror at a speed of 2 m/s. At what speed does he approach his own reflection?
20. How do rearview mirrors change for day and night?
21. How do fun house mirrors work?
22. How does your reflection look in the bowl of a spoon? On the outside of the spoon?
23. Where are concave-shaped objects used to reflect something other than light?
24. What would it look like inside a sphere with mirrored walls?
25. Where are concave mirrors used in everyday life?
26. Where are convex mirrors used in everyday life?

Refraction


27. Why can you sometimes see 2 fish or none, when there is really only one in the fish tank?
28. Why can you see better underwater with googles? What would help fish see in the air?
29. Why do air bubbles in water glitter?
30. A scuba diver can see a person standing on shore, but that person can see the scuba diver only sometimes as he moves about. Why?
31. What causes a highway to look wet when it's really dry?
32. A beam of light going into water looks like this, but a card in the water looks like this. Explain.


33. If the path of light bends as it goes into glass, why do object look the same through a window?
34. Sketch where you, the sun, and rain have to be in order to see a rainbow.
35. Why does a prism "break up" white light into a spectrum?
36. Why does the setting sun look oval?

Lenses


37. Which will magnify more, a very bulgy lens or an almost flat one?
38. Can you light a fire, using ice?
39. You can look at a person wearing glasses and tell if they are near or far-sighted. How?
40. What do glasses do for a near-sighted person?
41. Where are convex lenses used in everyday life?
42. Where are concave lenses used in everyday life?

Andria Erzberger
2/1/01