PHYSICS PAST QUESTIONS

A uniform metre rule is balanced on a fulcrum placed at the 35cm mark by suspending a mass of 120g at the 10cm mark. Calculate the mass of the metre rule.

A ray of light incident at an angle $\theta$ in a rectangular prism grazes the surface of the prism on emerging from the prism. Determine the value of the angle. [Absolute refractive index of the material of the prism is 1.5]

Which of the following substances lowers the surface tension of water?

A dam is able to hold a large quantity of water because its wall is

The diagram given illustrates the waveform of a note produced by vibrations in an air column of length L. If the speed of sound in air is V, derive an expression for the frequency of the notes

Which of the following electromagnetic waves is most energetic?

The diagram above illustrates a block ans tackle pulley system in which an effort E supports a load of 100.0N. If the efficiency of the machine is 75%, calculate the value of E

Which of the following factors does not increase the rate of evaporation of water in a lake?

The image formed by a concave mirror is real, inverted and magnified, when object is placed

A body of mass m moving around a circle of radius r with a uniform speed v experiences a centripetal force F. The work done by the centripetal force on it is

Which of the following statements is correct about the effect of dissolved salt on the freezing point of water?

The diagram above illustrates a wave setup between two fixed ends 4.0m apart. If the speed of the wave is 1.0 , its wavelength and frequency respectively are

A plane is inclined at an angle $\theta$ to the horizontal. Its velocity ratio is

Plane waves through a narrow gap emerge as circular waves. This phenomenon is known as

Total internal reflection. i. is a phenomenon of refraction of light. ii. occurs when light rays travel into a denser medium. iii. occurs when the critical angle is just exceeded. iv. is a phenomenon of reflection of light. Which of the statements above are correct?

Complementary colours are those which

The continuous stirring in the method of mixtures to determine the specific thermal capacity of a substance ensures

When a body is thrown vertically upwards, its velocity at the maximum height is

Which of the following processes is not a surface phenomenon?

X-rays and infrared rays are both electromagnetic. Which common property do the waves have? Both waves

Consider the wave equation:  $y=10sin(x-50t)$, What does the number 10 represent?

An object at rest is said to possess

Two plane mirrors are inclined at an angle 20° to each other. Determine the number of images formed when an object is placed between them.

According to Newton's law of cooling, the heat energy lost per unit area of a body depends on the

I. Surface area

II. Nature of the surface

III. Temperature of the surface

IV. Excess temperature over the surroundings

The maximum density of water occurs at a temperature of

Which of the following statements about mass and weight are correct?

i. Weight is the force of gravity on a body.

ii. The mass of a body is the quantity of matter in the body.

iii. The weight of a body is greatest at the equator.

iv. The mass of a body is greatest at the poles

A body is whirled round a circular path at constant speed. Which of the following diagrams correctly indicates the direction of the body's velocity (v) and its acceleration (a)?

The diagram given is used to determine the

The resultant force in a couple is

In an experiment in which a molten substance is allowed to cool, the cooling curve above was obtained. The temperature 60^oC is known as the

The property of a body to remain at rest or to continue in uniform motion in a straight line is called

An object of volume 400cm³ and 2.5gcm^-3 is suspended from a spring balance with half its volume immersed in water. Determine the reading on the spring balance. (Density of water = 1gcm^-3)

The diagram above illustrates two waves of equal amplitudes A and frequencies approaching each other. When the two waves meet at a point I midway between them, the vertical displacement of the resulting wave will be

The mouth piece of a telephone handset converts

Frequency is measured in

The S.I unit for sound energy is

A student measures the volume of a liquid using a measuring cylinder. What else needs to be measured by the student in order to determine the density of the liquid?

The pair of musical instruments that works on the vibration of air in pipes is

Which of the following quantities are dimensionally independent?

I. Dielectric constant

II. Momentum

III. Efficiency

IV. Refractive index

A chemical balance is used for measuring

In the clinical thermometer, the function of the kink is to

i. Prevent the back flow of mercury after use.

ii. Ensure the back flow of mercury after use.

iii. Maintain the thermometric property of mercury.

iv. Allow the temperature attained to be read.

The angle at which a projectile must be fired to cover maximum range is

Which of the following statements about matter is not correct?

The diagram given illustrates a force-distance graph for the motion of a wooden block. Determine the work done on the block when moved through a distance of 5m.

Which of the following units is derived?

During a training session, two footballers pass a ball repeatedly between each other. The 'to and fro' motion of the ball is not simple harmonic because the

I. Acceleration of the ball is not directed towards a fixed point

II. Restoring force is not directed towards the centre

III. Acceleration of the ball is not directly proportional to the displacement from a fixed point

Which of the statements above are correct?

A uniform bar AB is balanced on a knife-edge which is 60cm from B by a mass of 22g which hangs at C 10cm from A. Calculate the mass of the bar.

The diagram above illustrates a beaker of water being heated. It is observed that as the bubbles rise they get bigger in size.The reason for this observation is

In a school compound a girl walks 40km due east from the laboratory to the staff room to submit her report. Then she returns and walks 30m due north to her classroom. Determine the magnitude of her displacement from the10m laboratory

Thermal energy added or removed from a substance that changes the state of the substance is called

A quantity of hot water at 100^oC is added to 400g of water at 10^oC until the temperature of the mixture is 60^oC.

Calculate the mass of the hot water added. [Specific heat capacity of water =4200JKg^-1 K^-1]

An object floats in a fluid when it displaces it's

Which of the following graphs correctly represents the relationship between the kinetic energy (K.E) and the displacement (d) from point of release of a swinging pendulum bob?

A vapour whose molecules are in dynamic equilibrium with those of its own liquid is said to be

A rainbow is formed when sunlight is incident on water droplets suspended in the air due to

The diagram above is a micrometer screw gauge. Determine its reading

The graph of density against temperature for water is correctly illustrated by

The diagram above illustrates a simple barometer. Which distance measures the atmospheric pressure?

In an experiment in which a molten substance is allowed to cool, the cooling curve above was obtained. The temperature 60^oC is known as the

A battery of emf 24V is connected to three resistor P, Q and R as illustrated in the diagram. Determine the voltage across the resistor Q

A body can undergo the following types of motion except

The diagram above illustrates the mercury-in-glass thermometer used for determining the temperature of a room. Use the data on it to determine the room temperature.

Which of the following statements correctly defines the boiling point of a liquid? The temperature at which the

Which of the following statements about the 3rd overtone of a vibrating air column of an open pipe is correct? It has

A ball is projected horizontally from the top of a tower. Neglecting air resistance, which of the following statements about its motion is/are correct?

I. Vertical acceleration on the ball decreases as it falls

II. The vertical force on the ball remains constant

III. The vertical speed of the ball increases as it falls

Which of the following devices converts light energy to electrical energy?

The dimensions of momentum are

Two strings each inclined at an angle 30^o to the horizontal are used to hold a bucket of water weighing 20N. Calculate the tension i n each string.

The slope of a straight-line velocity-time graph represents

The bob of a simple pendulum takes 8.0s to complete 10 oscillations. Determine the frequency of oscillation of the bob.

A converging lens of focal length 10cm forms an erect image three times the size of the real object. Calculate the distance between the image and the object

A pressurized perfume bottle is left on the window pane of a room. What happens to he gas molecules of the perfume on a sunny day? They

The ice point on the absolute scale of temperature is

A plank is placed along the path on which a wheel barrow containing sand is pushed at a construction site to prevent it from sticking as illustrated in the diagram given. The large area of the plank prevents the wheel barrow from getting stuck by

Materials that can be stretched and still return to their original forms when the stresses are removed are said be

The crackling noise produced by aluminum roofing sheets on a house during a hot sunny day is a result of

A ball is dropped from the top of a tower. Due to air resistance,it reaches terminal velocity. Which of the following statement(s) about its motion is/are correct? i. The acceleration of the ball is zero. ii. The net force on the ball is zero. iii. The velocity of the ball increases.

The diagram given, represents the graph of stress against strain for an elastic wire. The point Q on the graph is the

Which of the following statements describes a body in a stable equilibrium correctly?

Resonance occurs when one vibrating object causes a second object to vibrate at its own natural