Mathematical Tools

Physics SL

Questionbank

Mathematical Tools

All Mathematical Tools Questions

All Sub-topics

Measurements in Physics

Uncertainties and Errors

Vectors and Scalars

An important note:

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Measurements and Uncertainties for the new syllabus have been moved to the Tools section of the course. According to the Guide, these “skills in the study of physics can be assessed through internal and external assessment.”
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Even though it is unlikely that you will get multiple choice questions on the topics you find here, you are expected to be familiar with the material in this section and might find these exam-style questions and related video explanations helpful in your learning process.
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Therefore, we decided to include the same explanation for our Question Difficulty Levels and Questionbank Tips as you find in other Questionbank sections.
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We hope you find these helpful :)

Question difficulty level:


Basic


Moderate


Challenging


Difficult


Black Hole


Basic


Moderate


Challenging


Difficult


Black Hole

A bit more about difficulty levels (click)

Basic: Simple, usually one-step or definition-style questions to help you revise the basics.

Moderate: At the level of easier IB exam questions. Slightly more challenging than one-plane problems.

Challenging: Typical, medium-level exam-style questions to help you solidify your knowledge.

Difficult: This is how more challenging IB exam questions look like. If you can solve these with ease, you are in a good shape :)

Black Hole: Extra challenge for those with lightspeed thinking! Very few questions on your exam will be this difficult.

 

Tips on how to get the most out of the Questionbank

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On the questions, in addition to the correct answer (A, B, C or D), you will find:
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A detailed, step-by-step Video Solution to help you fully understand the concepts used when solving the question.
A lightning-quick Done Under 90 seconds explanation with shortcuts, tips and tricks to help you save time on Paper 1 multiple choice questions.
• Purple text at the end of all videos to help you remember general concepts (Video Solutions) or to give you exam-taking tips to boost your grade (Done Under 90).
The thumbnail of each video is set as the worked solution of the question to help you revise these solutions at a glance, without having to play each video individually.

Question 1 

The number of significant figures in 0.02670 is:

  1. 3
  2. 4
  3. 5
  4. 6
Answer

B.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 2 

Which of the following are two fundamental SI units?

  1. mole, kelvin
  2. ampere, pascal
  3. joule, meter
  4. second, newton
Answer

A.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 3 

Repeating readings in an experiment reduces:

  1. Both random and systematic errors
  2. Random errors only
  3. Systematic errors only
  4. Neither random, nor systematic errors
Answer

B.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 4 

Which of the following are two vector quantities?

  1. Speed, Mass
  2. Speed, Force
  3. Velocity, Mass
  4. Force, Velocity
Answer

D.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 5 

A ball of 0.18 kg is traveling at a speed of 3.210 m s^{-1}. The mass and the velocity of the ball are used to calculate the magnitude of its momentum. What is the correct number of significant figures for the magnitude of the ball’s momentum?

  1. 2
  2. 3
  3. 4
  4. 5
Answer

A.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 6 

The vectors below represent the displacement of two cars.

What is the direction of S_{A}-S_{B}?

Answer

B.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 7 

An object of mass 0.0250 kg starts accelerating from rest and reaches a speed of 25.82 m s^{-1}. What is the change in the kinetic energy of the object?

  1. 8 J
  2. 8.3 J
  3. 8.33 J
  4. 8.333 J
Answer

C.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 8 

Which of the following is a vector quantity?

  1. Electric current
  2. Distance
  3. Pressure
  4. Electric field strength
Answer

D.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 9 

A person swims across a river that is flowing east. In what direction does the person have to swim so that she only moves towards the south from her starting point?

Answer

A.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 10 

Which of the following is a fundamental SI unit?

  1. Ampere
  2. Joule
  3. Newton
  4. Coulomb
Answer

A.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 11 

Which of the following answer options has two vector and two scalar quantities?

  1. Force, momentum, mass, acceleration
  2. Kinetic energy, velocity, potential difference, displacement
  3. Speed, potential energy, temperature, current
  4. Charge, impulse, power, time
Answer

B.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 12 

A particle is moving upwards in a straight line at constant speed. Which diagram represents the forces acting on this particle?

Answer

D.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 13 

The radius of a spherical planet is X and the absolute uncertainty in the radius of the planet is \Delta X. What is the fractional uncertainty in the volume of the planet?

  1. \frac{4\pi}{3} \left (\frac{\Delta X}{X}  \right )^3
  2. 4\pi \left (\frac{\Delta X}{X}  \right )
  3. \left (\frac{\Delta X}{X}  \right )^3
  4. 3 \left (\frac{\Delta X}{X}  \right )
Answer

D.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 14 

The side length of a square is measured to be y \pm \Delta y. What is the fractional uncertainty in the area of the square?

 

  1. \frac{\Delta y}{y}
  2. \frac{2 \Delta y}{y}
  3. \frac{\Delta y}{2y}
  4. \left ( \frac{\Delta y}{y} \right )^{2}
Answer

B.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 15 

What is the unit of pressure in fundamental SI units? 

  1. N m^{-1}
  2. N m^{-2}
  3. kg m^{-1} s^{-2}
  4. kg m^{-2} s^{-2}
Answer

C.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 16 

Which of the following answer options includes three scalar quantities?

  1. Mass, speed, weight, magnetic field strength
  2. Acceleration, time, temperature, velocity
  3. Electric current, electric field strength, displacement, charge
  4. Gravitational potential energy, amplitude, momentum, power
Answer

D.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 17 

The charge of a proton is:

  1. 1.60 \times 10^{-34} PC
  2. 1.60 \times 10^{-22} mC
  3. 1.60 \times 10^{-13} MC
  4. 1.60 \times 10^{-4} pC
Answer

A.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 18 

Which of the following quantities has the fundamental SI unit combination of kg m s^{-1}?

 

  1. Power
  2. Energy
  3. Impulse
  4. Force
Answer

C.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 19 

What is the order of magnitude, in cm, of an adult human being who has an average height?

 

  1. -1
  2. 0
  3. 1
  4. 2
Answer

D.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 20 

The side length of a cube is 20 \pm 5 cm. What is the absolute uncertainty in the volume of the cube?

  1. 125 cm^{3}
  2. 625 cm^{3}
  3. 6000 cm^{3}
  4. 8000 cm^{3}
Answer

C.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 21 

A biker travels at a constant speed of 8 m s^{-1} west during a minute and then at a constant speed of 6 m s^{-1} south during a minute. What is the average speed of the biker during these two minutes?

  1. 5 m s^{-1}
  2. 7 m s^{-1}
  3. 10 m s^{-1}
  4. 14 m s^{-1}
Answer

B.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 22 

An apple is released from rest near the surface of the Earth. It hits the ground after 2 s. What is the best estimate for the apple’s momentum right before it hits the ground?

  1. 3 \times 10^{0} kg m s^{-1}
  2. 3 \times 10^{1} kg m s^{-1}
  3. 3 \times 10^{2} kg m s^{-1}
  4. 3 \times 10^{3} kg m s^{-1}
Answer

A.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 23 

The time it takes for light to cross a helium nucleus is approximately:

  1. 10^{-7} s
  2. 10^{-15} s
  3. 10^{-21} s
  4. 10^{-23} s
Answer

D.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 24 

A student carries out an experiment to determine the speed of a toy car. The results of the experiment are shown on the graph. 

What is true about the random and the systematic errors in the student’s data?

Random errors

Systematic errors

A. Small Large
B. Large Small
C. Small Small
D. Large Large
Answer

A.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 25 

Two forces, X and Y, are represented by the following vectors:

Which vector represents Y – X?

Answer

A.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 26 

Which of the following units is equivalent to W m^{-1}?

  1. kg m s^{-2}
  2. kg m^{2} s^{-2}
  3. kg m s^{-3}
  4. kg m^{2} s^{-3}
Answer

C.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 27 

A block of mass m is sliding down a frictionless slope. The angle that the slope makes with the horizontal is \beta

The normal reaction force that acts on the block is R. What is the resultant force on the block?

  1. mgsin\beta
  2. mgcos\beta
  3. Rsin\beta
  4. Rcos\beta
Answer

A.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 28 

The mass of an object is 5.0 \pm 0.1 kg and its speed is 20 \pm 1 m s^{-1}.

What is the percentage uncertainty in the kinetic energy of the object?

 

  1. 6%
  2. 7%
  3. 12%
  4. 25%
Answer

C.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 29 

A force of 10 N can be resolved along directions AB and AC, where AB and AC are perpendicular to each other. 

The component of the force in the AC direction is 6 N. What is the magnitude of the component along the AB direction?

  1. 2 N
  2. 4 N
  3. 6 N
  4. 8 N
Answer

D.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 30 

Work done per unit volume has the same units as:

  1. Impulse
  2. Specific energy
  3. Force
  4. Pressure
Answer

D.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 31 

A student measures the base of a triangle as 20 \pm 1 cm and its height as 8 cm \pm 4 %. What is the fractional uncertainty in the area of the triangle?

  1. \frac{1}{20}
  2. \frac{9}{100}
  3. \frac{51}{100}
  4. \frac{11}{20}
Answer

B.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 32 

The fundamental SI unit combination for volt is:

  1. kg m^{2} A^{-1} s^{-2}
  2. kg m^{2} A^{-1} s^{-3}
  3. kg m^{2} C^{-1} s^{-2}
  4. kg m^{2} C^{-1} s^{-3}
Answer

B.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 33 

Two perpendicular forces of magnitudes 9 N and 12 N act on an object. The magnitude of the resultant force on the object is:

  1. 3 N
  2. 11 N
  3. 15 N
  4. 21 N
Answer

C.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 34 

A point charge is placed in an electric field. The uncertainty in the electric force that acts on the point charge is 8 % and the uncertainty in the charge of the point charge is 4 %.  What is the percentage uncertainty in the electric field strength?

  1. 2 %
  2. 4 %
  3. 12 %
  4. 32 %
Answer

C.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 35 

The mass of a car is 1000 kg\pm5% It is moving at a constant speed of 30.0 m s^{-1}\pm3%. What is the percentage uncertainty in the kinetic energy of the car?

  1. 8 %
  2. 11 %
  3. 14 %
  4. 45 %
Answer

B.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 36 

The best estimate for the order of magnitude of the ratio \frac{electron \:  rest \: mass}{neutron \:  rest \:  mass} is:

  1. -3
  2. 3
  3. -4
  4. 4
Answer

A.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 37 

The side length of a cube is 50 \pm 1 cm and its mass is 60 \pm 3 kg. What is the percentage uncertainty in the density of the cube?

  1. 4 %
  2. 7 %
  3. 11 %
  4. 13 %
Answer

C.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 38 

Which of the following is a unit of acceleration?

  1. J kg^{-1} m^{-1}
  2. N kg^{-1} m^{-1}
  3. J kg m^{-1}
  4. N kg m^{-1}
Answer

A.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 39 

What is the size of a carbon nucleus?

  1. 0.0027 fm
  2. 0.0027 pm
  3. 0.0027 nm
  4. 0.0027 \mum
Answer

B.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 40 

The mass of a car is 1000 kg \pm 5 % and its kinetic energy is 200 kJ \pm 15 %. What is the absolute uncertainty in the speed of the car?

  1. 0.6 m s^{-1}
  2. 1 m s^{-1}
  3. 2 m s^{-1}
  4. 4 m s^{-1}
Answer

C.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 41 

A coal-fired power plant uses 9 \times 10^{6} kg of coal per day. All the coal that is used in the power plant is composed of carbon-12 atoms. 

What is the best estimate for the number of carbon-12 atoms used per month in the power plant?

  1. 10^{9}
  2. 10^{24}
  3. 10^{31}
  4. 10^{34}
Answer

D.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 42 

A student carries out an experiment to examine how the kinetic energy of an object varies with the speed of the object. The results are shown on the graph.

What can be deduced about the type of errors in the student’s measurements?

Random errors

Systematic errors

A. Small Small
B. Small Large
C. Large Small
D. Large Large
Answer

B.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 43 

Two masses, X and Y, are 62\pm2 kg and 28\pm1 kg respectively. Which of the following has the largest fractional uncertainty?

  1. 2X + Y
  2. X – 2Y
  3. \frac{3Y}{X}
  4. 4XY
Answer

B.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 44 

Three forces with magnitudes A, B, and C lie in the same plane and act on an object. The object is in equilibrium. 

Which of the following equations is correct?

  1. A = B + C
  2. Asin\alpha = B
  3. Csin\alpha = A - Bcos\alpha
  4. Acos\alpha = C
Answer

C.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 45 

The period of a mass-spring system that oscillates with simple harmonic motion (SHM) can be calculated using the formula T = 2 \pi \sqrt{\frac{m}{k}} where T is the period of the oscillations, m is mass and k is the spring constant. The percentage uncertainty in the period is 4 % and the percentage uncertainty in the mass is 8 %. What is the percentage uncertainty in the spring constant?  

  1. 0.5 %
  2. 1 %
  3. 16 %
  4. 24 %
Answer

C.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 46 

A cube-shaped container is filled with 1000 litres of water. The density of water 1 g cm^{-3}. The difference in the orders of magnitude of the diameter of a water molecule and the side length of the container is:

  1. 14
  2. 12
  3. 10
  4. 8
Answer

C.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 47 

A box is in the shape of a rectangular prism. The length, width and height of the box are measured to be 5 cm, 10 cm, and 20 cm respectively. The uncertainty in each measurement is \pm 1 cm.

What is the absolute uncertainty in the volume of the box?

  1. 3.5 cm^{3}
  2. 100 cm^{3}
  3. 350 cm^{3}
  4. 500 cm^{3}
Answer

C.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 48 

A stone is thrown with initial velocity v at an angle \theta to the horizontal. The magnitude of the vertical component of the stone’s velocity is 10 m s^{-1}

What is the value of \theta?

  1. sin^{-1}\left ( \frac{10}{v} \right )
  2. sin^{-1}\left ( \frac{v}{10} \right )
  3. cos^{-1}\left ( \frac{10}{v} \right )
  4. cos^{-1}\left ( \frac{v}{10} \right )
Answer

A.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 49 

The graph shows a data set from an experiment. 

What is the percentage uncertainty in the vertical axis intercept of the line of best fit for the data set?

  1. 30 %
  2. 50 %
  3. 70 %
  4. 100 %
Answer

B.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 50 

The radius of a sphere is measured to be 10 \pm 1 cm. What is the best estimate for the absolute uncertainty in the volume of the sphere?

  1. 1 cm^3
  2. 12 cm^3
  3. 100 cm^3
  4. 1200 cm^3
Answer

D.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 51 

In an experiment, the following values are measured and given together with their uncertainties:

a = 2.0 \pm x

b = 16 \pm 2%

c = 0.50 \pm 0.07

Then, H is calculated using the formula H = \frac{3a^{3}}{2 \sqrt{b} \times c}. For the values given above, the absolute uncertainty in H is \pm 1.8.

What is the value of x?

  1. 0.1
  2. 0.2
  3. 0.3
  4. 0.4
Answer

A.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 52 

Three forces, \overrightarrow{A}, \overrightarrow{B} and \overrightarrow{C}, act on object X as shown on the diagram. Object X moves at constant velocity. 

Consider the following three equations:

I. \overrightarrow{A} + \overrightarrow{B} = - \overrightarrow{C}

II. \left | \overrightarrow{B} \right |cos(\alpha) = \left | \overrightarrow{C} \right |cos\left ( \frac{\pi}{2} - \alpha \right )

III. \left | \overrightarrow{A} \right | = \left | \overrightarrow{B} \right |sin(\alpha) + \left | \overrightarrow{C} \right |cos(\alpha)

Which of these three equations are correct?

  1. I and II only
  2. I and III only
  3. II and III only
  4. I, II and III
Answer

D.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 53 

A stone is attached to a metal rod and rotated in a horizontal circle. The centripetal acceleration, a, of the stone is measured for different rotational time periods, T

Given that random errors were minimised during the experiment, which of the following graphs will have a straight line of best fit?

  1. a against T^{2}
  2. a^{2} against T
  3. a against T^{-2}
  4. a^{-2} against T
Answer

C.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 54 

The volume of a cone is 30\pi \pm 0.9 \pi cm^{3} and its height is 100 \pm 7 mm. The volume of a cone can be calculated using V = \frac{1}{3} \pi r^{2} h where V is volume, r is radius and h is height. 

What is the absolute uncertainty in the diameter of the cone?

 

  1. 0.01 m
  2. 0.005 m
  3. 0.003 m
  4. 0.002 m
Answer

C.

Video Solution

Done Under 90

Question 55 

Two quantities, x and y, are related as shown on the graph. The vertical axis intercept of the graph is c and the gradient of the graph is \frac{1}{m}.

Which of the following equations correctly shows the relationship betweenx and y?

  1. c = y - mx
  2. c = my - x
  3. x = my - c
  4. x = my - mc
Answer

D.

Video Solution

Done Under 90