CSEC Physics Paper 1 May/June 2010 - Free CXC Past Paper with Answers

Which of the following groups of quantities contains one which is NOT an S.I. base quantity?

Current, temperature, length

Volume, temperature, time

Time, mass, temperature

3.1415926 expressed to TWO significant figures is

The symbol for the unit of the moment of a force is

The unit of electrical resistance is expressed as

$1 \Omega = 1 V.A^{-1}$

$1 \Omega = 1 A.V^{-1}$

$1 \Omega = 1 W.A^{-1}$

The time period of a simple pendulum oscillating with a small amplitude depends on the

mass of the pendulum bob

amplitude of the oscillation

length of the pendulum

force with which the pendulum is set into motion

Three immiscible liquids P, Q and R have different densities. Q is denser than P but less dense than R. Which of the following diagrams shows how the liquids settle in the measuring cylinder?

A bus with luggage loaded on top is more likely to tip over when rounding a corner than the same bus without the luggage. The reason for this is that the luggage

increases the weight of the bus

raises the centre of gravity of the bus

lowers the centre of gravity of the bus

increases the momentum of the bus

A uniform rod XY of weight 40 N is held in equilibrium, horizontally, as shown in the diagram above. Which of the following is true?

Which of the following is used to calculate the efficiency of a machine?

$\frac{\text{Load x Distance moved by Effort}}{\text{Effort x Distance moved by Load}} \times \frac{100\%}{1}$

$\frac{\text{Load x Distance moved by Load}}{\text{Effort x Distance moved by Effort}} \times \frac{100\%}{1}$

$\frac{\text{Effort x Distance moved by Effort}}{\text{Load x Distance moved by Load}} \times \frac{100\%}{1}$

$\frac{\text{Effort x Distance moved by Load}}{\text{Load x Distance moved by Effort}} \times \frac{100\%}{1}$

Items 10-11 refer to the following velocity- time graph which shows a ball being thrown vertically upwards from the ground. Downward motion is assumed to be positive. Velocity m/s 30 20- 10- X 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 -10- Time/s -20- -30-P Q

The point, X, on the graph shows when the ball is

at its highest point above the ground

at rest on the ground

just about to be thrown upwards

on its way halfway downwards

The gradient of the line, PQ, represents the

distance the ball has covered

displacement of the ball from the ground

acceleration of the ball as it moves

velocity of the ball for its entire flight

Item 12 refers to the following diagram

X, Y and Z are three billiard balls of equal mass whose centres lie in a straight line. Y and Z are touching each other and are stationary. X, travelling with a velocity of 20 m s⁻¹, impinges on Y. Assuming that the spheres are perfectly elastic, the resultant motion after impact is

X, Y and Z all move on together, each with a velocity of 10 m s⁻¹

X and Y remain stationary while Z moves on with a velocity of 20 m s⁻¹

X, Y and Z remain stationary

X remains stationary while Y and Z move on together each with a velocity of 10 m s⁻¹

If the spheres come to rest as shown in the diagram, the force keeping them apart is the

Which of the following tools is/are designed to take advantage of a large moment provided by a relatively small force? I. Claw hammer II. Crowbar III. Pair of tweezers IV. Pair of wire cutters

Which of the following is a unit of work?

When a car is moving at a constant speed the energy changes occurring are

chemical energy to kinetic energy

chemical energy to potential energy

kinetic energy to potential energy

chemical energy to nuclear energy

The pressure on the dam at the bottom of the reservoir depends on the

volume of water held by the dam

mass of water held back by the dam

length of the reservoir

A piece of string is tied onto a small stone and the stone is then suspended, totally immersed, in water. The tension in the string will be

equal to the weight of the stone

less than the weight of the stone

more than the weight of the stone

A solid object when placed in a beaker of water just sinks to the bottom. Which of the following should be done to make the object float?

I. Cutting off part of the object II. Dissolving a lot of salt in the water III. Carrying the beaker up to the top of a high mountain

Item 20 refers to the following diagram.

24 cm³ of air at a pressure P mm Hg are trapped in the syringe which is blocked at X. The piston is forced to the 8 cm³ mark. The new pressure in terms of P is

In the pressure law which of the following would be true? I. Ratio of pressure to Kelvin temperature is constant. II. Volume is constant. III. Pressure is constant.

Which of the following are characteristic features of a clinical thermometer?

I. Narrow constriction in the tube just above the bulb II. Limited range of temperatures III. Large bore to make the mercury more visible

Which of the following are reasons why a hot liquid, placed in a double-walled vacuum flask, retains its heat for a long time?

I. Evacuated space between the double walls reduces the loss of heat by conduction. II. Silver inner walls reduce the loss of heat by radiation. III. The silvered outer wall helps to absorb heat from the surroundings.

Which of the following is longitudinal in nature?

Which of the following graphs illustrates the variation of pressure (P) with volume (V) for a gas obeying Boyle's Law?

A gas is much easier to compress than a solid or liquid because the gas molecules

are arranged randomly

are moving very rapidly

have no forces between them

A fixed mass of gas at constant temperature is compressed. The molecules of the gas will

hit the sides of the container more often

have more kinetic energy

Which of the following waves has the GREATEST amplitude?

Which of the following is the correct relation between the wavelength, $\lambda$ , speed, $v$ , and frequency, $f$ , of a wave?

$f = \frac{v}{\lambda}$

$f = \frac{\lambda}{v}$

$\lambda = \frac{f}{v}$

An electric current in a metal consists of a flow of

The spreading of a wave into the region behind an obstruction is called

A loud high-pitched note results from a wave of

low frequency, large amplitude

low frequency, small amplitude

high frequency, small amplitude

high frequency, large amplitude

In domestic installation systems, which of the following should be placed in the live wire? I. Switches II. Circuit breakers III. Fuses

Which of the following are the same for all electromagnetic waves travelling through a vacuum? I. Speed II. Wavelength III. Frequency

Which of the following diagrams does NOT illustrate what happens when a ray of light meets an air-water boundary?

Which of the following would be the unit(s) of the heat capacity of an object?

Which of the following is NOT one of the ways in which the strength of the magnetic field near a solenoid (long coil) carrying a current can be increased?

Increasing the resistance of the coil

Increasing the current in the coil

Increasing the number of turns per unit length of the coil

Placing a soft iron core inside the coil

Item 38 refers to the diagrams below which show the magnetic field lines plotted by a student.

In which of the following diagrams are the magnetic field lines plotted correctly?

Which of the following is equal to 1 kWh?

Each prism or mirror of a periscope turns light rays through an angle of

Which of the following relationships between the electrical quantities is correct?

The speed of light is highest when it passes through

Total internal reflection in a medium occurs only when the angle of incidence

equals the angle of refraction

is greater than the critical angle

is less than the critical angle

The refractive index of a transparent medium with a critical angle, c, for light travelling from the medium to air is

$\frac{\sin 90}{\sin c}$

Magnetic induction occurs when

a N pole attracts a S pole

iron nails near a magnet become magnetised

a magnet is suspended and points in the NS direction

an electroscope is charged

Which of the following characteristics concerning ammeters is correct?

The diagram above shows the inside of a three-pin electric plug. The wires are labelled, F, G and H. Which of the following is true?

I. H is the earth wire with insulation colour, green/yellow. II. F is the neutral wire with insulation colour, blue. III. G is the live wire with insulation colour, brown.

Which of the following is the MOST suitable material for the core of an electromagnet?

When a wire is moved across a magnetic field, an e.m.f. is induced because the

magnetic fields interact

magnetic flux is cut by the wire

electric fields interact

lines of force behave like stretched elastic

Item 52 refers to the following diagram.

The wire in the diagram will move

The nucleus of an atom contains protons and neutrons of

approximately equal mass

greatly differing masses

Isotopes of the an element have

different atomic numbers

atoms with the same number of protons

atoms with different numbers of electrons

Which of the following are definitions for the term 'half-life' of a radioactive nuclide? I. The time taken for the activity of any give sample to fall to half its original value. II. The time taken for half the nuclei present in any given sample to decay. III. Half the average number of disintegrations per second.

Radioactivity takes place in an atom as a result of

exposure to excess heat

excess stress on the atom

Which of the following statements about radioactive decay are correct? I. It is dependent on conditions external to the nucleus. II. It is a random process. III. It is due to changes in the nuclei of atoms.

Which of the following graphs shows how the activity of a radioactive source varies with time?

Which of the following statements is/are correct?

I. The mass (nucleon) number is 11. II. The atomic (proton) number is 5. III. The atom shown in the diagram is positively charged.

Item 60 refers to the following information. The activity of a radioactive substance was measured at suitable intervals over a period of days and its radioactive decay curve plotted as shown below.

The half-life of the radioactive substance is approximately

CSEC Physics Paper 1 May/June 2010 - Free CXC Past Paper with Answers

CSEC Physics Paper 1 May/June 2010 Questions