Year 11 Half Yearly Physics Quiz | Physics Cheatsheet

Want to quickly test your knowledge of Physics to see where you are at with your exam prep? We’ve provided 10 questions from across the Year 11 syllabus so you can quickly quiz your knowledge. We’ve included the answer and explanation so you can see where you went wrong or double-check why you were right. There are links to additional resources after each section.

In this Year 11 half yearly Physics quiz, you’ll find:

• Kinematics questions
• Dynamics questions
• Waves question
• Thermodynamics question
• Electricity and magnetism question
• Physics cheatsheet to download

Let’s kick things off with Kinematics questions from Module 1.

Question 1 – Kinematics

If an object has a constant velocity, which of the following could be false?

a) Its acceleration is zero.
b) It is travelling in a straight line.
c) It is moving in the positive direction.
d) Its speed is constant.

Answer:

c). The direction of travel must remain the same, but we do not necessarily know what it is. All other statements are always true for travel at constant velocity.

Question 2 – Kinematics

Consider the following graph describing the motion of a car.

Which of these statements correctly describes this motion?

a) The car’s velocity is constant and negative.
b) The car’s acceleration is constant and negative.
c) The car’s displacement is constant and positive.
d) None of the above.

Answer:

a) Velocity can be found by taking the gradient/slope of a displacement-time graph. In this case, the gradient is constant and negative.

Looking for more Kinematics explanations and practice questions?

If you want help with Year 11 Dynamics, read our Year 11 Physics Guide. You can find more Kinematics questions, here.

Question 3 – Dynamics

Given the free-body diagram below, find the acceleration of the 2 kg object.

a) 120 ms-2
b) 20 ms-2
c) 10 ms-2
d) 2 ms-2

Answer:

c). The net force on the object is 20 N to the right, so according to Newton’s Second Law, the acceleration will be this force divided by the mass.

Question 4 – Dynamics

Which scenario contains an object experiencing static friction?

a) The Space Shuttle experiences atmospheric drag as it returns to Earth.
b) A car skids around a sharp corner in the road.
c) A diver slows down as she lands in the pool.
d) A person tries and fails to push a heavy box across the ground.

Answer:

d). Static friction is opposing the applied force such that the box does not accelerate. In all other scenarios, the object experiencing friction is in motion.

Question 5 – Dynamics

Jenny throws a ball upwards. It slows down as it travels, stops at a height h and then begins to fall back down with increasing speed. Which of the following correctly describes the process involved?

a) The force of gravity does positive work on the ball as it rises, and negative work as it falls.
b) The force of gravity does negative work on the ball as it rises, and positive work as it falls.
c) Air resistance does positive work on the ball as it rises and also as it falls.
d) Jenny does negative work on the ball as it rises and also as it falls.

Answer:

b). The gravitational force results in kinetic energy reducing on the way up (so the ball slows down) because it is in the opposite direction to the ball’s motion, and does negative work. The opposite happens as the ball falls.

Looking for more Dynamics explanations and practice questions?

If you want help with Year 11 Dynamics, read our Year 11 Physics Guide. You can find more dynamics questions, here.

Question 6 – Waves

A sound wave is displayed on an oscilloscope as shown:

If the horizontal scale is 5ms per division, what is the frequency of the sound?

a) 10 Hz
b) 20 Hz
c) 100 Hz
d) 200 Hz

Answer:

c). The period of the wave is 10 ms (as there are 2 divisions from crest to crest) and the frequency is calculated as f = 1/T. Ensure you convert milliseconds to seconds.

Question 7 – Waves

If the sound changed to have a lower pitch, but the oscilloscope scale remained the same, which of the following changes would you see?
a) More crests displayed on the screen
b) Fewer troughs displayed on the screen
c) Larger wave amplitude
d) Smaller wave amplitude

Answer:

b). Reducing the pitch reduces the frequency, making the period longer. Therefore fewer full cycles would fit on the screen.

Question 8 – Thermodynamics

A student is heating a liquid on a Bunsen burner. The temperature of the liquid reaches 50°C and then stops increasing. What could be a reason for this?
a) The liquid is undergoing a change of state
b) The liquid is undergoing a chemical reaction
c) The flame is not hot enough
d) It is not possible to heat up a gas

Answer:

a). During a change of state, such as liquid to gas, the temperature of a substance does not change even though heat is being added.

Looking for more Waves explanations and practice questions?

If you want help with Year 11 Dynamics, read our Year 11 Physics Guide. You can find more waves questions, here.

Question 9  – Electricity and Magnetism

A circuit contains three 4Ω resistors connected in parallel with each other.

What is the total effective resistance of the circuit?

a) 12 Ω
b) 4 Ω
c) 0.75 Ω
d) 1.33 Ω

Answer:

d). To find the total resistance of a set of resistors in parallel, the equation is:

\(\frac{1}{R_T}=\ \frac{1}{R_1}\ +\ \frac{1}{R_2}\ +\ \ldots \)
Hence
\(\frac{1}{R_T}=\ \frac{1}{4}\ +\ \frac{1}{4}\ +\ \frac{1}{4}\ =\ \frac{3}{4} \)
\(RT = \frac{4}{3} = 1.33Ω \)

Question 10 – Electricity and Magnetism

Which of these is not true about the magnetic field around a current-carrying conductor?

a) Perpendicular to the current flow
b) Uniform strength
c) Forms concentric circles
d) Dependent on the direction of the current flow

Answer:

b). The field gets weaker further away from the wire.

Looking for more Waves explanations and practice questions?

If you want help with Year 11 Dynamics, read our Year 11 Physics Guide. You can find more waves questions, here.

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