Cracking the AP physics B exam

873 Pages·2012·16.42 MB·English

by  Steven A Leduc

Editorial
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Copyright © 2011 by The Princeton Review, Inc.

The Princeton Review is not affiliated with Princeton University.

All rights reserved. Published in the United States by
Random House, Inc., New York, and in Canada by
Random House of Canada Limited, Toronto.

eISBN: 978-0-307-94446-7

Editor: Calvin S. Cato
Production Editor: Michael Breslosky
2012 Edition

Cover design © 2011 by Random House, Inc.
Cover art © Andres Rodriguez/Alamy.

v3.1
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

My thanks and appreciation to John Katzman, Steve Quattrociocchi, Paul
Maniscalco, Kris Gamache, Tricia McCloskey, Andy Lutz, and Suellen Glasser
for making me feel at home. Thanks also to Art Brown for his thoughtful and
valuable input.
Special thanks to Paul Kanarek for his friendship, counsel, and encouragement.
—S.L.
Thanks to Heather Brady, Meave Shelton, Kim Howie, and Al Mercado for
making my words and diagrams make more sense. Thanks to Pete Insley, Scott
Welty, and Jeff Rylander—the guys who taught me how to teach physics. Thanks
to my wife and three children who continue to teach me about living.
—J.M.
DEDICATION

This work is dedicated to the memory of my great aunt, Norma Perron Lamb
Piette.
CONTENTS

Cover
Title Page
Copyright
Acknowledgments
Dedication

Introduction
1 VECTORS

Introduction
Definition
Vector Addition (Geometric)
Scalar Multiplication
Vector Subtraction (Geometric)
Standard Basis Vectors
Vector Operations Using Components
Magnitude of a Vector
Direction of a Vector
2 KINEMATICS

Introduction
Position
Displacement
A Note about Notation
Speed and Velocity
Acceleration
Uniformly-Accelerated Motion and the Big Five
Kinematics with Graphs
Qualitative Graphing
Free Fall
Projectile Motion
Chapter 2 Review Questions
Section I: Multiple Choice
Section II: Free Response
Summary
3 NEWTON’S LAWS

Introduction
The First Law
The Second Law
The Third Law
Weight
An Overall Strategy
The Normal Force
Friction
Pulleys
Inclined Planes
Chapter 3 Review Questions
Section I: Multiple Choice
Section II: Free Response
Summary
4 WORK, ENERGY, AND POWER

Introduction
Work
Work Done by a Variable Force
Kinetic Energy
The Work–Energy Theorem
Potential Energy
Conservation of Mechanical Energy
Power
Chapter 4 Review Questions
Section I: Multiple Choice
Section II: Free Response
Summary
5 LINEAR MOMENTUM

Introduction
Impulse
Conservation of Linear Momentum
Collisions
Chapter 5 Review Questions
Section I: Multiple Choice
Section II: Free Response
Summary
6 UNIFORM CIRCULAR MOTION & NEWTON’S LAW OF
GRAVITATION

Introduction
Uniform Circular Motion
Torque
Equilibrium
Newton’s Law of Gravitation
The Gravitational Attraction Due to an Extended Body
Chapter 6 Review Questions
Section I: Multiple Choice
Section II: Free Response
Summary
7 OSCILLATIONS

Introduction
Simple Harmonic Motion (SHM): The Spring-Block Oscillator
SHM in Terms of Energy
The Kinematics of SHM
The Spring-Block Oscillator: Vertical Motion
Pendulums
Chapter 7 Review Questions
Section I: Multiple Choice
Section II: Free Response
Summary
8 FLUID MECHANICS

Introduction
Density
Pressure
Hydrostatic Pressure
Buoyancy
Flow Rate and the Continuity Equation
Bernoulli’s Equation
Torricelli’s Theorem
The Bernoulli Effect
Chapter 8 Review Questions
Section I: Multiple Choice
Section II: Free Response
Summary
9 THERMAL PHYSICS

Introduction