practice

  1. Write something.
  2. Write something else.
  3. Write something different.
  4. Write something completely different.

conceptual

  1. When light strikes glass perpendicularly about 4% is reflected at each surface. How much light is transmitted through a pane of window glass?
  2. Why can’t auto focus cameras be used to photograph themselves in a mirror? (That is, why will the auto focusing mechanism always produce an out of focus image of the images in a mirror?)
  3. Why is the lettering on the front of some vehicles backward? Why is the lettering on the back and sides of these vehicles not also backward?
  4. Does the law of reflection hold for curved mirrors? Does it hold for diffuse reflection? Does it hold when light is scattered off nitrogen molecules in the earth’s atmosphere?
  5. What minimum height must a "full length" mirror have so that when you look into it you are able to see your entire body. Draw a diagram to illustrate the way it works. (Hint, Hint, Hint: Draw the diagram first. Draw a profile view of a stick figure standing in front of a wall. Draw a ray from the foot of the stick figure that bounces off the wall and travels to the eye of the stick figure. Draw a ray from the top of the stick figure's head that bounces off the wall and travels to the stick figure's eye. That's enough of a hint. You should be able to answer the question now.)

geometric

  1. The diagram below shows two mirrors that meet at a right angle. A ray of light travels through the point labeled 7 and strikes the mirror on the right. Draw the path of the ray until it leaves the "cage" made by the labeled points.


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    1. What numbered point does the ray pass through as it leaves the "cage"?
    2. How does the direction of the ray entering the "cage" compare to the direction of the ray that left the "cage"?
  2. The diagram below shows a semicircular mirror with 12 incident rays of light. The letter "C" marks the center of the semicircle and the dashed line is the axis of the mirror. All 12 incident rays are parallel to the axis. Draw the reflected rays until they reach the axis. Do they focus?


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