SINGAPORE JUNIOR PHYSICS OLYMPIAD 2012

GENERAL ROUND

1 August, 2012

3:00 pm – 4:30 pm

Time Allowed: ONE hour THIRTY minutes

INSTRUCTIONS

1. This paper contains 50 multiple choice questions and 19 printed pages.

2. Each of the questions or incomplete statements is followed by five suggested an-

swers or completions. Select the one that is best in each case and then shade the
corresponding bubble on the answer sheet.

3. Only the answer sheet will be collected at the end of the test. Answers written
anywhere else will not be marked.

4. Use 2B pencil only. Using any other type of pencil or pen may result in answers
unrecognizable by the machine.

5. Answer all questions. Marks will NOT be deducted for wrong answers.

6. Scientific calculators are allowed in this test. Graphic calculators are not allowed.

7. A table of information is given in page 2.

 TABLE OF INFORMATION

Acceleration due to gravity at Earth surface, g = 9.80 m/s2

Universal gas constant, R = 8.31 J/(mol · K)

Vacuum permittivity, 0 = 8.85 × 10−12 C2 /(N · m2 )

Vacuum permeability, μ0 = 4π × 10−7 T · m/A

Atomic mass unit, u = 1.66 × 10−27 kg

Speed of light in vacuum, c = 3.00 × 108 m/s

Charge of electron, e = 1.60 × 10−19 C

Planck’s constant, h = 6.63 × 10−34 J · s

Mass of electron, me = 9.11 × 10−31 kg

Mass of proton, mp = 1.67 × 10−27 kg

Boltzmann constant, k = 1.38 × 10−23 J/K

Avogadro’s number, NA = 6.02 × 1023 mol−1

Standard atmosphere pressure, P0 = 1.01 × 105 Pa

Density of water, ρw = 1000 kg/m3

Specific heat (capacity) of water, cw = 4.19 × 103 J/(kg · ◦C)

Latent heat of fusion of water, Lf = 3.33 × 105 J/kg

Latent heat of vaporization of water, Lv = 2.26 × 106 J/kg

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1. A constant force is applied to a body that is already moving. The force is directed
at an angle of 70◦ to the direction of the body’s velocity. What is most likely to
happen is that

(A) the body will stop moving.

(B) the body will move in the direction of the force.
(C) the body’s velocity will increase in magnitude but not change direction.
(D) the body will gradually change direction more and more toward that of the
force.
(E) the body will first stop moving and then move in the direction of the force.

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2. A sphere of mass m is suspended from two strings of unequal length as shown. The
tensions T1 and T2 in the strings must satisfy which of the following relations?

(A) T1 = T2
(B) T1 > T2
(C) T1 < T2
(D) T1 + T2 = mg
(E) T1 − T2 = mg

3. A car with mass 105 kg starts from rest, driven by an engine with uniform power
output of 5 × 106 W. Forty seconds later, it is 400 m from the starting point and
has a velocity v. If the resistance experienced by the car is always 0.1 times of car
weight, what is is the value of v? Take g to be 10 m/s2 .

(A) 20 m/s
(B) 23 m/s
(C) 57 m/s
(D) 60 m/s
(E) 68 m/s

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4. Raindrops fall vertically down to the ground with a speed of 10 m/s. If we place
a hollow cylinder of cross-sectional area 80 cm2, height 10 cm on the ground, the
height of water in the cylinder after 30 min is 1 cm. Suppose there is a gust under
which the raindrops fall at 30◦ to the vertical. How long would it take to fill the
same cylinder up to the same level?

(A) more than 30 min

(B) 30 min
(C) less than 15 min
(D) 15 min
(E) 26 min

5. A balloon is filled with 200 m3 of helium. How much mass can the balloon lift?
The density of helium is 1/7 that of air, and the density of air is 1/800 that of
water.

(A) 36 kg
(B) 145 kg
(C) 215 kg
(D) 250 kg
(E) 415 kg

6. A block of mass M is sliding on horizontal surface with a mass-less spring attaching

it to a wall on the right. When it moves to the equilibrium position another mass
m falls and sticks onto it. Oscillation of the combined mass will have

i) smaller amplitude
ii) same amplitude
iii) larger period
iv) same period

(A) i) and iii)

(B) i) and iv)
(C) ii) and iii)
(D) ii) and iv)
(E) none of the above

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7. It is known that a photon of frequency f and wavelength λ has energy E = hf
and momentum p = h/λ, with h as Planck’s constant. The speed of light, c can
be expressed as

(A) p/E
(B) E/p
(C) Ep
(D) E 2 /p2
√
(E) Ep

8. A nucleus X turns into nucleus Y after an α decay, then turns into nucleus Z after
a β − decay, i.e .
α β
b X −→ d Y −→ f Z
a c e

Which of the following relations is not true?

(A) a = e + 4
(B) c = e
(C) d = f − 1
(D) b = f + 3
(E) All the above are true.

9. A battery of emf 1.50 V has an internal resistance of 1.20 Ω. When a wire with
circular cross-section of 2 mm in diameter and 250 m long is connected across the
terminals of this battery, the current in the circuit is 0.4 A. What is the resistivity
of the material from which the wire is made?

(A) 2.40 × 10−8 Ωm

(B) 2.80 × 10−8 Ωm
(C) 3.20 × 10−8 Ωm
(D) 3.60 × 10−8 Ωm
(E) 4.00 × 10−8 Ωm

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10. Equal but opposite charges Q are placed on the plates of an air-filled parallel-
plate capacitor. The plates are then pulled apart to twice their original separation.
Which of the following statements about this capacitor are true?

I) The energy stored in the capacitor is doubled.

II) The electric field between the plates has increased.
III) The potential difference across the plates has doubled.
IV) The capacitance has doubled.

(A) II and IV only

(B) I and III only
(C) III and IV only
(D) I and IV only
(E) II and III only

11. For the system consisting of the 2 blocks shown in the figure below, a horizontal
force F is applied so that block B does not fall due to its weight. The masses of
A and B are 12.0 kg and 2.0 kg respectively. The horizontal surface is frictionless
and the coefficient of static friction between the 2 blocks is 0.45. The minimum
magnitude of F is

63
(A) g
10
100
(B) g
3
280
(C) g
9
560
(D) g
9
(E) 70g

12. The pressure of a fixed mass of gas at constant volume is greater at higher tem-
perature because the

(A) molecules collide with the container walls more frequently.

(B) number of intermolecular collisions increases.
(C) molecules travel greater distances between collisions with one another.
(D) size of each individual molecule increases.
(E) number of molecules increases.

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13. A fixed mass of ideal gas of volume V at temperature T and pressure P is heated
and allowed to expand to a final volume 2V and pressure 2P . By how much does
the translational kinetic energy of the gas molecules change?

(A) increased by 4 times

(B) increased by 2 times
(C) no change
(D) reduced by half
√
(E) increased by 2 times

14. With the following assumptions,

I) world’s population is about 6 billions,

II) 10% of the world’s population use handphones
III) a person spends an average of 30 mins on the cellphone each day,

estimate the number of people talking on their cell phones at this instant.

(A) 103
(B) 104
(C) 105
(D) 106
(E) 107

15. A typical classroom van de Graff generator has a metal sphere of diameter 15 cm
that can be charged. Which of the following is the best approximate of the van
de Graff’s electric potential just before the air around the ball suffers a dielectric
breakdown? The breakdown occurs in air at an electric field strength of Emax =
3 × 106 N/C.

(A) 2.3 × 105 V

(B) 6.0 × 105 V
(C) 3.0 × 106 V
(D) 5.2 × 106 V
(E) 6.0 × 106 V

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16. A tractor moving forward at uniform speed on a horizontal ground has a front
wheel diameter of 0.8 m and back wheel diameter of 1.25 m. The horizontal
distance between the axles of the two wheels is 2 m. During a trip a pebble stuck
to the front wheel flew off the wheel at the highest point. 0.2 s later, another
pebble flew off the back wheel at its highest point too. The two pebbles landed on
the same spot on the ground. Find the speed of the tractor.

(A) 3 m/s
(B) 5 m/s
(C) 8 m/s
(D) 10 m/s
(E) 12 m/s

17. A mole of ideal gas is heated in an insulated constant volume container until the
root-mean-square velocity of its molecules is doubled. Its pressure would therefore
increase by

(A) 0.5
(B) 1
(C) 2
(D) 4
(E) 8

18. In the circuit as shown below, the voltmeter V1 measures a potential difference of
10 V and the voltmeter V2 measures a potential difference of 15 V. Resistor R2
has the same resistance as resistor R4. What is the potential difference across AB?

(A) 25 V
(B) 30 V
(C) 35 V
(D) 32.5 V
(E) There is not enough information.

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19. As shown in the diagram below, a heavy metal ball hangs freely from a string X
which is in turn attached to the ceiling. Another string Y hangs freely from the
other end of the ball. Consider the situations where a pulling force applied to
string Y is (i) increased slowly and (ii) large and sudden. Which of the following
strings will break in these 2 situations?

Situation (i) Situation (ii)

(A) X Y
(B) Y X
(C) X X
(D) Y Y
(E) This cannot be determined.

20. A 2-kg mass slides across a rough surface and its kinetic energy is plotted as a
function of distance. What is the time that it took to slide across the surface?

(A) 5 s
(B) 4 s
√
(C) 2 2 s
(D) 2 s
(E) 10 s

21. An object falls freely through air. What is the ratio of

distance fallen in 1st sec : distance fallen in 2nd sec : distance fallen in 3rd sec?

You may neglect air resistance.

(A) 1 : 2 : 3
(B) 1 : 4 : 9
(C) 1 : 3 : 5
√ √
(D) 1 : 2 : 3
√ √
(E) 1 : 2 − 1 : 3 − 1

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22. Two identical rectangular bricks of length S are piled with one on top of the other
on a table. What is the maximum distance L (see the figure below) that the
top brick can be extended beyond the edge of the table for the system to remain
balanced? (Note that the figure is not drawn to scale.)

1
(A) S
2
2
(B) S
3
3
(C) S
4
7
(D) S
8
(E) S

23. A beam of light strikes one mirror of a pair of right angle mirrors at an angle of
incidence of 45◦ as shown in the diagram. If the right angle mirror assembly is
rotated such that the angle of incidence is now 55◦ , what will happen to the angle
of the beam that emerges from the right angle mirror assembly?

(A) It will move through an angle of 15◦ with

respect to the original emerging beam.
(B) It will move through an angle of 35◦ with
respect to the original emerging beam.
(C) It will move through an angle of 45◦ with
respect to the original emerging beam.
(D) It will move through an angle of 55◦ with
respect to the original emerging beam.
(E) It will emerge parallel to the original emerg-
ing beam.

24. A circus clown weighing 1000 N walks across a tightrope that is 20 m in length.
When the clown is at the center, the center sags by 1.0 m. What is the tension in
the rope?

(A) 1.0 × 103 N

(B) 2.0 × 103 N
(C) 1.0 × 104 N
(D) 5.0 × 103 N
(E) 2.0 × 104 N

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25. 100 g of ice at 0◦ C and 100 g of steam at 100◦ C interact thermally in a well-insulated
container. The final state of the system is

(A) an ice-water mixture at 0◦ C.

(B) water at a temperature between 0◦ C and 50◦ C.
(C) water at 50◦ C.
(D) water at a temperature between 50◦ C and 100◦ C.
(E) a water steam mixture at 100◦ C.

26. In a particular photoelectric experiment, it was found that when light of wavelength
187 nm is incident on the metal surface, the stopping potential is 2.70 V. What
will be the stopping potential if light of wavelength 87 nm is used instead?

(A) 0 V
(B) 1.70 V
(C) 4.94 V
(D) 10.3 V
(E) No electrons will be emitted

27. A truck of mass 20000 kg travelling at 50 km/h collided head-on with a car of mass
2500 kg travelling at 25 km/h. What is the ratio of the force exerted on the truck
to the force exerted on the car during the collision?

(A) 1 : 8
(B) 8 : 1
(C) 16 : 1
(D) 1 : 16
(E) 1 : 1

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28. In the figure depicting 2 situations below, solid objects A and B are moving towards
the right and are stationary with respect to each other. There is significant friction
between box B and the ground and the accelerations and applied forces are as
shown.

Which of the following shows the correct sign of the work done on box A by friction
between box A and B respectively?
Situation 1 Situation 2
(A) Positive Negative
(B) Positive Positive
(C) Negative Positive
(D) Zero Negative
(E) Zero Positive

29. A source of 2-kilohertz sound is moving straight toward you at a speed 0.9 times
the speed of sound. The frequency you receive is
(A) 0.2 kHz
(B) 1.0 kHz
(C) 2.2 kHz
(D) 3.8 kHz
(E) 20 kHz

30. A wave generator located 4.0 m from a reflecting wall produces a standing wave
in the string, as shown in the diagram below. If the speed of the wave is 30 m/s,
what is its frequency?

(A) 1.2 Hz
(B) 15 Hz
(C) 30 Hz
(D) 40 Hz
(E) 36 Hz

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31. The following shows a wire coiled around an insulating, non-magnetic pipe with a
current running in it. A conducting ring is placed near the centre of the coil with
their axes aligned (see figure below). As the electrical current is decreased, which
of the following happens?

(A) The conducting ring experiences a force that

tends to shrink the area of the circle.
(B) The conducting ring experiences a force that
tends to expand the area of the circle.
(C) The conducting ring experiences a force that
tends to move it to the right.
(D) The conducting ring experiences a force that
tends to move it to the left.
(E) The conducting ring does not experience any
force at all.

32. The diagram below which shows a ray of monochromatic light (f = 5.09× 1014 Hz)
passing through a glass prism. What is the speed of the light ray in the prism?

(A) 1.68 × 108 m/s

(B) 1.81 × 108 m/s
(C) 3.00 × 108 m/s
(D) 1.03 × 108 m/s
(E) 2.60 × 108 m/s

33. A space traveler is moving relative to the Earth at 2.4 × 108 m/s (≈ 0.8c), as
measured in the Earths frame of reference. Measured in the Earth’s frame of
reference, in one year, what will happen to the space traveler?

(A) travel 0.6 light year and age 0.6 year

(B) travel 0.8 light year and age 0.6 year
(C) travel 0.8 light year and age 1 year
(D) travel 0.8 light year and age 1.67 year
(E) travel 1 light year and age 1 year

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34. Can the lines in the figure below be equipotential lines (lines of same electric
potential)?

(A) No, because they are sharp corners

(B) No, because they are isolated charges
(C) Yes, because any lines within a charge distribution
are equipotential lines.
(D) Yes, because they can be lines on two surfaces of a
conductor.
(E) It is not possible to say without further information.

35. In the circuit shown below, the emfs of the batteries are given, as well as the
currents in the outside branches and the resistance in the middle branch. What is
the magnitude of the potential difference between X and Y?

(A) 16 V
(B) 12 V.
(C) 15 V.
(D) 8 V
(E) 4 V

36. A projectile of mass M1 is fired horizontally from a spring gun that is initially at
rest on a frictionless surface. The combined mass of the gun and projectile is M2 .
If the kinetic energy of the projectile after firing is K, the gun will recoil with a
kinetic energy equal to

(A) K
M2
(B) K
M1
M1 2
(C) K
M2 2
M1
(D) K
M2 − M1

M1
(E) K
M2 − M1

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37. A ball is dropped from a height of 10 m onto a hard surface so that collision at the
surface may be assumed to be elastic. Under such conditions, the motion of the
ball is

(A) Simple harmonic with a period of 1.4 s

(B) Simple harmonic with a period of 2.8 s
(C) Simple harmonic with an amplitude of 5.0 m
(D) Periodic with a period of about 2.8 s but not simple harmonic
(E) Motion with constant momentum

38. An isolated capacitor with oil between its plates has a potential V0 and charge Q0 .
After the space between the plate is completely cleared of oil, the difference in
potential is V and the charge is Q. Which of the following pairs of relationships is
correct?

(A) Q = Q0 and V > V0

(B) Q = Q0 and V < V0
(C) Q > Q0 and V = V0
(D) Q < Q0 and V < V0
(E) Q > Q0 and V > V0

39. As shown in the diagram, 2 columns of air a and b of equal lengths La = Lb are
locked in a U-tube manometer by liquid mercury. If more liquid mercury is poured
in through the opening, which of the following is true of the new lengths La and
Lb ?

(A) La > Lb

(B) La < Lb
(C) La = Lb = 0
(D) La = Lb = 0
(E) Unable to determine

15
40. A charged particle moves in a circular path in a magnetic field of B = 0.8 T. As
shown in the diagram below, the particle takes 2.0 × 10−4 s to travel from a to b
and then continues to take another 1.0 × 10−3 s to go from b to a. The distance
between a and b is 0.30 m and the charge on the particles is 3.0 × 10−8 C. The
momentum of the particle is

(A) 7.2 × 10−9 kg m/s

(B) 3.6 × 10−9 kg m/s
(C) 1.44 × 10−8 kg m/s
(D) 2.88 × 10−8 kg m/s
(E) 5.76 × 10−8 kg m/s

41. A diatomic molecule consists of two point masses, m1 and m2, separated by a
distance r. If x is the distance from m1 to the center of mass, what is the moment
of inertia about an axis parallel to the molecular axis and passes through the
center of mass. Note that the molecular axis is the line joining the two atoms in
the diatomic molecule.

(A) 0
m1 m2 r 2
(B)
(m1 + m2)
(C) m1 (r − x)2 + m2 x2
(D) m1 x2 + m2 (r − x)2
(E) m2 x2 + m1 r2

42. Rutherford’s experiment shows that when a gold sheet is bombarded with alpha
particle, most of the particles pass through, with only a few being reflected back.
Which of the following is a correct interpretation of the results?

(A) Atoms have equal numbers of positive and negative charges.

(B) Electrons in atoms are arranged in shells.
(C) Neutrons are at the center of an atom.
(D) Neutrons and protrons in atoms have nearly equal mass.
(E) The positive charge of an atom is concentrated in a small region.

16
43. For an ideal gas, the specific heat at constant pressure Cp is greater than the
specific heat at constant volume Cv because the

(A) gas does work on its environment when its pressure remains constant while
its temperature is increased.
(B) heat input per degree increase in temperature is the same in processes for
which either the pressure or the volume is kept constant.
(C) pressure of the gas remains constant when its temperature remains constant.
(D) increase in the gas’s internal energy is greater when the pressure remains
constant than when the volume remains constant.
(E) heat needed is greater when the volume remains constant than when the
pressure remains constant

44. The figure shows a radioactive substance being held in a small lead box with a hole
where α, β and γ rays emit from the hole. The rays trace out the paths indicated
in the diagram. The rays finally impact on a screen at points A, B and C. It
can be seen that AB > AC. Which of the following electric/magnetic fields can
possibly have been applied in the space just above the hole and between the lead
box and the screen?
I. Uniform Magnetic field pointing into the paper
II. Uniform Magnetic field pointing out of the paper
III. Uniform Electric field pointing to the right
IV. Uniform Electric field pointing to the left
(A) I or III
(B) I or IV
(C) II only
(D) II or III
(E) II or IV

45. The water level in a reservoir is maintained at a constant level. What is the exit
velocity in an outlet pipe 3.0 m below the water surface?

(A) 2.4 m/s

(B) 3.0 m/s
(C) 5.4 m/s
(D) 7.7 m/s
(E) 49 m/s

17
 This diagram is meant for Questions 46 and 47.

46. A thermodynamic system is taken from an initial state X along the path XY ZX
as shown in the PV-diagram above. For the process X to Y , W > 0 and

(A) ΔUXY < 0 and Q > 0

(B) ΔUXY > 0 and Q > 0
(C) ΔUXY < 0 and Q = 0
(D) ΔUXY > 0 and Q < 0
(E) ΔUXY = 0 and Q = 0

47. If ΔUXY = −ΔUZX , then for the process Y to Z,

(A) ΔUY Z < 0 and Q > 0

(B) ΔUY Z > 0 and Q > 0
(C) ΔUY Z = 0 and Q < 0
(D) ΔUY Z < 0 and Q < 0
(E) ΔUY Z = 0 and Q = 0

18
48. The total energy of a blackbody radiation source is collected for one minute and
used to heat water. The temperature increases from 27.0◦ C to 28.0◦ C. If the abso-
lute temperature of the blackbody source is doubled, what is the final temperature
of the water?

(A) 29.0◦ C
(B) 32.0◦ C
(C) 35.0◦ C
(D) 43.0◦ C
(E) 54.0◦ C

49. Two waves are described by

y1 = 5 sin(6x − 900t) m and y2 = 5 sin(6x − 900t − 2) m
What is the wavelength of the resultant wave?

(A) 1 m
(B) 2 m
(C) 3 m
(D) 4 m
(E) 6 m

50. Approximately how much uranium (in kg) must undergo fission per day to provide
1000 MW of power? (Assume an efficiency of 30%). The nuclear reaction is

n + 235 141 92
92 U → 56 Ba + 36 Kr + 3n

where m(n) = 1.008665 u, m(U) = 235.043915 u, m(Ba) = 140.9139 u, m(Kr) =

91.8973 u and u = 1.66 × 10−27 kg.

(A) 1.0
(B) 3.5
(C) 2.3
(D) 4.6
(E) 0.1

END OF PAPER.

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