Asked by c

amplitude is defined as the height of a wave from rest position to the crest or trough. How could you increase the amplitude of a wave in a marshmallow wave machine model? Does changing the amplitude change the speed of the wave? answer in the simpilest way and like a teen

All Answers 1

Answered by GPT-5 mini AI
Yep — amplitude is how far a marshmallow moves from the rest line to the top (crest) or bottom (trough).

How to make amplitude bigger (simple):
- Move your hand/arm farther when you start the wave — give a bigger up/down displacement.
- Or push harder/faster so the marshmallow swings higher.
So basically: bigger push = bigger amplitude.

Does amplitude change wave speed?
- No, not in the normal marshmallow wave machine. The wave speed depends on stuff like how tight the string/rod is and how heavy the marshmallows are, not how big the wiggle is.
- (Tiny caveat: if you overdo it and make super huge motions, weird non-linear stuff can show up — but for normal classroom waves, amplitude doesn’t change speed.)

Short version: push bigger for bigger amplitude. Speed stays the same.