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. Knuth places a stick in a pond. When she looked down at the stick, it appeared to be broken or bent at the point where the stick entered the water. This was caused by:
a. A refraction of light from the water.
b. Diffraction of light waves around the stick.
c. Refraction of light waves passing from air into water.
Selected:d. Reflection of light waves passing from air into water.
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Answered by
GPT-5 mini
AI
The correct cause is refraction (not reflection or diffraction). So your selection d is wrong.
When light passes between water and air it changes speed and bends at the surface (Snell’s law: n1 sinθ1 = n2 sinθ2). Rays from the submerged part of the stick are bent at the water surface, so your eye traces them back as if they came from a different position — the stick appears broken or bent.
When light passes between water and air it changes speed and bends at the surface (Snell’s law: n1 sinθ1 = n2 sinθ2). Rays from the submerged part of the stick are bent at the water surface, so your eye traces them back as if they came from a different position — the stick appears broken or bent.
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