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General ScienceMedium

If the length of a simple pendulum is made four times its original value, its time period will become

  1. A.Four times
  2. B.Two times
  3. C.Half
  4. D.One fourth

Correct answer

B. Two times

Explanation

The correct answer is B, two times. The time period varies as the square root of the length, so multiplying the length by four multiplies the period by the square root of four, that is by two; to double the period of a pendulum its length must be made four times. Option A is wrong because the period would become four times only if it were directly proportional to length, which it is not. Option C is wrong because the period falls to half when the length is made one fourth, the reverse of what the question states. Option D is wrong for the same reason, and because a longer pendulum can never swing faster. The same square-root rule explains why the period becomes about 2.45 times on the moon, where g falls to about one sixth.

Read the full article: Oscillations: Simple Harmonic Motion and Pendulum Notes

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Q3.General ScienceEasy

The time period of a simple pendulum does not depend on which of the following?

  1. A.The length of the pendulum
  2. B.The mass of the bob
  3. C.The acceleration due to gravity
  4. D.All of these
Show answer
Correct answer: B. The mass of the bob

The time period of a simple pendulum is two pi times the square root of the length divided by g, in which the mass of the bob does not appear at all; a heavy bob and a light bob of the same length keep the same time, which is the…

Q5.General ScienceMedium

If a pendulum clock is taken from the earth to the moon, where the acceleration due to gravity is about one sixth, its time period will

  1. A.Decrease
  2. B.Increase
  3. C.Remain the same
  4. D.Become zero
Show answer
Correct answer: B. Increase

The time period varies inversely as the square root of g, so if g falls to one sixth, the period is multiplied by the square root of six, about 2.45 times; the pendulum swings more slowly and a pendulum clock taken to the moon would lose time badly.