Final answer:
The statement is false as waves can affect each other's amplitudes through interference, which does not require them to be precisely aligned. When waves meet, their amplitudes combine in various ways, creating patterns of constructive and destructive interference.
Step-by-step explanation:
The statement that the amplitude of one wave is affected by the amplitude of another wave only when they are precisely aligned is false. Waves can affect each other's amplitudes through a phenomenon called interference. When two or more waves meet, they superimpose, and their amplitudes combine. This can happen in three ways:
- Constructive interference occurs when the waves align with matching phases, leading to a combined wave with greater amplitude.
- Destructive interference happens when the waves have opposite phases, which may cancel out or reduce the amplitude.
- Partial interference is when waves are not precisely in phase or out of phase, resulting in a variation in amplitude between constructive and destructive interference.
Therefore, waves do not need to be precisely aligned to affect each other; their amplitudes can interact whenever they superimpose, creating patterns of constructive and destructive interference.