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When a sonographer decreases the amplitude of a wave to 1/2 of its original value, how has the power changed?

A. It has halved.
B. It has become 1/4 of the original.
C. It has doubled.
D. It remains the same.

User Noushad
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1 Answer

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Final answer:

The power of a wave becomes 1/4 of the original value when the amplitude is decreased to half, based on the fact that power is proportional to the square of the wave's amplitude.

Step-by-step explanation:

When a sonographer decreases the amplitude of a wave to 1/2 of its original value, the power of the wave changes significantly. The power of a wave is proportional to the square of its amplitude. This means that if you decrease the amplitude of a wave to half of its original value, the power is reduced to (1/2)^2, which is 1/4 of the original power. Therefore, the correct answer to your question is B. It has become 1/4 of the original.

User Eric Lange
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