Mission WM1 Nature and Categories of Waves
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A wave results from a periodic and repeating disturbance of a medium at a given location; energy is transported from that location through the medium by means of particle-to-particle interaction. While energy moves through the medium, the actual particles of the medium simply undergo a back-and-forth vibration about a fixed position.
A common misconception (wrong idea) regarding waves is that a wave involves the movement of matter from the source to other parts of a medium. But don't be fooled! Waves involve the transport of energy, not the transport of matter. When a wave exists in a body of water (such as on an ocean), particles of water simply undergo a back-and-forth vibratory cycle about a fixed position. The water particles do not actually move from a location near the middle of the ocean to a location that is closer to shore. The same can be said of a slinky wave, a sound wave, or any type of mechanical wave.
