The 2014 paper leans on classic mechanics models: projectiles, collisions, circular motion and orbits appear in force, while electromagnetism and optics keep their usual share. 40 questions in 45 minutes, Division 1 / Division 2 scored separately. Scan for the paper and answers.
The 25 online practice questions start instantly; the full past-paper & answers PDF is available free from an advisor via the QR code — it is not a direct download on this page.2014 Physics Bowl paper overview and exam highlights.
The 2014 paper is a released year. It keeps the trademark style of short, punchy questions built on classic models: mechanics takes a larger share than in most years, with projectiles, collisions and orbital motion appearing again and again, yet few questions need more than a few steps.
The format is identical to every edition: 40 multiple-choice questions in 45 minutes, points for correct answers, nothing deducted for wrong ones, calculators allowed, all in English. Division 1 (first-year students and beginners, no calculus) and Division 2 (second-year and AP Physics C students) are ranked and awarded separately, and only one may be entered.
For this paper, solid mechanics fundamentals pay the most, while thermodynamics and the gas laws are friendly, must-collect points. Scan the code for the 2014 paper and answers, and train against the clock with the 25 original practice questions on this page.
2014 Physics Bowl main topic areas, weights and emphasis.
A heavier share than usual, dense with projectile, collision, circular-motion and gravitation models.
Circuit analysis and magnetic forces form the base, with a touch of AC reactance.
Slightly more optical computation: lenses, interference and diffraction.
Regular fare such as latent heat and engine efficiency, generally gentle.
Introductory atomic physics: hydrogen levels and the photoelectric effect.
2014 Physics Bowl-style mock questions (Basic · Medium · Hard) — submit to grade and view step-by-step solutions.
A race car accelerates from rest to 24 m/s in 8 s. What is its average acceleration?
Correct answer: C
a = Δv/Δt = 24/8 = 3 m/s2. Answer C. Core: acceleration = change in velocity over time.A 5 kg suitcase rests on a level floor (g = 10 m/s2). What force does it exert on the floor?
Correct answer: C
G = mg = 5×10 = 50 N, and at rest the contact force matches the weight. Answer C. Core: weight G = mg.A steady 2 A current flows through a 3 Ω resistor. At what rate does it produce heat?
Correct answer: D
P = I2R = 22×3 = 12 W. Answer D. Core: heating power P = I2R.A 6 Ω resistor and a 3 Ω resistor are wired in parallel. What is the equivalent resistance?
Correct answer: E
In parallel 1/R = 1/6 + 1/3 = 1/2, so R = 2 Ω. Answer E. Core: parallel reciprocals add; the result is smaller than either branch.How much heat is absorbed when 0.3 kg of ice at 0 °C melts completely? (latent heat of fusion L = 3.3×105 J/kg)
Correct answer: E
Q = mL = 0.3×3.3×105 = 9.9×104 J. Answer E. Core: melting takes Q = mL at constant temperature.A wooden block floats with 60% of its volume below the water surface. What is the density of the wood? (ρwater = 1000 kg/m3)
Correct answer: C
Floating balances weight against buoyancy: ρV = ρwaterVsub, so ρ = 0.6×1000 = 600 kg/m3. Answer C. Core: floating means buoyant force equals weight.A wave oscillates with a period of 0.004 s. What is its frequency?
Correct answer: E
f = 1/T = 1/0.004 = 250 Hz. Answer E. Core: frequency is the reciprocal of the period.What is the energy of the n = 2 level in hydrogen? (ground state E1 = -13.6 eV, En = E1/n2)
Correct answer: A
E2 = -13.6/22 = -3.4 eV. Answer A. Core: En = -13.6/n2 eV.A 50 N force pulls a box 10 m along the floor, with the force at 60° to the displacement. How much work does the force do?
Correct answer: A
W = Fd cos60° = 50×10×0.5 = 250 J. Answer A. Core: W = Fd cosθ.A 4 μF capacitor and a 6 μF capacitor are connected in parallel. What is the total capacitance?
Correct answer: A
Parallel capacitances add: C = 4 + 6 = 10 μF. Answer A. Core: capacitances add in parallel, the opposite of resistors.A soccer ball is kicked at 40 m/s at an angle of 30° above the horizontal (g = 10 m/s2). What maximum height does it reach?
Correct answer: D
H = v02sin2θ/2g = 1600×0.25/20 = 20 m. Answer D. Core: maximum height depends only on the vertical component.A planet has twice the mass and twice the radius of Earth. What is its surface gravitational acceleration? (g on Earth = 9.8 m/s2)
Correct answer: B
g = GM/R2, so g′ = 2GM/(2R)2 = g/2 = 4.9 m/s2. Answer B. Core: g ∝ M/R2.A 1 kg glider moving at 8 m/s collides head-on and elastically with a stationary 3 kg glider. What is the speed of the 3 kg glider after the collision?
Correct answer: D
For an elastic hit, v2 = 2m1v1/(m1+m2) = 2×1×8/4 = 4 m/s. Answer D. Core: elastic collisions conserve both momentum and kinetic energy.A simple pendulum of length 2.5 m swings in small-angle simple harmonic motion where g = 10 m/s2. What is its period?
Correct answer: B
For small angles the pendulum moves in SHM: T = 2π√(L/g) = 2π×0.5 = π ≈ 3.14 s. Answer B. Core: pendulum SHM period T = 2π√(L/g).A proton (charge 1.6×10-19 C) moves at 4×106 m/s perpendicular to a uniform 0.5 T magnetic field. What magnetic force acts on it?
Correct answer: B
F = qvB = 1.6×10-19×4×106×0.5 = 3.2×10-13 N. Answer B. Core: F = qvB when the motion is perpendicular to the field.A 4 Ω resistor and a 6 Ω resistor in series are connected to a 20 V supply. What is the voltage across the 6 Ω resistor?
Correct answer: B
The series current is I = 20/10 = 2 A, so U = IR = 2×6 = 12 V. Answer B. Core: in series, voltage divides in proportion to resistance.A 0.2 H inductor carries 50 Hz alternating current. What is its inductive reactance?
Correct answer: C
XL = 2πfL = 2π×50×0.2 ≈ 62.8 Ω. Answer C. Core: reactance XL = 2πfL.An object sits 30 cm from a converging lens of focal length 20 cm. At what distance from the lens does the image form?
Correct answer: A
1/v = 1/f - 1/u = 1/20 - 1/30 = 1/60, so v = 60 cm, a real inverted image. Answer A. Core: 1/f = 1/u + 1/v.In a double-slit experiment the slits are 0.25 mm apart, the screen is 2 m away, and adjacent bright fringes are measured 4 mm apart. What is the wavelength of the light?
Correct answer: E
λ = Δy·d/L = 4×10-3×2.5×10-4/2 = 5×10-7 m = 500 nm. Answer E. Core: invert Δy = λL/d to find the wavelength.A Carnot engine operates between a hot reservoir at 500 K and a cold reservoir at 300 K. What is its maximum efficiency?
Correct answer: E
η = 1 - Tc/Th = 1 - 300/500 = 40%. Answer E. Core: Carnot efficiency needs absolute temperatures.A satellite circles Earth at an altitude equal to Earth radius, so r = 2R. Given surface gravity g = 10 m/s2 and R = 6.4×106 m, what is its orbital speed?
Correct answer: C
v = √(GM/r) = √(gR/2) = √(3.2×107) ≈ 5.7×103 m/s. Answer C. Core: orbital speed v = √(GM/r) with GM = gR2.A 0.02 kg bullet at 200 m/s embeds itself in a hanging 1.98 kg block. How high does the block swing afterwards? (g = 10 m/s2)
Correct answer: B
Momentum gives v = 0.02×200/2 = 2 m/s, then energy gives h = v2/2g = 4/20 = 0.2 m. Answer B. Core: momentum first for the shared speed, then energy for the height.Point charges +3×10-8 C and -3×10-8 C sit 0.6 m apart. What is the magnitude of the net electric field at the midpoint? (k = 9×109 N·m2/C2)
Correct answer: D
Both fields at the midpoint point the same way (from + toward -): r is the distance from each charge to the midpoint, 0.3 m, so E = 2kq/r2 = 2×9×109×3×10-8/0.09 = 6000 N/C. Answer D. Core: fields add as vectors; opposite charges reinforce at the midpoint.An air column closed at one end has a fundamental frequency of 100 Hz. What is the frequency of its fifth harmonic?
Correct answer: D
A closed pipe supports only odd harmonics: f5 = 5×f1 = 500 Hz. Answer D. Core: a pipe closed at one end allows only odd multiples.Light of wavelength 400 nm shines on a metal with work function 2.1 eV. What is the maximum kinetic energy of the ejected electrons? (hc = 1240 eV·nm)
Correct answer: A
Photon energy E = hc/λ = 1240/400 = 3.1 eV, so KE = 3.1 - 2.1 = 1.0 eV. Answer A. Core: photoelectric KE = hc/λ - W.Unified Physics Bowl specs, consistent across years.
Division 1 is for first-year physics students (no calculus); Division 2 is for second-year and AP Physics C students. The two divisions are ranked and awarded separately — students must choose one and cannot take both. Pick based on your level; our advisor can help.
Four steps · Overview / Topics / Practice / Prep
Read the 2014 Physics Bowl overview and format specs to grasp the year’s style.
Review the key topics and weights, and locate your weak areas.
Complete the 25 mock questions; submit for auto-grading and right/wrong marks.
Open the step-by-step solutions, learn from mistakes, and scan for full papers to push for national and global rankings.
Prep tips and score-boosting advice for the 2014 Physics Bowl.
With mechanics so prominent this year, review the spine in order: kinematics, Newton laws, energy and momentum, then circular motion and gravitation. Drill projectiles and collisions until they are reflexes.
Thermodynamics questions on specific heat, latent heat and the gas laws are short with transparent wrong options. A focused pass over these mini-topics beats grinding the hardest problems.
Calculators are allowed, but many items are faster by mental math or estimation. Keep extra significant figures through the middle steps so the final answer does not land on a distractor.
Division 1 needs no calculus and fits first-year students; Division 2 suits those taking AP Physics C. The divisions are ranked separately and only one may be entered.
Scan for the 2014 paper and answers, sit it under time, file every mistake by topic, and repair those topics with the matching practice questions here.
Frequent questions about the 2014 Physics Bowl papers and answers.
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