The 2017 Physics Bowl ran steady: mechanics and circuit analysis took the largest shares, thermodynamics stayed friendly, and the synthesis items stayed step-by-step within the core syllabus; 40 questions in 45 minutes with separate Division awards. Scan for the full paper and answer key.
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.2017 Physics Bowl paper overview and exam highlights.
The 2017 paper kept its clear-backbone, gentle-gradient style. Mechanics was again the largest block, packed with classic models such as ratio reasoning in kinematics, projectiles and collisions, with gravitation and simple harmonic motion each holding a slot. In electromagnetism, DC circuit analysis carried real weight and circular motion of charged particles in magnetic fields was a frequent mid-to-late guest. Thermodynamics and gas-law items were friendly enough to be done first for time.
The format matched previous years: 40 multiple-choice questions in 45 minutes, points for correct answers with no penalty for wrong ones, calculators allowed, all in English. Division 1 (for first-year students and beginners, no calculus) and Division 2 (for second-year and AP Physics C students) are ranked and awarded separately and cannot both be entered. Registration and contest dates follow the official AAPT announcement each year; the contest is typically held in spring, around late March to early April.
This year rewards training the habit of reading a problem and splitting it into steps: break each multi-step item into known modules such as momentum conservation, energy conservation and Newton laws, with one simple computation per step. The 25 original practice questions on this page cover the five sections across basic, medium and hard tiers. After finishing, scan for the 2017 paper and answer key to review against your work.
2017 Physics Bowl main topic areas, weights and emphasis.
Classic models such as kinematics ratios, projectiles and collisions appear densely, the largest block of the paper
Compound circuits and charged particles circling in magnetic fields are the two pillars this year
Geometric optics with reflection and refraction dominates, with grating diffraction appearing late
Fixed friendly patterns: latent heat, gas laws and heat-engine efficiency
Steady entry items on hydrogen energy levels and time dilation, quantum concepts kept light
2017 Physics Bowl-style mock questions (Basic · Medium · Hard) — submit to grade and view step-by-step solutions.
A cyclist covers the first 30 km in 1.0 h and the next 30 km in 1.5 h. What is the average speed for the whole trip?
Correct answer: C
Average speed = total distance divided by total time = 60 km / 2.5 h = 24 km/h. Answer C. Core: average speed is total distance over total time, not the mean of the two speeds.A stone is dropped from rest from a height of 45 m (g = 10 m/s2, ignore air resistance). What is its speed just before impact?
Correct answer: D
Free fall: v2 = 2gh = 2×10×45 = 900, so v = 30 m/s. Answer D. Core: v = √(2gh), independent of mass.A meteorite sample has a mass of 240 g and a volume of 60 cm3. What is its density?
Correct answer: B
Density ρ = m/V = 240 g / 60 cm3 = 4 g/cm3. Answer B. Core: density = mass divided by volume.An electric kettle is plugged into a 220 V supply and draws 5.0 A. What power does it consume?
Correct answer: A
Electric power P = UI = 220 × 5.0 = 1100 W. Answer A. Core: power = voltage × current.While a flashlight operates, 60 C of charge passes through the bulb in 30 s. What is the current through the bulb?
Correct answer: D
Current I = Q/t = 60 C / 30 s = 2.0 A. Answer D. Core: current = charge divided by time.A 100 μF capacitor in a camera flash is charged to 10 V. How much energy does the capacitor store?
Correct answer: E
Stored energy E = ½CU2 = ½×100×10-6×102 = 5.0×10-3 J = 5.0 mJ. Answer E. Core: capacitor energy = ½CU2; do not drop the half.At standard atmospheric pressure, how much heat is needed to turn 0.10 kg of water at 100 ℃ entirely into steam at the same temperature? The latent heat of vaporization is L = 2.3×106 J/kg.
Correct answer: C
Vaporization heat Q = mL = 0.10 × 2.3×106 = 2.3×105 J. Answer C. Core: phase-change heat = mass × latent heat, with no temperature change.A ship sends a sonar pulse to the seabed and receives the echo 0.50 s later; the speed of sound in seawater is 1500 m/s. How deep is the water there?
Correct answer: A
The sound travels out and back in 0.50 s, so one way takes 0.25 s: d = 1500×0.25 = 375 m. Answer A. Core: echo ranging divides by 2 because the wave makes a round trip.A pendulum in a science museum has a length of 2.5 m and swings at small amplitude (g = 10 m/s2). What is its period?
Correct answer: B
Pendulum period T = 2π√(L/g) = 2π√(2.5/10) = 2π×0.5 ≈ 3.1 s. Answer B. Core: the period depends only on length and g, not on mass or amplitude.A photon has an energy of 3.0 eV. Given hc = 1240 eV·nm, what is the wavelength of the photon?
Correct answer: E
Photon energy E = hc/λ, so λ = 1240/3.0 ≈ 413 nm. Answer E. Core: wavelength = hc divided by photon energy, with 1240 the handy constant in eV·nm.A skateboarder rolls horizontally off a 20 m cliff edge at 15 m/s (g = 10 m/s2, ignore air resistance). How far from the base of the cliff does the skater land?
Correct answer: C
The fall time comes from the vertical drop: t = √(2h/g) = √(2×20/10) = 2 s; horizontal distance x = v0t = 15×2 = 30 m. Answer C. Core: for a horizontal launch, the vertical motion sets the time, the horizontal motion sets the range.A crate slides down a 37° incline (sin37° = 0.6, cos37° = 0.8) with friction coefficient μ = 0.25, and g = 10 m/s2. What is the acceleration of the crate?
Correct answer: D
Along the incline a = g(sinθ − μcosθ) = 10×(0.6 − 0.25×0.8) = 10×0.4 = 4 m/s2. Answer D. Core: incline acceleration = g(sinθ − μcosθ) with friction pointing up the slope.Satellite A orbits a planet in a circular orbit of radius r with period 80 min. Satellite B orbits the same planet at radius 4r. What is the period of satellite B?
Correct answer: E
Kepler third law T2 proportional to r3: quadrupling the radius multiplies the period by 41.5 = 8, so TB = 80×8 = 640 min. Answer E. Core: radius ×4 means period ×8 (4 to the 1.5 power).A 2.0 kg curling stone moving at 6.0 m/s undergoes a one-dimensional elastic collision with a stationary 4.0 kg stone. What is the velocity of the heavy stone after the collision?
Correct answer: A
Elastic collision: v2′ = 2m1u/(m1+m2) = 2×2.0×6.0/6.0 = 4.0 m/s. Answer A. Core: for a 1D elastic hit on a resting object, v = 2m1u/(m1+m2).Three 6 Ω resistors: R2 and R3 in parallel, that combination in series with R1, all connected to an 18 V source. What power is dissipated in R1?
Correct answer: C
Parallel part 6∥6 = 3 Ω; total 9 Ω; main current I = 18/9 = 2 A; power in R1: P = I2R1 = 4×6 = 24 W. Answer C. Core: a series resistor carries the main current; use I2R for its power.A charged dust grain of mass 1.2×10-25 kg and charge 1.6×10-19 C moves at 4.0×104 m/s perpendicular to a uniform 0.20 T magnetic field. What is the radius of its circular path?
Correct answer: E
The magnetic force supplies the centripetal force, qvB = mv2/r, so r = mv/(qB) = (1.2×10-25×4.0×104)/(1.6×10-19×0.20) = 0.15 m. Answer E. Core: circular radius in a field is r = mv/(qB).A light ray travels from air into a transparent plastic of refractive index 1.2 with an angle of incidence of 37° (sin37° = 0.6, sin30° = 0.5). What is the angle of refraction?
Correct answer: D
Snell law n1sinθ1 = n2sinθ2: 1×0.6 = 1.2×sinθ2, sinθ2 = 0.5, θ2 = 30°. Answer D. Core: entering a denser medium bends the ray toward the normal; the sines scale inversely with index.A container holds 2.0 mol of ideal gas in 0.10 m3 at 27 ℃. What is the pressure of the gas? (R = 8.3 J/(mol·K).)
Correct answer: A
Ideal gas law PV = nRT with T = 300 K: P = 2.0×8.3×300/0.10 ≈ 5.0×104 Pa. Answer A. Core: PV = nRT, with temperature always in kelvin.Hydrogen energy levels are En = −13.6/n2 eV. A hydrogen atom jumps from n = 3 to n = 2. What is the energy of the emitted photon?
Correct answer: E
ΔE = 13.6×(1/22 − 1/32) = 13.6×(0.25 − 0.111) = 13.6×5/36 ≈ 1.9 eV. Answer E. Core: emitted photon energy equals the gap 13.6(1/nlow2 − 1/nhigh2).A gasoline engine takes in 100 kJ of energy from fuel per cycle and delivers 30 kJ of mechanical work, releasing the rest as waste heat. How much waste heat is released per cycle?
Correct answer: B
Energy conservation: input = useful work + waste heat, so waste heat = 100 − 30 = 70 kJ (efficiency 30%). Answer B. Core: engine waste heat = energy input minus work output.A figure skater spins with moment of inertia 6.0 kg·m2 and angular speed 4.0 rad/s. She pulls her arms in, reducing her moment of inertia to 2.0 kg·m2. What is her angular speed afterward? (Ignore friction.)
Correct answer: D
Angular momentum about the axis is conserved: I1ω1 = I2ω2, so 6.0×4.0 = 2.0×ω2 and ω2 = 12 rad/s. Answer D. Core: with no external torque, Iω is conserved; a smaller moment of inertia means a faster spin.A 20 g bullet moving horizontally at 300 m/s embeds itself in a hanging 1.98 kg block (a ballistic pendulum, g = 10 m/s2). How high does the block with the bullet swing?
Correct answer: C
Momentum conservation gives the shared speed v = 0.02×300/2.0 = 3.0 m/s; the swing conserves mechanical energy, so h = v2/2g = 9/20 = 0.45 m. Answer C. Core: momentum for the collision, energy for the swing, in two separate steps.Two horizontal rails 0.50 m apart sit in a uniform 0.80 T vertical magnetic field. A metal rod across the rails slides at a steady 4.0 m/s, cutting the field lines; the loop has total resistance 0.80 Ω. What is the induced current in the loop?
Correct answer: B
Motional emf ε = BLv = 0.80×0.50×4.0 = 1.6 V; induced current I = ε/R = 1.6/0.80 = 2.0 A. Answer B. Core: a rod cutting field lines gives ε = BLv, then divide by the loop resistance.A 500 nm laser beam hits a diffraction grating with 600 lines per millimeter at normal incidence. What is the highest diffraction order observable on one side of the grating?
Correct answer: A
Grating spacing d = 10-3/600 ≈ 1.67×10-6 m; the maximum order needs |sinθ| ≤ 1, so m ≤ d/λ = 1.67×10-6/5.0×10-7 = 3.3, giving m = 3. Answer A. Core: the highest order is the grating spacing divided by the wavelength, rounded down, never up.A spaceship travels at a constant 0.6c relative to Earth (c is the speed of light). A clock on the ship measures a process lasting 8.0 s. How long does an observer on Earth measure the process to be?
Correct answer: E
Time dilation Δt = γΔτ with γ = 1/√(1−0.62) = 1/0.8 = 1.25, so Δt = 1.25×8.0 = 10 s. Answer E. Core: a moving clock runs slow; Δt = Δτ/√(1−v2/c2).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 2017 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 2017 Physics Bowl.
The thermodynamics patterns are fixed: specific heat, latent heat, gas laws and engine efficiency each need about ten drills for full coverage. On contest day finish thermodynamics and simple electricity first to bank time for synthesis items.
Simplify compound circuits before computing, and keep r = mv/(qB) ready for charged-particle circles. Both models recur throughout the 2017 paper and deserve dedicated drills.
Practice elastic and perfectly inelastic collisions in separate sets, deciding the model before touching formulas. Two-stage collision-plus-energy items like the ballistic pendulum typify the later part of this paper.
Kepler third-law ratios (T2 proportional to r3) and g = GM/R2 estimates often appear as short items. Drill the write-the-ratio-first workflow and errors drop noticeably.
Run a full 45-minute set every two weeks and log accuracy by section. Afterward scan for the 2017 paper and answer key and check your training against the same framework.
Frequent questions about the 2017 Physics Bowl papers and answers.
Scan to add the advisor for 2017 Physics Bowl past papers, answer keys and solutions, plus a custom prep plan.
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