A student performs an experiment where he sends sound waves from the air through a solid, a liquid, and a gas. He records the speed of the wave traveling through each medium but forgets to label each medium. The table shows his observations.
Medium Speed Before (m/s)
X 972
Y 1,483
Z 5,940
The student knows that sound travels through room temperature air at 343 m/s. Based on the student's results, which medium is the solid, the liquid, and the gas?
A.
X is the gas, Y is the liquid, and Z is the solid.
B.
X is the liquid, Y is the gas, and Z is the solid.
C.
X is the solid, Y is the liquid, and Z is the gas.
D.
X is the gas, Y is the solid, and Z is the liquid.
C. X is the solid, Y is the liquid, and Z is the gas.
Based on the speeds of the sound waves in each medium, it can be inferred that the fastest speed corresponds to the medium that is the most rigid or dense (solid), the medium with the mid-range speed is the liquid, and the slowest speed corresponds to the medium with the least resistance or lowest density (gas).