AP Physics 1: Algebra-Based · 57 questions
Past multiple-choice questions
Every multiple-choice question College Board has published for AP Physics 1: Algebra-Based that the current course still covers, sorted by the unit and topic each one tests in the current course. Each one opens College Board's own page beside its answer choices, and tells you right away whether your pick matches College Board's answer key.
College Board printed these questions as samples in the AP Physics 1 course and exam descriptions and course overviews and, before 2014, in its course description booklets for AP Physics B, the course AP Physics 1 and 2 replaced that year. We read 15 of those PDFs: the ones College Board posts now from its site, and every earlier one from the copy the Internet Archive saved. A question printed in more than one is listed once, from the newest PDF that prints it. We left out 24 that test content the current course no longer covers. We also left out one whose printed answer does not fit the question as asked. Your picks stay in this browser and are never sent anywhere.
Unit 1: Kinematics
- Topic 1.2 · Question 2, 2023 edition of the earlier course · Calculator allowed Estimating acceleration midway down a patchy ramp A block slides down a ramp that has three rough patches. Choose the measurement that gives the best estimate of its acceleration at the midpoint.
- Topic 1.3 · Question 2, 2012 AP Physics B course description · Calculator allowed Largest acceleration on a position graph A particle's position graph has five labeled points. Find the point where its acceleration is largest.
- Topic 1.3 · Question 4 · Calculator allowed Ranking a car's positions from its velocity graph A car's velocity holds steady and then curves down to zero. Use the graph to rank where the car is at 1, 2 and 3 seconds.
- Topic 1.3 · Question 5 · Calculator allowed Acceleration graph for the same car Working from the same velocity graph of the car, choose the graph that could show its acceleration over time.
- Topic 1.3 · Question 13, 2018 printing of the first course · Calculator allowed Ranking average acceleration on four stretches Labeled points split a cart's velocity graph into four sections. Rank how large the average acceleration is in each one.
- Topic 1.3 · Question 14, 2018 printing of the first course · Calculator allowed Which stretch covers the most ground From the same cart's velocity graph, find the section in which the cart travels farthest.
- Topic 1.5 · Question 1, 2012 AP Physics B course description · Calculator allowed Fall time after a sideways throw off a cliff An object is thrown horizontally at 20 m/s off a 125 m cliff. Estimate how long it takes to land.
- Topic 1.5 · Question 6, 2023 edition of the earlier course · Calculator allowed Speed at the top of the block's flight The block leaves the track at an angle. Find how fast it is going at the top of its arc through the air.
Unit 2: Force and Translational Dynamics
- Topic 2.3 · Question 1, 2023 edition of the earlier course · Calculator allowed Forces between stacked blocks on a spring A block lands on and sticks to a block resting on a vertical spring, and the pair stops for an instant. Relate the forces they exert on each other to the top block's weight.
- Topic 2.4 · Question 1 · Calculator allowed Three blocks held still by a pulley string Block A is fixed to a frictionless table, Block B rests against it, and a hanging block tugs on B through a string over a pulley. Find how hard A pushes on B.
- Topic 2.5 · Question 2 · Calculator allowed Matching force arrows to two velocity graphs Two graphs show an object's horizontal and vertical velocity over time. Choose the set of force arrows that could produce that motion.
- Topic 2.5 · Question 3, 2012 AP Physics B course description · Calculator allowed Net force on a block on a smooth incline A 2 kg block slides 20 m along a frictionless incline, dropping 10 m in height. Estimate the net force on it.
- Topic 2.5 · Question 5, 2018 printing of the first course · Calculator allowed Testing the second law on a bouncing spring A motion detector follows a block oscillating on a spring of known stiffness. Choose the measurements needed to check that the net force equals the sum of the forces.
- Topic 2.5 · Question 6, 2018 printing of the first course · Calculator allowed Finding a mass from a falling partner Students want the mass of a block on a frictionless table from the time a hanging block takes to reach the floor. Pick what else they have to measure.
- Topic 2.6 · Question 9, 2023 edition of the earlier course · Calculator allowed Pull and speed of two orbiting satellites Two satellites circle Earth, one of mass m0 at 2 Earth radii and one of mass 2m0 at 3 Earth radii. Compare Earth's pull on each and how fast each moves.
- Topic 2.7 · Question 3, 2018 printing of the first course · Calculator allowed Acceleration of a block slowed by friction A block slides on a level surface with a 40 N weight, a 40 N normal force and a friction coefficient of 0.20. Estimate its acceleration.
- Topic 2.7 · Question 5, 2012 AP Physics B course description · Calculator allowed Friction with a sideways and an up or down push A 2 kg block on a table takes a 12 N sideways push and a 15 N vertical push, with a friction coefficient of 0.2. Find the friction force.
- Topic 2.9 · Question 5, 2023 edition of the earlier course · Calculator allowed Normal force at the bottom of the curve Compare the normal force from the track with the gravitational force on the same block as it passes the lowest point.
- Topic 2.9 · Question 13 · Calculator allowed String tension at the low point of a swing A 3 kg object on a 0.8 m string is let go with the string horizontal. Estimate the tension once the string hangs straight down.
Unit 3: Work, Energy, and Power
- Topic 3.2 · Question 1, 2018 printing of the first course · Calculator allowed Net work from a force and position graph A net force along the x-axis changes as an object moves forward. Use the graph to find the total work done on it over the distance shown.
- Topic 3.2 · Question 3 · Calculator allowed Kinetic energy gained over two equal stretches A steady push moves a block from rest across two 50 cm stretches of a level surface. Compare the kinetic energy it picks up on each stretch, and pick the reason.
- Topic 3.2 · Question 2.C, block on a ramp case study · Calculator allowed Work by gravity when the ramp is steeper The ramp is tilted more steeply and the block slides the same distance along it. Compare the work gravity does on the block in the two cases.
- Topic 3.2 · Question 8, 2023 edition of the earlier course · Calculator allowed The sign of a person's work on a box A person pushes up on a box that may be rising, falling or still. Pick the motion paired with the correct sign of the work the person does.
- Topic 3.2 · Question 15, 2018 printing of the first course · Calculator allowed Spotting negative work on the cart Somewhere in the cart's motion the work done on it is negative. Choose the feature of the motion that gives this away.
- Topic 3.2 · Question 22, 2018 printing of the first course · Calculator allowed Kinetic energy plotted against a mystery quantity A block slides to a stop under steady friction, and its kinetic energy is graphed against an unlabeled quantity. Pick the two quantities the axis could show.
- Topic 3.3 · Question 24, 2018 printing of the first course · Calculator allowed What can be worked out for a sinking rock A 0.2 kg rock drops into a lake, reaches terminal speed after 5 s, and sinks its last 3 s at 4 m/s. Pick the two things the facts are enough to find.
- Topic 3.4 · Question 2.A, block on a ramp case study · Calculator allowed Speed partway down a rough ramp A block starts from rest on a tilted ramp with kinetic friction. Pick the expression for its speed once it has slid a distance L.
- Topic 3.4 · Question 2.B, block on a ramp case study · Calculator allowed Putting numbers into the rough ramp Take L as 1.0 m, the friction coefficient as 0.1 and the incline as 30 degrees, and estimate how fast the block is going at that point.
- Topic 3.4 · Question 3, 2023 edition of the earlier course · Calculator allowed Energy of a spring launched block at equal heights A spring launches a block along a frictionless track to a later point at the starting height. Compare the potential and kinetic energy at the two points.
- Topic 3.4 · Question 4, 2023 edition of the earlier course · Calculator allowed Release height for a block leaving a curved track A 0.20 kg block slides down a frictionless curved track and leaves it 0.40 m up at 3.0 m/s. Estimate how high it started.
- Topic 3.4 · Question 4, 2012 AP Physics B course description · Calculator allowed Speed at the foot of the smooth incline For the same block, starting from rest, estimate how fast it is moving after the 10 m drop.
- Topic 3.4 · Question 3.B, block on a ramp case study · Calculator allowed Whose mechanical energy changes on the ramp Judge four statements about the mechanical energy of the block alone and of the block with Earth while it slides to point A.
- Topic 3.4 · Question 3.C, block on a ramp case study · Calculator allowed Why the block and Earth end up with less Choose the statement that accounts for the drop in the block and Earth system's mechanical energy on the way down the rough ramp.
- Topic 3.4 · Question 10 · Calculator allowed Two systems built from blocks, a spring and Earth A hanging block drags a block across a rough table against a spring until both stop. Decide how mechanical energy changes for each of two choices of system.
- Topic 3.5 · Question 8, 2018 printing of the first course · Calculator allowed Average power on two blocks pushed alike The same changing force acts on a block of mass m and a block of mass 2m, both starting at rest. Compare the average power each one receives over the same interval.
Unit 4: Linear Momentum
- Topic 4.1 · Question 11 · Calculator allowed A block dropped onto a gliding block A block falls straight down onto another one sliding on a frictionless floor and sticks to it. Say what happens to the lower block's speed and which principle explains it.
- Topic 4.2 · Question 4, 2018 printing of the first course · Calculator allowed What a spinning, falling pair of spheres reveals Two spheres on a light rod spin and fall on another planet while sensors log their vertical velocities. Decide which of two quantities the graph is enough to find.
- Topic 4.2 · Question 7, 2023 edition of the earlier course · Calculator allowed Momentum change from two force graphs Graphs show the net force on two objects moving along a line over time. Rank the change in momentum of each.
- Topic 4.3 · Question 6, 2012 AP Physics B course description · Calculator allowed Two balls that stick after a head-on hit A ball of mass M at speed v meets a ball of mass 2M coming the other way at half that speed, and they stick. Find their speed afterward.
- Topic 4.3 · Question 9 · Calculator allowed Momentum handed to a resting block A position graph tracks a 2 kg block until it hits a 4 kg block at rest on a frictionless track. Estimate the momentum of the 4 kg block afterward.
- Topic 4.3 · Question 10, 2018 printing of the first course · Calculator allowed Reading masses from a collision graph A velocity graph shows two blocks on a frictionless surface before and after they collide and move together. Decide which block has more mass and what shows it.
- Topic 4.3 · Question 10, 2023 edition of the earlier course · Calculator allowed Slope of a graph from sticking carts A student times a cart before and after it sticks to a resting cart, repeats at other speeds, and graphs final speed against initial speed. Find the slope.
- Topic 4.3 · Question 12, 2018 printing of the first course · Calculator allowed Center of mass motion through a collision For the same two blocks, choose the statement that describes how their center of mass moves over the whole time shown.
- Topic 4.4 · Question 11, 2018 printing of the first course · Calculator allowed Kinetic energy before and after the blocks join With the same collision graph, compare the system's kinetic energy before and after the blocks meet, and choose the explanation.
Unit 5: Torque and Rotational Dynamics
- Topic 5.3 · Question 6 · Calculator allowed Torque on a rod let go below the horizontal A uniform rod pivots at one end and is released 30 degrees below horizontal. Pick the expression for the net torque about the pivot at that instant.
- Topic 5.5 · Question 7, 2012 AP Physics B course description · Calculator allowed Balancing a rod with one more force Two equal upward forces act on a massless rod on a pivot. Decide where a third force of the same size could go to keep the rod balanced.
Unit 6: Energy and Momentum of Rotating Systems
- Topic 6.3 · Question 14 · Calculator allowed Average torques read from angular momentum graphs Graphs track the angular momentum of two disks for 5 s, one with twice the rotational inertia of the other. Relate the average net torques on them.
- Topic 6.4 · Question 2, 2018 printing of the first course · Calculator allowed A child on a spinning platform A child stands on a frictionless platform turning counterclockwise. Pick the move that would make the platform and child spin faster, along with the right reason.
- Topic 6.4 · Question 9, 2018 printing of the first course · Calculator allowed A moon's distance at the other end of its orbit A moon on an elliptical orbit has a known speed and distance at one point and a known speed at another. Pick the principle, and the reason, that give its distance there.
- Topic 6.4 · Question 11, 2023 edition of the earlier course · Calculator allowed Dropping a disk onto a spinning disk An identical disk at rest is dropped onto a freely spinning disk and they stick. Compare the angular momentum and kinetic energy before and after.
- Topic 6.5 · Question 7, 2018 printing of the first course · Calculator allowed Rolling sphere against sliding block A sphere rolls without slipping down one ramp and a block slides without friction down an identical one. Say which gets to the bottom first, and why.
- Topic 6.6 · Question 12, 2023 edition of the earlier course · Calculator allowed True statements about an elliptical orbit Pick the two statements that hold for a satellite on an elliptical orbit around Earth.
Unit 7: Oscillations
- Topic 7.2 · Question 12 · Calculator allowed Pendulum and spring on a heavier planet A pendulum and a mass on a spring each take one second per cycle on Earth. Predict their periods on a planet the same size with twice the mass.
- Topic 7.4 · Question 7 · Calculator allowed Adding a second block to an oscillating spring A second identical block joins a block bouncing on a horizontal spring, and the amplitude stays the same. Compare the top speed and top kinetic energy in the two trials.
Unit 8: Fluids
- Topic 8.3 · Question 8 · Calculator allowed Upward push on a rock under oil instead of water A rock sits on the bottom of a cup, first under water and then under a liquid three fourths as dense. Find the upward force the new liquid exerts on it.
- Topic 8.4 · Question 13, 2012 AP Physics B course description · Calculator allowed Speed and pressure where a pipe narrows Fluid flows steadily through a pipe that gets narrower. Compare the flow speed and the pressure at the wide and narrow points.
- Topic 8.4 · Question 15 · Calculator allowed Flow speed where a pipe gets wider Fluid moves from a pipe section of radius R into one of radius 2R. Find how its speed in the wide part compares with its speed in the narrow part.
The questions and answer keys are College Board's; each question's page names the PDF it comes from. The titles and summaries on this page are ours.