The following sections of this BookRags Literature Study Guide is offprint from Gale's For Students Series: Presenting Analysis, Context, and Criticism on Commonly Studied Works: Introduction, Author Biography, Plot Summary, Characters, Themes, Style, Historical Context, Critical Overview, Criticism and Critical Essays, Media Adaptations, Topics for Further Study, Compare & Contrast, What Do I Read Next?, For Further Study, and Sources.
(c)1998-2002; (c)2002 by Gale. Gale is an imprint of The Gale Group, Inc., a division of Thomson Learning, Inc. Gale and Design and Thomson Learning are trademarks used herein under license.
The following sections, if they exist, are offprint from Beacham's Encyclopedia of Popular Fiction: "Social Concerns", "Thematic Overview", "Techniques", "Literary Precedents", "Key Questions", "Related Titles", "Adaptations", "Related Web Sites". (c)1994-2005, by Walton Beacham.
The following sections, if they exist, are offprint from Beacham's Guide to Literature for Young Adults: "About the Author", "Overview", "Setting", "Literary Qualities", "Social Sensitivity", "Topics for Discussion", "Ideas for Reports and Papers". (c)1994-2005, by Walton Beacham.
All other sections in this Literature Study Guide are owned and copyrighted by BookRags, Inc.
A node is the point in a periodic system, such as a standing wave, that has no amplitude. The word, node, was derived in the fourteenth century from the Latin nodus meaning knot. A node is created when a crest of one wave moving in one direction intersects with a trough from another wave traveling in the opposite direction. The two waves cancel each other and create a node that appears to be stationary in a standing wave. There is no motion in the standing wave at the node but at a distance of a quarter of a wavelength away from each node the wave has a crest, where the amplitude is its largest. These points are called anti-nodes. The distance between successive nodes or anti-nodes is equal to a half of a wavelength. If the standing wave is produced in a string that is clamped at each end to a stationary point then the ends can also be called nodes. These points on the string also remain stationary because they are attached. If the string is loose at one end then this point would be an anti-node because the string would be at maximum amplitude. In order for a sound to be produced in a stringed instrument there have to be nodes at each end of the string.