On page 462 in the chapter summary (aka «glossary») for chapter 17 it says the amplitude for a spherical wave decreases with distance r from the source as 1/r
That might be true for a monochromatic outgoing running wave, but it's not true in general. It's definitely not true for a spherical standing wave. It's also definitely not true for an isolated running-wave pulse. The latter will disperse ... even if a plane wave in the same medium would be non-dispersive.
The entry for circular surface waves has the same problem.
On page 462 in the chapter summary (aka «glossary») for chapter 17 it says
the amplitude for a spherical wave decreases with distance r from the source as 1/rThat might be true for a monochromatic outgoing running wave, but it's not true in general. It's definitely not true for a spherical standing wave. It's also definitely not true for an isolated running-wave pulse. The latter will disperse ... even if a plane wave in the same medium would be non-dispersive.
The entry for circular surface waves has the same problem.