Transmission impairment occurs when the received signal is not identical to the sent signal due to interruptions in the transmission medium. The main causes of impairment are attenuation, distortion, and noise. Attenuation is the loss of signal strength over distance due to resistance of the medium. Distortion changes the shape of the signal from unstable packet propagation velocities. Noise occurs when unwanted signals collide with the actual signal, producing spikes, thermal movement interference, or crosstalk between wires.