Light Waves and Seeing Color

Color (light Waves)

Have you ever wondered what color is?

Multiple Choice

According to Kelleher, what is the first step in understanding the phenomenon of color?

• Think about it as a wave

• Research the spectrum and find pictures of rainbows

• Visit the paint section at the local hardware store

• Buy a coloring book

Open Ended

Explain (in your own words) why it's better to wear lighter colors (such as white and pale yellow) during the summer and better to wear darker colors (like black and charcoal gray) in the winter.

Multiple Choice

Why does a yellow pencil look yellow?

• The sun emits all colors, but the pencil reflects yellow more than it reflects the other colors

• The sun reflects all colors, but the pencil emits yellow more than it reflects the other colors

• The sun emits all colors, but the pencil reflects yellow less than it reflects the other colors

• The sun reflects most colors, but the pencil emits yellow less than it reflects the other colors

Multiple Choice

White objects reflect all colors of light and black objects absorb all colors of light.

• True

• False

There are three types of color receptors in your eye: red, green and blue.

But how do we see the amazing kaleidoscope of other colors that make up our world?

Multiple Choice

Why is it weird that green and red light mix to form yellow light?

• Yellow light is also formed when you mix other light waves, but never complimentary colors

• Light generally combines the way physical color does, so the complimentary colors should form a milky brown

• Light is a wave, and two different frequencies shouldn't interact with one another

• Green and red light do not mix to form yellow light

Multiple Choice

Why can't you see color when it's dark?

• The rod cells in your retina take over in low light

• The cone cells in your retina take over in low light

• The pigma cells in your retina take over in low light

• Color doesn't exist in dark environments

Multiple Choice

How many colors do TV manufacturers use in the production of televisions?

• Over 1 million

• 100

• 3

• 25

Open Ended

Explain what happens when someone is color blind. Does this alter his or her ability to see in the dark?

Open Ended

What industries (other than television manufacturing) may benefit from the way the human eye sees color?

Open Ended

What would happen if you mixed blue light and red light? What would happen if you mixed blue pigment and red pigment?

Color vision

• is the ability of an organism or machine to distinguish objects based on the wavelengths (or frequencies) of the light they reflect, emit, or transmit. Colors can be measured and quantified in various ways; indeed, a human's perception of colors is a subjective process whereby the brain responds to the stimuli that are produced when incoming light reacts with the several types of cone photoreceptors in the eye.

Visible light

(commonly referred to simply as light) is electromagnetic radiation that is visible to the human eye and is responsible for the sense of sight. Visible light has a wavelength in the range of about 380 nanometres to about 740 nm – between the invisible infrared, with longer wavelengths, and the invisible ultraviolet, with shorter wavelengths.

Artist Neil Harbisson

was born completely color blind, but, these days, a device attached to his head turns color into audible frequencies. Instead of seeing a world in grayscale, Harbisson can hear a symphony of color -- and even listen to faces and paintings.

Multiple Choice

Light is made up of...

• electricity and waves

• magnetism and waves

• electricity and magnetism

• electricity and energy

Multiple Choice

The color with the longest wavelength is...

• Blue

• Red

• Green

• Yellow

Multiple Choice

A shadow is created by the....

• absence of light.

• absence of waves.

• absence of color.

• blocking of sound.

Multiple Choice

The darkest part of a shadow is called the...

• shadow

• umbra

• penumbra

• pentagram

Multiple Choice

If you see a green leaf on a tree, that means...

• Green is the color being reflected off the leaf.

• Green is the color being absorbed by the leaf.

• All the colors are being reflected off the leaf.

• All the colors are being absorbed by the leaf.

Multiple Choice

The sky is blue because...

• blue is the color most scattered or reflected by our atmosphere.

• red is the color most scattered or reflected by our atmosphere.

• blue is the color most absorbed by our atmosphere.

• blue is complimentary to orange.

Multiple Choice

The most dangerous type of light in the universe is...

• a microwave

• an x-ray

• a gamma ray

• an ultraviolet wave

Multiple Choice

What type of light does sunblock actually block?

• Radio waves

• Ultraviolet

• Visible Light

• Infrared Light

Multiple Choice

In this GIF, which of the vocabulary represents what is happening in the GIF?

• Absorption

• Reflection

• Transmission

Multiple Choice

When light shines through a prism it creates a ________________

• colors
• ROY G. BIV
• spectrum
• electromagnetic wave

Multiple Choice

Light is a form of 

• energy
• radiation
• reflection

Explanation Slide...

Energy is only absorbed when light is absorbed.

Draw

Draw what happens to energy when light is reflected. Use yellow arrows to represent energy.

Multiple Choice

Light must be _______________ in order for the material to be affected by light.

• reflected

• penetrated

• absorbed

• surrounded

Multiple Choice

Ray B represents __.

• reflection

• refraction

• transmission

• absorption

Multiple Choice

Ray C represents __.

• reflection

• refraction

• transmission

• absorption

Multiple Choice

What are the three primary colors of light?

• Red, Green, Blue
• Green, Yellow, Blue
• Cyan, Magenta Yellow
• Cyan, Magenta, Black