π§ͺ Science π‘ Light and sound
Color
π In short
Colors fill our world with beauty: red roses, the blue sky and sea, green trees, the yellow sun and the colors of the rainbow. But did you know that all colors are hidden in the sun's white light?
π€© Did you know?
- People can tell apart millions of colors, maybe about 10 million.
- There are two ways of mixing colors: mixing pigments and mixing colored light.
- Newton discovered that white light is made of the colors of the rainbow.
- Some animals see colors we can't, like bees.
π Find out more
π White light
The sun's white light is a mix of many colors. When it passes through a triangular piece of glass called a prism, or through raindrops, it splits into the colors of the rainbow.
π Why do we see colors?
A red apple absorbs all the colors of light except red, which it sends back to our eyes, so we see it as red. A green leaf sends back green. White sends back all colors, and black absorbs them all.
π‘ Mixing colors
In painting, red, yellow and blue are primary colors, and from them we make orange, green and purple. But with light, mixing red, green and blue makes white!
π― Colors and feelings
Colors affect our feelings: blue and green bring calm, red and orange bring excitement and warmth. That's why colors are used in traffic lights and signs.
𧩠Test yourself
1 Why do we see an apple as red?
2 What does mixing blue and yellow make in painting?
3 People can tell apart millions of colors, maybe about ?? million.
4 Which picture shows βColorβ?
π§ͺ Discover more
π· Picture sources: Wikimedia Commons
- MichaelMaggs Β· CC BY-SA 3.0
