Light FlashCards
What is an electromagnetic waves?
A wave that consists of electric and magnetic fields that vibrate at right angles to each other.
What is reflection?
The bouncing back of a ray of light, sound, or heat when the ray hits the surface that it does not go through.
What is absorption?
In optics, the transfer of light energy to particles of matter.
What is scattering?
An interaction of light with matter that causes light to change its energy, direction of motion, or both.
What is refraction?
The bending of a wave as the wave passes between two substances in which the speed of the wave differs
What is diffraction?
A change in the direction of a wave when the wave finds an obstacle or an edge, such as an opening.
What is interference?
The combination of two or more waves that results in a single wave.
What is transmission?
The passing of light or other form of energy through matter.
What is transparent?
Describes matter that allows light to pass through with little interference.
What is translucent?
Describes matter that transmits light but that does not transmit an image.
What is opaque?
Describes an object that is not transparent or translucent.
What is pigment?
A substance that gives another substance or a mixture its color.
What is nearsightedness?
A condition in which the lens of the eye focuses distant objects in front of rather than on the retina.
What is farsightedness?
A condition in which the lens of the eye focuses distant objects in behind rather than on the retina.
What is cornea?
The transparent layer forming the front of the eye.
What is pupil?
A pupil is a hole located in the center of the iris of the eye that allows light to strike the retina.
What is iris?
A flat, colored, ring-shaped membrane behind the cornea of the eye, with an adjustable circular opening (pupil) in the center.
What is lens?
A piece of glass or other transparent substance with curved sides for concentrating or dispersing light rays, used singly (as in a magnifying glass) or with other lenses (as in a telescope).
What is retina?
A layer at the back of the eyeball containing cells that are sensitive to light and that trigger nerve impulses that pass via the optic nerve to the brain, where a visual image is formed.
What is rods?
Cells are photoreceptor cells in the retina of the eye that can function in less intense light than the other type of visual photoreceptor, cone cells. Rods are usually found concentrated at the outer edges of the retina and are used in peripheral vision.
What is cones?
Cells, or cones, are photoreceptor cells in the retinas of vertebrate eyes (e.g. the human eye). They respond differently to light of different wavelengths, and are thus responsible for color vision and function best in relatively bright light, as opposed to rod cells, which work better in dim light.
