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The mystery of color: How do electromagnetic waves of light shape our visual world?
Color is an important element of our visual world, but the science behind it may not be well known. The perception of color actually comes from the electromagnetic waves of light, not an inherent property of matter itself. When objects absorb, reflect or emit light, the different wavelengths of light received by the human eye form the perception of various colors.
The perception of color is closely related to the light absorption, reflection and emission spectra of objects.
The human eye is able to perceive colors in the visible light range of about 390 nanometers to 700 nanometers, and the color blindness problem that troubles many people also stems from the deficiency of different types of photoreceptors (cone cells). The light emitted by the light sources in the environment can come in a variety of different wavelengths, which combine to make us perceive different colors. Different animals also have different ranges of color perception. For example, bees can see colors in the ultraviolet range.
Physical Properties of Color
Light is electromagnetic radiation characterized by wavelength (or frequency) and intensity. When the wavelength of light is within the visible range, we call it visible light. Technically, color can be defined as a set of spectra that cause the same color perception, but the combination of these spectra can differ between species.
Pure color (spectral color) refers to visible light with only one wavelength, which can be called a color light source.
The famous colors of the spectrum can be remembered by a simple abbreviation "ROYGBIV," which stands for red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet. However, different cultures and languages also differ in how colors are named and perceived, which also reflects the social and emotional significance of colors.
Color Theory
Color theory is used in visual art to guide the combination of colors to make them more aesthetically harmonious. It includes color complementarity, color balance, and the classification of primary colors (red, yellow, blue) and secondary colors (orange, green, purple). These theories are not only tools for artists, but also the cornerstone of understanding the meaning of color in everyday life.
Color science is the study of color.
Human color vision
The human retina contains three different types of cone cells that are able to distinguish colors. This trichromatic vision allows us to perceive a range of colors from blue to red. Because different types of cones have different sensitivities to different wavelengths of light, our brains form color perception based on a combination of three color signals.
Humans can distinguish about 10 million colors, which shows the diversity and complexity of color.
However, even in bright environments, there is another type of photosensitive cell in our retina - rod cells, which mainly operate in low-light environments and are not directly involved in color perception, but can provide light and dark information. This allows the visual system to adapt to different lighting conditions and is related to the recognition of colors.
Color processing in the brain
How the brain processes color information is even more complicated. The opponent process theory involved here explains many of the subjective characteristics of color experience. For example, why humans cannot perceive the colors "red and green" or "yellow and blue" is the result of information processing by the opponent channel.
This unique color representation explains our subjective experience of color.
After initial processing, color information is sent to the visual area V2 in the brain for further analysis. The activity of these neurons can be broken down into different color modules, leading to more complex color perception, further demonstrating that color perception plays a key role in our visual system.
Color reproduction
Color reproduction is the translation of the perception of a color into a color that can be communicated as intended or desired in design and art. This involves how to select specific light bands to produce the desired visual effects. Since most colors are created by a mixture of different wavelengths of light, accurate color reproduction is necessary for many industries.
Whether in printing, photography or television, color reproduction relies on accurate color models.
Whether in artistic creation or business application, color reproduction technology is constantly improving to meet the needs of human color perception, adding cultural and emotional charm to scientific understanding. However, as our understanding of color deepens, is it just a simple visual phenomenon, or does it contain deeper meaning?
