Commonly Asked Questions in Physics

Chapter 5

Light and Optics

Light is a fundamental part of our lives. We use it in many different ways every day. Physics has a lot to tell us about light’s behavior and how it’s used both in the natural world and in applications that we’ve crafted to make our lives better. After reviewing some facts about light from earlier chapters, we’ll address some important questions from optics and explain how we manipulate light by reflecting, bending, and focusing it. Understanding light’s fundamental properties shows us how many natural phenomena work, such as rainbows and sparkling diamonds, and even the complex optical system in our own eyes. Over the centuries scientists have developed tools to see more than our eyes can, from microscopes that can ...