What is colour?
Colour is a type of information our eyes receive and process based on electromagnetic radiation.
An object doesn't have a colour itself, but based on the light it reflects, we perceive it to have a particular colour.
The human eye has rod and cone cells. Rods record brightness, while cones record wavelengths, which are interpreted as colour by the brain.
Humans are trichromats, having three types of cone cells.
Is there a science of colours?
Colour theory is the art of mixing colours to produce others.
Modern colour science rejects the idea of three fixed primary colours.
A colour space is a gamut of colours produced by combining three colours.
How are colours rendered?
There are two ways to render colours: additive and subtractive.
Additive colouring mixes light of different wavelengths to create a combined colour (e.g. smartphone screens).
Subtractive colouring removes specific wavelengths of light from white light to produce a colour (e.g. dyes, pigments).
What are the properties of colour?
Hue: How similar a colour is to red, orange, yellow, green, blue, or violet.
Brightness: Related to an object's luminance (power emitted per unit area).
Lightness: How light a colour appears compared to a well-lit white object.
Chromaticity: The human perception of colour's quality, independent of lighting.
How have people related to colour?
Colours play a role in art, social classes, science, trade, cultural symbols, climate change, politics, and religion.
The use of coloured pigments dates back to prehistoric humans.
The invention of blue LEDs allowed for the development of white LEDs, transforming lighting technology.
The Science of Colours
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