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The Science of Colours

The Science of Colours

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


The Science of Colours


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