(LSEL) Light and Sound Show: Energy and Light Module Overview

Light and Sound Show: Energy and Light Module Overview

Light is one of the most unusual things in the universe in that it can act as both a wave and a particle. In this module we will look at the properties of light and how light behaves. Everything we see is a result of light being reflected back to our eyes, and all of the colors of the rainbow are contained in the light that comes from our sun. Light can be used to let us see in dark places, concentrated into a laser an ultraviolet light can be used to uncover evidence at crime scenes. We will explore light and its amazing properties and look at ways that light is used in our everyday lives.

Essential Questions

  • Why do objects partially submerged in water appear broken or bent?
  • How do we see colors?

Module Lessons Preview

  1. Angle of incidence - The angle at which light hits a reflective surface
  2. Angle of reflection - The angle at which light leaves a reflective surface
  3. Diffraction - The apparent bending of waves around small obstacles and the spreading out of waves past small openings
  4. Electromagnetic radiation - Energy that moves as both a particle and a wave that can travel through any medium
  5. Electromagnetic spectrum - The range of all possible wavelengths of electromagnetic radiation
  6. Fiber optics - Optical fibers that can carry light over long distances that are used in communication and data transfer
  7. Frequency - The number of waves that pass a given point in a certain amount of time
  8. LASER - Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation
  9. Lens - An optical device which transmits and refracts light, converging or diverging the beam
  10. Mirror - A substance that can reflect light efficiently
  11. Photon - A bundle of light energy that moves as both a particle and a wave
  12. Primary colors - Colors that can be added or subtracted from one another to create other colors. Red, Blue, Green, Cyan, Magenta and Yellow.
  13. Prism - A substance that can refract white light separating it into its colored components
  14. Reflection - The change in direction of a wave from the surface of a reflective material
  15. Refraction - The bending of a wave when it enters a medium where its speed changes due to differences in density
  16. Speed of light - The speed at which light travels in a vacuum. ( 3.00 x 108 m/s)
  17. Wave particle duality - The dual nature of light that explains the wave and particle characteristics that light exhibits
  18. Wavelength - The distance between two crests of a wave

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