CH: LIGHT

NOTES

*We can see the world through our eyes or our sense of sight. However, wecannot see
anything without the light, that is, in darkness. When light falls upon or is emitted by an
object our eyes detect that light and hence the object becomes visible to us.
*A mirror is a glass having a shiny surface. When light falls on a mirror itis reflected
back. Hence a mirror changes the direction of light that falls upon it.

*When light strikes a surface and bounces back, it is called reflection.

 • INCIDENT RAY - The ray of light that falls on the surface is called
incident ray.

• REFLECTED RAY - The ray of the light that gets reflected back from
the surface is called reflected ray.

• NORMAL - It is an imaginary line that is drawn perpendicular to the

reflecting surface at the point where the incident ray strikes the surface
or at the point of incidence.

• THE ANGLE OF INCIDENCE (ΘI) - It is the angle that the incident

ray makes with the normal.

• THE ANGLE OF REFLECTION (ΘR) - It is the angle that the reflected

ray makes with the normal.

• For an incident ray, there is always one reflected ray.

• FIRST LAW OF REFLECTION

The angle of incidence and the angle of reflection are always equal to each
other. In other words, the angle by which a ray of light is incident on a surface
will always be equal to the angle by which it is reflected back from the surface.

• SECOND LAW OF REFLECTION

The incident ray, the reflected ray and normal all lie in the same plane.

IMAGE FORMED IN PLANE MIRROR

● Place a source of light O in front of a plane mirror PQ. Two rays OA

and OC are incident on it.
● Draw normals to the surface of the mirror PQ, at the points A and C.
● Then draw the reflected rays at the points A and C. Call the reflected
rays AB and CD, respectively.
● Extend them backwards. The point at which they meet, mark it as I.
● For a viewer’s eye at E as shown in fig, the reflected rays appear to
come from the point I.
● Since the reflected rays do not actually meet at I, but only appear to do
so, we say that a virtual image of the point O is formed at I.

*CHARACTERSTICS OF IMAGE FORMED IN PLANE MIRROR

• It has the same height as that of the object.

• The distance between the image and the mirror and the object and the
mirror is always equal.

• The image is erect or upright.

• The image is laterally inverted.

 • It is a virtual image because it is formed by the apparent intersection of
diverging rays.

*When an image is formed in a mirror the, the left side of the object appears
at the right side of the image and vice versa. This is called a lateral inversion.

REGULAR AND IRREGULAR REFLECTION-

• When all the parallel rays reflected from a rough or irregular surface
are not parallel, the reflection is known as diffused or irregular
reflection.

• On the other hand, reflection from a smooth surface like that of a

mirror is called regular reflection

• Remember that the diffused reflection is not due to the failure of the
laws of reflection. It is caused by the irregularities in the reflecting
surface, like that of a cardboard.
*Objects that do not produce light on their own but reflect the light thatfalls
upon them are called illuminated objects. For example, the moon.

*Objects which can produce light on their own are called luminous objects. For example,
tube light, bulb, the Sun and the Stars.

* Multiple reflections can be obtained by placing more than one mirrors at

certain angles to each other which results in reflection of light for multiple
times between the reflecting surfaces. This phenomenon is used in certain
scenarios such as:
1. In a Periscope to see hidden objects
 2. In a kaleidoscope to see beautiful patterns
3. In a barbershop to see the back of the head of a person getting a haircut
*Kaleidoscope-

● It is a device that works on the phenomena of multiple reflections with

the help of multiple mirrors.
● It has a cylindrical structure with three plane mirrors inside it.
● It contains several pieces of beads, broken glass, colourful bangles,
pebbles etc.
● The observer can look into the Kaleidoscope from one end and the light
enters into the Kaleidoscope from the other end.
● When the light falls upon these objects in the Kaleidoscope, multiple
reflections of these objects are created in the three Mirrors.
● This results in the formation of beautiful and colourful patterns.
● Since the reflection of light is not always the same the observer never
sees a similar pattern in the kaleidoscope.

DISPERSION OF LIGHT-
● This phenomenon of the splitting of light into its constituents is called
Dispersion of light.
 ● The sunlight is white in colour however this white light often disperses
into several colours which results in different colours of the sky at
different times of the day.
● The white light consists of seven colours namely VIBGYOR (violet,
indigo, blue, green, yellow, orange and red).
● This arrangement of seven colours of a white light is called as Spectrum.
● All these colours mixed together and form the white light. However, due
to the reflection of light, the seven colours can split and be seen as
separate colours rather than a single white light.

EXAMPLES-
● Formation of rainbow due to the dispersion of white light through the
water droplets.
● Passing of Sunlight through a prism
● Dispersion of light through the soap Bubbles
● Dispersion of light on the CDs
*Structure and Function of human eye.
Eyes are sensory organs that allow us to see things present in the
environment. The eyes absorb the light rays and form a visual image and
transform this information of the image to the brain. The eye has a spherical
structure which is called the eyeballs
The parts of the human eye are as follows:
• CORNEA - It is a transparent covering present on the outer side of the
eyes. It consists of 6 layers. Tear fluid covers cornea and protects the
eye.
• IRIS - It is a dark coloured muscular structure present in the centre of
the cornea. The Iris consists of a small opening call Pupil through which
the light enters into the eye. The Iris has colourful pigments like grey,
blue, black, green, brown etc. The amount of light that enters the eye is
controlled by the Iris. In other words, Iris controls the Pupil.
• LENS - It is like a sphere of liquid present inside the eye. The eye lens is
located behind the Pupil which helps in the formation of an image in the
eye.
• RETINA- Retina is a layer located behind the lens at the back of the
eye. The eye lens focuses the light that enters into the eye over the
retina. The retina consists of different Nerve cells that perform different
tasks. There are sensory cells that detect the light. They then transform
that information into an electrical impulse. These electrical impulses are
sent to the brain via the optic nerve. Two types of vision cells in the
retina are:
 • Rods or chopsticks - They get activated in darkness or dim-light
and the responsible for light-dark vision.
• Cones - they react to bright light and therefore sense colour in an
object.
• VITREOUS CHAMBER - The inner space of the eyeball called the
transparent vitreous chamber consists of a gel-like substance. This
substance maintains the right pressure in the eye and maintains the
stability of the eyeball.
• BLIND SPOT - There is a point in the eye located at the junction of the
retina and the optic nerve where no sensory cells are present. This spot
is therefore called the blind spot as it does not support any vision.

*Activity to demonstrate the presence of blind spot in human eye.

• Make a round mark and a cross on a sheet of paper with the spot to the
right of the cross.
 • The distance between two marks may be 6-8 cm.
• Hold the sheet of paper at an arm’s length from the eye.
• Close your left eye. Look continuously at the cross.
• Move the sheet slowly towards you, keeping your eye on the cross.
• We will observe the round mark disappears in sometime.
• Now close your right eye. Look at the round mark now and repeat the
activity.
• We will observe the cross disappears in sometime.
• The disappearance of the cross or the round mark shows that there is a
point on the retina which cannot send messages to the brain when light
falls on it.

*Persistence of image on retina-

• The image that is formed on the retina persists for 1/16th of a second.
• Therefore, if one tries to move 16 still images per second of a moving
object in front of our eye it appears as if the object is moving. This is
how animation films and movies work. They are a collection of separate
pictures which are moved in a sequence.
• However, this movement is so fast, around 24 pictures in a second, that
it appears as if they are moving.
VISION-
• Normally a person can see distant and nearby objects through the eyes.
• A person with normal eyes can read most comfortable at a distance of
25cm. However, this distance can decrease with age.
 • Also sometimes people can see far objects clearly but not the objects
that are nearby (farsightedness or hyperopia).
• Similarly, some people can see the nearby objects clearly but not the far
objects (nearsightedness or myopia). Hence they use suitable lenses to
correct such defects.
• Sometimes with old age, the lens of the eye can become cloudy or foggy.
This condition is called cataract with results in loss of vision.
• However, this defect can be rectified by removing the old lens from the
eye and inserting an artificial lens at that place.
TAKING CARE OF EYES-
• If advised, use suitable spectacles.
• Too little or too much light is bad for eyes. Insufficient light causes
eyestrain and headaches. Too much light, like that of the Sun, a
powerful lamp or a laser torch can injure the retina.
• Do not look at the Sun or a powerful light directly.
• Never rub your eyes. If particles of dust go into your eyes, wash your
eyes with clean water. If there is no improvement go to a doctor.
• Always read at the normal distance for vision. Do not read by bringing
the book too close to your eyes or keeping it too far.
• Take a balanced diet to ensure that you get the right nutrients. Lack of
vitamin A in foodstuff is responsible for many eye troubles. Most
common amongst them is night blindness. One should, therefore,
include in the diet components which have vitamin A.
• Raw carrots, broccoli and green vegetables and cod liver oil are rich in
vitamin A. Eggs, milk, curd, cheese, butter and fruits such as papaya
and mango are also rich in vitamin A.

NIGHT BIRDS
The owl has a large cornea and a large pupil to allow more light in itseye.
Also, it has on its
retina a large number of rods and only a few cones which enables it to see very
clearly in night and not during the day.

*The day birds have more cones and fewer rods on the retina which
enables them to see clearly during the day but not in the night.

Visually impaired people -

Visual impairment is also known as vision loss.

• A person with vision loss cannot see at all.

• This loss of vision is up to a degree that cannot be corrected using usual
means like using glasses or lenses.
• The people who have no eyesight at all develop the other senses of
listening and touching sharply which allows them to do their day to day
activities.
• However, there are certain resources that have been developed to help
such people like optical aids and non-optical aids.
*Braille System-
● Braille is a tactual aid for visually challenged people that allow them to
read and write.
● It was developed by a visually challenged person called Louis Braille.
This system was published by him in 1821 however the present Braille
System was adopted in 1932.
● For many common languages including Hindi, Sanskrit, Tamil, Telugu,
Mathematics and scientific notations a Braille code is present.
● In the Braille code, there are 63 Dots or 63 Characters.
● These are arranged in a cell of two vertical rows having three dots each.
● The patterns are embossed on a Braille Sheet that allows a person to
read by touching the pattern. Each character in the Braille system can
represent:
1. a letter
2. a combination of letters or a word
3. a grammatical sign