Discover - Lesson 3
Completion requirements
Discover - What Light Shall Pass?
Look at the picture and think about how light passes through the objects in that room. What objects in the picture will light pass through completely? Which objects in the picture will block the light?
Because the glass in the window is transparent, it allows all the light to pass through. The curtains are translucent and will allow only some of the light to pass through. The laptop computer is opaque, and light will not pass through it at all.
When light passes through an object, we say the light is transmitted, and when light bounces off an object, we say the light is reflected. How well light is transmitted through an objects tells us if that object is transparent, translucent, or opaque.
Because the glass in the window is transparent, it allows all the light to pass through. The curtains are translucent and will allow only some of the light to pass through. The laptop computer is opaque, and light will not pass through it at all.
When light passes through an object, we say the light is transmitted, and when light bounces off an object, we say the light is reflected. How well light is transmitted through an objects tells us if that object is transparent, translucent, or opaque.
Question: How can you classify materials as transparent, translucent, or opaque?
Resources
Instructions
Instructions
- Go to the Transmission and Reflection of Light website.
- Point to each light bulb to see how the light passes through each material differently.
- When you finished looking at all four materials, take the quiz!
Aboriginal Connection
Some Aboriginal people in the past used to make windows by rubbing fat or oils on to animal skins and stretching them over openings in their walls. The oil made the animal skin translucent enough to let some light in, but the animal skin kept out the wind and the cold.
Try it yourself!
Try it yourself!
- Take a piece of paper and hold it up to the light. It might seem almost opaque. Now, try rubbing some oil (butter or margarine will also work) over the paper. Then, hold it up to the light. Notice how the paper has become translucent.