Bill Nye the Science Guy S01E16 Light and Color

Summary

This video script explains the science of light and color in an engaging and playful manner. It discusses how white light is a mixture of all the colors in the rainbow and how different objects reflect and absorb various wavelengths of light, giving them their distinct colors. The video includes demonstrations using prisms, food coloring, and neon lights to show how light behaves. With humor and music, it also explains why the sky is blue and how light impacts our perception of the world around us. The show emphasizes the intersection of science and everyday phenomena.

Takeaways

• 🌈 White light is a mixture of all the colors of the rainbow.
• 🔴 Red light can make you stop, and green light can make you go.
• 🎨 When white light hits an object, we see the color that is reflected by that object.
• 🔦 A prism can break white light into a spectrum of colors: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet.
• 🔵 Mixing different colors of light (like red, green, and blue) gives white light, but mixing colored paints gives black or brown.
• 🍎 Fruits and vegetables appear in different colors because of chemicals in their skin reflecting and absorbing different wavelengths of light.
• 💡 Objects that are black absorb almost all colors and convert light into heat, while white objects reflect almost all colors.
• 💧 Colors in soap bubbles are created by light waves reflecting off the inside and outside of the bubble, producing interference.
• 🔵 The sky appears blue because blue light is scattered more by the atmosphere than other colors.
• ⚡ Neon lights work by exciting neon gas inside tubes with high voltage electricity, producing colorful glowing light.

Q & A

What is white light made of?

White light is a mixture of all the colors of the rainbow: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet.

How does a prism affect white light?

When white light passes through a prism, it breaks into all the colors of the rainbow, displaying the full spectrum of colors.

Why do objects appear a certain color?

Objects appear a certain color because they reflect specific wavelengths of light while absorbing others. For example, an orange reflects orange light, while a green apple reflects green light.

Why does a black object feel warmer than a white object in light?

A black object absorbs most colors of light and converts them into heat, making it warmer, while a white object reflects most colors and absorbs very little light, making it cooler.

What happens when you mix different colors of light?

When you mix different colors of light, such as red, yellow, and blue, they combine to form white light.

What is the difference between mixing colors of light and mixing colors of paint?

Mixing colors of light produces white, while mixing colors of paint produces darker shades, often resulting in brown, because paints absorb light rather than reflecting it.

How do neon lights work?

Neon lights contain neon gas that becomes excited when exposed to high voltage electricity, emitting light. The specific color depends on the gas and the amount of energy applied.

Why do people use smoke in light shows or dance parties?

Smoke is used in light shows so that light beams, like lasers, can be seen as they reflect off the smoke particles in the air.

Why is the sky blue?

The sky appears blue because molecules in the atmosphere scatter blue light from the sun more than they scatter red light, causing the sky to look blue to our eyes.

What role does pigment play in determining an object’s color?

Pigment in an object absorbs certain wavelengths of light and reflects others, which is why we see specific colors. For example, red pigment absorbs most colors but reflects red.

Outlines

00:00

🌈 White Light and the Spectrum of Colors

This section introduces the concept that white light is a combination of all the colors of the rainbow. Through examples such as red light stopping traffic and green light allowing movement, it explains how different colors affect us. The show humorously introduces how white light, when passed through a prism, splits into the full spectrum of colors—red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet. It demonstrates how colors are pure and cannot be further broken down. There is a hands-on experiment mixing colored liquids to show how combinations create new colors like purple, orange, green, and even black.

05:00

🎨 Light Reflection and Color Absorption

This paragraph delves into how we perceive colors based on the reflection and absorption of light. It explains that objects appear colored because they reflect certain wavelengths of light while absorbing others. For instance, a black object absorbs most of the light and turns it into heat, while white objects reflect most colors. Paint works similarly by absorbing and reflecting different light wavelengths. Mixing light produces white, while mixing paint results in a brownish color due to how it absorbs light.

10:03

🚗 Absorption and Reflection in Everyday Objects

This part of the script explains how objects like clothes and cars reflect and absorb light, influencing how they appear. Black objects absorb more light and feel warmer, while white objects stay cooler by reflecting all colors. The character of Lance is introduced, who continually holds signs to remind people that the color of an object is the color of the light it reflects. There's also a humorous interlude about the effect of light absorption on black cars being hotter than white ones.

15:04

🔵 Why Is the Sky Blue?

The detective-style segment focuses on explaining why the sky appears blue. Sunlight, although white, scatters when it passes through the atmosphere. Blue light scatters more than red due to its shorter, faster waves, which is why we see a blue sky. A prism is used to illustrate how different colors of light bend, reinforcing that air molecules scatter blue light more effectively. The segment closes with the detective and his nephew discussing the color of the sky in a fun, light-hearted manner.

20:06

🌞 Light, Color, and Perception

This final paragraph wraps up the exploration of light and color, emphasizing how the colors we see are those that bounce off objects while others are absorbed. It highlights that without light, we wouldn't see color, and our world would be much duller. There’s a discussion about how light becomes heat when absorbed, and the paragraph ends with a playful send-off, encouraging viewers to think about how light and colors interact in their surroundings.

Keywords

💡White Light

White light is described in the video as a mixture of all the colors of the rainbow. It contains the full spectrum of colors, which can be seen when passed through a prism. The video illustrates this concept by showing white light hitting various objects and only certain colors being reflected back, depending on the object.

💡Color Spectrum

The color spectrum refers to the range of colors that are present within white light. When white light is passed through a prism, it splits into red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet. This spectrum is key to understanding how we perceive different colors in objects, as explained when the video discusses how light reflects off various surfaces.

💡Reflection and Absorption

Reflection and absorption are key concepts used to explain why objects appear certain colors. The video explains that objects reflect certain wavelengths of light while absorbing others. For example, an orange reflects orange light, while a red object absorbs all other colors except red.

💡Pigment

Pigment is the substance in paints or objects that absorbs and reflects light, determining the color we see. The video explains how pigments in paint absorb most of the light that hits them, which affects the color reflected back. For example, red pigment absorbs all colors except red, reflecting only the red wavelength.

💡Prism

A prism is a transparent object that refracts light, splitting white light into its constituent colors. In the video, a 'prism of science' is used to demonstrate how white light can be broken into the colors of the rainbow, illustrating the full spectrum of visible light.

💡Primary Colors

The video identifies red, green, and blue as the primary colors of light, which are essential for creating the full spectrum of visible light. These primary colors are important in discussions of light mixing, where the combination of these colors can produce other hues or white light.

💡Scattering

Scattering refers to the way certain colors of light are spread out when they hit particles in the atmosphere. The video explains that blue light scatters more than red light, which is why the sky appears blue. This scattering is a key concept in understanding how light interacts with the environment.

💡Neon Light

Neon light is created when neon gas inside a tube is excited by high-voltage electricity, causing it to emit light. The video discusses how neon lights are different from incandescent bulbs and how they produce vibrant colors, contributing to both scientific and artistic displays.

💡Wavelength

Wavelength refers to the distance between two peaks of a light wave. In the video, it's explained that red light has longer wavelengths, while blue light has shorter, faster wavelengths. This difference in wavelength is crucial for understanding how colors are perceived and why certain colors, like blue, are scattered more in the sky.

💡Heat Absorption

Heat absorption occurs when an object absorbs light instead of reflecting it, converting the light into heat. The video illustrates this concept by explaining how black objects, which absorb most colors of light, feel warmer in the sun compared to white objects, which reflect most light.

Highlights

White light is a mixture of all the colors of the rainbow.

Different colors are seen because objects absorb certain colors of light and reflect others.

White objects reflect all colors, while black objects absorb all colors and turn them into heat.

Red and blue lights combine to make purple, yellow and red make orange, and yellow and blue make green.

Colors are produced by chemicals in objects that reflect certain wavelengths of light and absorb others.

A prism can break white light into the full spectrum of visible colors: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet.

You can't break pure colors like red, green, and blue any further using a prism.

Mixing different colors of light produces white light, but mixing colored paints results in darker shades.

The reason black materials feel warmer is that they absorb more light and convert it into heat compared to lighter colors.

Neon lights work by using high voltage to excite neon gas inside glass tubes, producing different colors of light.

Lasers are intense beams of light that become visible when they reflect off particles like smoke or dust.

Soap bubbles display colors due to the interaction of light waves, with shorter waves like blue producing faster, brighter reflections.

The sky appears blue because blue light waves are scattered more by air molecules compared to other colors.

In nature, objects like charcoal absorb almost all light, while white surfaces reflect nearly all light back to your eyes.

Different colors in Crayola crayons are achieved by fine-tuning the pigments, producing a wide variety of distinguishable hues.

Transcripts

did you know that white light is a

mixture of all the colors of the

rainbow red light can make you stop

green light can make you go the other

colors can make you

[Music]

[Applause]

disco Bill n the Science Guy Bild n the

science

[Music]

guy the

science science Rules

inertia is a property of

matter the science

guide T

seconds the science guide brought to you

by color and

light did you know that white light is a

mixture of all the colors of the rainbow

it

is white lights hitting this basketball

but all we see

is orange and white lights hitting this

blue gelatin dessert but all we see is

blue gelatin and my coat well it's got

lots of

colors hey it's the show about light and

color now without different colors of

light we couldn't see different colored

things and of course without light well

we couldn't have a TV

show oh oh funny oh very funny you can

turn the lights on now turn the lights

on he s on my foot sorry

sorry I got it I got it now this is the

plastic waterfill prism of Science and

Shining into it is a bright white light

now when white light goes into a prison

it breaks up into all the colors of the

rainbow what we call the full spectrum

of colors so down here

here is the Spectrum being made by the

prism of science see here are all the

colors of the rainbow red orange yellow

green blue indigo and purple or Violet

now watch I'm going to try to break

these colors up using another

prism red

yellow

green

blue and violet

see they can't be broken up anymore what

that means is these are pure colors

white light is a mixture of all the

colors of the spectrum but each color is

its own

color white light is

colorful you can mix colors and get

different colors here's how put some

water into three empty glasses add red

food coloring to

one blue to another

and yellow to

another now mix them together

red and

blue make purple

yellow and

red make

orange yellow

and

blue make hey green and all the colors

mixed together

make

black what gives fruits and vegetables

all their different colors I don't know

well chemicals in the skin of the fruit

and vegetable absorb and reflect

different wavelengths of light take this

Orange it's absorbing all the colors of

light except Orange which it's

reflecting this green apple it's

reflecting green absorbing the other

colors the red pepper it's reflecting

red and absorbing the other colors

except red bet the no I could bet the no

I could

juggle got to do it got to get these

colors F oh yeah sure sure there it is

sure look at all those colors it's

chemicals reflecting and absorbing white

light from the Sun what a party party

watch it careful oh

ah watch it out oh oh bridges falling

down falling

[Music]

down this car is red because it's

reflecting red lights now leave me alone

[Music]

okay they're lined up to kick the extra

point and wait a minute there there's

some kind of disturbance Behind The End

Zone it's a rainbow Kad Lance and as

usual he's holding up a

sign white light is all the colors of

light mixed

together you know he's right about that

Timmy he certainly is

Lance consider the

following there's an old saying in

science we don't see things we see light

bouncing off of things so when you see

my tie you're seeing light from the lab

that hits the tie and goes into the

camera and works its way to your eye now

here in the lab we have almost perfectly

white light we have almost all the

colors of the spectrum but when you look

at my tie it looks black with just a few

brightly colored spots what's happening

to all the other colors where are they

going I don't know well they're getting

absorbed and turning into heat you may

have noticed this in a bright light or

in the Sun a black cloth feels slightly

warmer yeah slightly warmer than a white

cloth that's because the black cloth is

absorbing almost all the colors of light

that hit it and Chang them to heat

whereas the white cloth is reflecting

almost all the colors this is how paint

Works paint absorbs light paint has

little particles in it called pigment so

red paint is absorbing most of the light

that hits it and reflecting red yellow

is absorbing most of the light and

reflecting yellow and blue paint absorbs

most of the colors and reflects blue now

when we mix the colors of light red

orange yellow green blue indigo and

violet we get

white light but when we mix different

colors of paint doesn't work that way

red

yellow and

blue and

blue the bottle's given up

uhhuh and

blue okay

okay and blue

when they're mixed they don't turn white

they turn kind of a messy Brown that's

cuz it's absorbing light well there's a

lot of things in nature that absorb

almost all the colors of light that hit

them like charcoal or this dog well

thank you for considering the

following one of the things I really

like about neon is that it's a good

incorporation of science and art okay

now neon tubes are different than

incandescent bulbs the Neon gas is

inside of it now the Neon gas gets

excited when it's uh charged with high

voltage electricity and it pulses

throughout the tube neon is really great

in uh that there's a lot of different

possibilities color-wise with

[Music]

it now the key is to heat up the glass

evenly okay this is getting pretty l

and attaching the electrode perfect this

tube has Neon gas in it you don't get

the light and the color until you

introduce high voltage

electricity you do have to be careful

around neon uh because you're using high

voltage electricity you're using very

high voltage in order to excite the

molecules inside the tube it's neon it's

light it's color it's

lasers are beams of very intense light

but you can't see them till they bounce

off of something till they reflect off

smoke or dust

[Music]

[Music]

particles the reason they put smoke in

the air at dance parties is so the

lights have something to bounce off up

[Music]

[Applause]

[Music]

[Music]

for about the last 17 years I've been

using lasers to do all kinds of laser

light shows and Laser

displays what we do is we take the laser

light the beam of light and we can move

it around very rapidly and precision and

draw animations and forms uh geometric

patterns

lasers are very powerful light this is

lasers a couple of watts and as you can

see it ought to be able to burn this uh

this pencil right

away working with with lasers it's

Showbiz and uh it's science so it's kind

of a combination of both and I guess

that's what I like most about it

[Music]

red things like these red clothes absorb

all colors of light except red

blue

yellow green they reflect red

light white reflects all

colors

blue yeah

yellow

red

green come on hit me with all you

got my pants are turquoise because

they're reflecting turquoise life now

leave me alone

okay here's the wind up and the pit wait

a second there's some kind of

disturbance behind home plate it's that

rainbow kid again Lance he's everywhere

with those signs of his the color of an

object is the color of the light it

reflects you know he's right about that

Jimmy he certainly is

Lance hey hey Science Guy why don't you

show me what's in that piece of junk

come on let's go come on you see he

thinks he's pretty cool but he actually

might be hot because he's in a black car

and black cars and black clothing absorb

all colors of light and convert them

into heat now a white car that's cool

come on man let's go come on pretty hot

sir yeah but not as hot as my

car hi I'm dressed in black because it

helps to keep me warm black absorbs most

of the heat from the Sun and reflects

very

little and when I wear white I stay cool

because white reflects all colors and

absorbs very little but you have to

admit even when science guy isn't

wearing white he's still pretty cool

uhhuh

yeah we all have rubber gloves on let's

start by mixing the colors lavender we

did that one you oh I have purple here

tiey it's

cool well I'm adding orange and I'm

doing like red orange and yellow kind of

like the light rainbow

color we are taking out the rubber bands

and we're going to see what we got rle

tins cuz it's like a mystery to us what

is it going to be

like totally

groovy go surfing D and look at them

flying aren't they gorgeous yes light

and

[Music]

color nura is a property ad that's so

true that's so

true oh boy

[Music]

[Applause]

hello officer is there a problem yes uh

Mr the Science Guy uh there is your tail

light is out here in the back oh boy I'm

sorry about that I'll get that fixed

right away it's funny that a light would

be out because we're doing a show today

about power yeah yeah see the guy with

the camera never heard that one before

sure yeah yeah see the guy with the

camera oh

yeah hey can I ask you a question uh

sure what's the deal with the green

lights and the red lights oh that's a

great question because you know red

green and blue are primary colors of

light and our eyes are especially

sensitive to them particularly green

this guy really does know his colors

thank you Mr the Science Guy you're

welcome officer 220 and don't forget to

get that tail light fixed uh sure that

red tail light

[Music]

check this

out see the colors in the bubbles where

do they come from I don't know the

colors in soap bubbles come from light

waves running into each other no kidding

we can think of light as traveling in

waves Now red light is long slow waves

and blue light

is short fast W it's upside down sorry

blue light short fast waves now when the

light enters the skin of a bubble most

of it goes right through but some of it

bounces off the inside of the bubble and

comes back toward your eye and then we

see colors

[Music]

there a lot of colors in the big city

most of the time you don't think twice

about it and then there are times you

can't stop thinking about

it my name is Luna van djk it's a Dutch

name that means trouble I'm a

detective it was a Saturday morning and

I was polishing my prism when he walked

into the office my nephew Davey I'm Luna

why is this guy BL

of all the questions and all the

Sciences he had to pick this

one wait here kid I'll be right

back hey why is the sky blue I don't

know hey why is the sky

blue why is the guy

blue I don't

know hey

why is the sky

[Applause]

[Music]

blue

yes well what'd you find out the

answer's right under our nose kid the

sunlight looks white but notice what

happens when you bend it with this prism

you get a whole lot of colors they Bend

as they go in the prism blue light has

been a lot more than red Bingo air

molecules in the sky scatter the

sunlight blue light get scattered a lot

more than red so blue is what we see Wow

Come on kid I'll buy you a Coco Luna van

D presented in black and white and

blue on a sunny day light from the sky

reflects off the water the sky is blue

so the water is blue

[Music]

hi my name's jandon I work at the

Crayola Factory and my my job involves

the science of

color it's all about the theory of color

mixing and just incrementally getting

smaller and smaller distinctions between

colors but that they're still visible

you can still see the visible difference

between them

[Music]

this is a Dye this is a pigment a Dye

it's a pigment pigment it's a dye

[Applause]

[Music]

it's art and it's science

red orange yellow green blue indigo

violet Roy G

Biv my coat is black because it's

absorbing almost all the light now look

I warned

you it's extremely important that he

gets his first serve in here because oh

wait a second there's some kind of

disturbance behind the foreign line

judge no it couldn't be it is like Lance

it's a crazy rainbow kid again white

objects reflect all colors black objects

absorb all

colors you know he's right about that

Jimmy he certainly is

[Applause]

[Music]

[Applause]

white light is a rainbow cleverly

disguised reflected by an object and

bounces to your

eyes whenever colors are absorbed are

colors we don't

see the color that bounces off is the

color we perceive if you've seen the

color white then you've seen all there

is too light and if you've seen the

color black you SE light absorb not give

them that light color

talking about the Spectrum B the light

color talking about the Spectrum

B and what happens to the colors that

get

absorbed well light becomes heating

things get

warm if there were no light there'd be

no

color in our world it'd be a whole lot

duller if you've seen the color white

and you've seen all the is light and if

you seen the color black you see light

abor now get that b light

color talking about the Spectrum from

the light color talking about the

Spectrum from the

light talking about the Spectrum from

the

light it was fun hanging out with you

today I hope you found Today's Show

enlightening anyway if you'll excuse me

I have got some wavelengths of light to

mix and reflect see

around see you next time there's light

bouncing off

you

Mood

Indigo produced in association with the

National Science Foundation

[Music]

if you see a rainb here a just just

night so easy and the col are soy it's

just night just night rain is just night

just a rbow is just

[Applause]

[Music]

you see a RB and here a should know it's

just night just night it's so easy and

the colors are so pleasing it's just

night just a r is just just a RB is

just thank you