Physics in the Arts

by Gilbert; Haeberli

• ISBN13: 9780123741509
• ISBN10: 0123741505
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2008-01-22
• Publisher: Elsevier Science

Summary

A deep yet accessible analysis of the physics of light and sound, and how our eyes and ears detect them, is not only intellectually enjoyable, but also useful to understand and interpret the world in which we live, all the phenomena that take place around us, and how we perceive them. In short, how we interface with our planet, its inhabitants, and their creations. Understanding the physics of light and sound may also increase the appreciation for works of art and for art itself, and even stimulate the artists among the readers to deepen their knowledge of their media, of how people interface with them, and perhaps improve their art production. * Offers an alternative route to science literacy for those interested in the arts, music and photography * Popular science book with wide readership beyond the classroom at an accessible level * Material covered at a level appropriate for self-study or as a complementary textbook * Companion website for Instructors available in Spring 2008

Author Biography

Pupa Gilbert is a Professor of Physics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a surrealist painter Willy Haeberli is a Professor of Physics and Steenbock Professor of Natural Sciences Emeritus at the University of Wisconsin-Madison

Table of Contents

Introduction	p. xi
Light and Sound	p. xi
Light and Light Waves	p. 1
Speed of Light	p. 5
Electromagnetic Spectrum	p. 6
Polarization	p. 7
Reflection and Refraction	p. 10
Specular Reflection of Light	p. 10
Refraction of Light	p. 14
Total Internal Reflection	p. 17
Reflection and Refraction in Diamonds	p. 21
The Rainbow	p. 25
Questions	p. 27
Lenses	p. 30
The Prism	p. 30
Converging and Diverging Lenses	p. 31
Focal Length	p. 33
Images-Real and Virtual	p. 36
Three Easy Rays	p. 39
The Lens Formula	p. 41
Note on Magnification	p. 45
Lens Aberrations	p. 47
Chromatic Aberrations	p. 48
Spherical Aberration	p. 49
Questions	p. 52
The Eye	p. 56
Accommodation	p. 58
Eyeglasses	p. 60
Nearsighted Eye	p. 61
Farsighted Eye	p. 62
Astigmatic Eye	p. 62
Photography	p. 63
The Camera	p. 63
Focusing the Camera	p. 64
Choosing the Exposure Time	p. 67
Choosing the Aperture	p. 68
Depth of Field	p. 69
Why the f Number?	p. 70
The Film	p. 71
Digital Photography	p. 75
Putting it All Together: Taking a Photograph	p. 76
Questions	p. 80
Color and Color Vision	p. 82
Color	p. 82
Color Sensitivity of the Eye	p. 84
Physical and Psychological Color	p. 89
Color: Hue, Saturation, and Brightness	p. 90
Light Interaction with other Objects	p. 92
Scattering or Diffuse Reflection	p. 92
Questions	p. 98
Additive Color Mixing	p. 99
Primary Colors	p. 99
Adding Primary Colors	p. 100
The Color Triangle	p. 103
Low-Intensity Colors	p. 107
Spectral Colors	p. 107
Non-Spectral Colors	p. 112
Summary	p. 113
Additive Color Mixing in Painting	p. 114
Questions	p. 117
Subtractive Color Mixing	p. 118
Filters	p. 118
Subtractive Primary Colors	p. 120
Subtractive primaries	p. 122
Color Photography	p. 124
Pigments	p. 125
Change in Saturation	p. 128
Why Do Blue and Yellow Make Green?	p. 130
Change in Hue	p. 131
Questions	p. 134
Color-Generating Mechanisms	p. 136
Illuminating Light	p. 136
Pigments	p. 136
Structural Color: Iridescence	p. 137
More Color-Generating Mechanisms Due to Iridescence	p. 139
Color in Gemstones	p. 142
Mineral Color Due to Charge Transfer	p. 144
Mineral Color Due to Color Centers	p. 144
Color in Gems Due to Band Gap Absorption of Light	p. 145
Periodic Oscillations	p. 148
Displacement Graph: Position x Changes with Time t	p. 151
The Period T and the Frequency f	p. 153
Large and Small Numbers	p. 154
Speed of Motion	p. 154
Questions	p. 156
Simple Harmonic Motion	p. 158
The Spring Constant	p. 160
Oscillation Frequency for Simple Harmonic Motion (SHM)	p. 161
Wave Shape of Simple Harmonic Motion	p. 163
Phase Angle	p. 165
Questions	p. 166
Damped Oscillations and Resonance	p. 168
Damped Oscillations-The Concept of "Damping Time"	p. 168
Resonance	p. 170
Build-up Decay of Musical Tones	p. 175
Applications in Music	p. 175
Resonators in Musical Instruments	p. 175
Questions	p. 177
Adding Sound Sources: Beats and Harmony	p. 179
Principle of Superposition	p. 179
Three Special Cases	p. 180
Two Pure Tones of the Same Frequency	p. 180
Beats	p. 182
Harmony	p. 184
For the Fun of It: Lissajous Figures	p. 185
Questions	p. 188
Sound Waves	p. 190
Propagation of a Pulse	p. 190
Longitudinal and Transverse Waves	p. 192
Sound Waves in Air Are Longitudinal Waves	p. 193
Speed of Sound in Air	p. 195
Wavelength and Frequency	p. 196
Relevance to Size of Instruments or Loudspeakers	p. 197
Sound Propagation	p. 198
Interference of Sound Waves	p. 199
Concert Hall Acoustics	p. 201
Questions	p. 205
Sound Perception: Pitch, Loudness, and Timbre	p. 206
Loudness and Amplitude	p. 207
Loudness and Frequency	p. 210
Pitch Discrimination	p. 213
The Ear	p. 214
The Parts of the Ear	p. 214
Place Theory of Pitch Perception	p. 216
What Do the Auditory Nerves Tell the Brain?	p. 217
Vibration of Strings	p. 220
Single Modes	p. 220
Higher Modes	p. 222
Traveling Versus Standing Waves	p. 223
The Voicing Formula	p. 225
How Do Modes Relate to Music?	p. 226
Damping of Higher Partials	p. 227
Plucked Strings: Missing Partials	p. 227
Playing Harmonics	p. 228
Real Strings Have Some Stiffness	p. 228
Questions	p. 229
Pipes	p. 231
Pressure Pulse in a Pipe	p. 231
Reflections in Open and Closed Pipes	p. 232
Boundary Conditions	p. 233
Standing Waves in Open Pipes	p. 233
Fundamental Frequency of Open Pipe	p. 234
Higher Modes of Open Pipe	p. 235
Fundamental Mode of Closed Pipe	p. 237
Higher Modes of Closed Pipe	p. 238
Playing Tunes on Wind Instruments: Fingerholes and Overblowing	p. 240
Other Shapes	p. 240
Acoustic Length	p. 241
Questions	p. 241
Fourier Analysis	p. 243
The Fourier Theorem	p. 243
Sound Spectrum	p. 244
Fourier Analyzer (Sound Analyzer)	p. 249
Fourier Synthesis	p. 251
Why Can't We Synthesize a Stradivari?	p. 252
Questions	p. 254
Musical Scales	p. 256
Musical Intervals	p. 257
Consonance (Harmony): Simple Number Ratios	p. 258
The Major Triad	p. 259
Constructing a Scale: The Just Scale	p. 260
Whole and Half Tone Intervals	p. 263
Names of Intervals	p. 264
Transposing: Why Black Keys?	p. 266
Perfection Sacrificed: The Tempered Scale	p. 267
Major and Minor Scales	p. 273
The Natural Scale	p. 273
Questions	p. 274
Musical Instruments	p. 275
Structure of Musical Instruments	p. 275
Excitation Mechanism	p. 276
Playing a Tune	p. 278
Questions	p. 283
Solutions to Problems	p. 284
Index	p. 307
Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved.