#Spectrum of colors full

Later it expanded to apply to other waves, such as sound waves and sea waves that could also be measured as a function of frequency (e.g., noise spectrum, sea wave spectrum). Soon the term referred to a plot of light intensity or power as a function of frequency or wavelength, also known as a spectral density plot. In the physical sciences, the term spectrum was introduced first into optics by Isaac Newton in the 17th century, referring to the range of colors observed when white light was dispersed through a prism. For example, a spectrometer is a device used to record spectra and spectroscopy is the use of a spectrometer for chemical analysis.ĭiagram illustrating the electromagnetic spectrum The prefix 'spectro-' is used to form words relating to spectra. The word 'spectrum' was strictly used to designate a ghostly optical afterimage by Goethe in his Theory of Colors and Schopenhauer in On Vision and Colors. It was used to convict a number of persons of witchcraft at Salem, Massachusetts in the late 17th century.

Spectral evidence is testimony about what was done by spectres of persons not present physically, or hearsay evidence about what ghosts or apparitions of Satan said. In Latin, spectrum means 'image' or ' apparition', including the meaning ' spectre'. In most modern usages of spectrum there is a unifying theme between the extremes at either end. Political scientists use a variety of biaxial and multiaxial systems to more accurately characterize political opinion.

#Spectrum of colors full

For instance, a single left–right spectrum of political opinion does not capture the full range of people's political beliefs. Nonscientific uses of the term spectrum are sometimes misleading. Such uses imply a broad range of conditions or behaviors grouped together and studied under a single title for ease of discussion. In these uses, values within a spectrum may not be associated with precisely quantifiable numbers or definitions. Thus, one might talk about the ' spectrum of political opinion', or the 'spectrum of activity' of a drug, or the ' autism spectrum'. Spectrum has since been applied by analogy to topics outside optics. It thereby became a mapping of a range of magnitudes (wavelengths) to a range of qualities, which are the perceived 'colors of the rainbow' and other properties which correspond to wavelengths that lie outside of the visible light spectrum.

As scientific understanding of light advanced, it came to apply to the entire electromagnetic spectrum. The word spectrum was first used scientifically in optics to describe the rainbow of colors in visible light after passing through a prism. Continuous range of values, such as wavelengths in physics The spectrum in a rainbowĪ spectrum ( pl.: spectra or spectrums) is a condition that is not limited to a specific set of values but can vary, without gaps, across a continuum.