3/6/2017 TheLineofSight

ReflectionandtheRayModelofLightLesson1ReflectionanditsImportance

TheLineofSight
TheRoleofLighttoSight
TheLineofSight
TheLawofReflection
Specularvs.DiffuseReflection

InthefirstsectionofLesson1,itwasstated,"withoutlight,therewouldbenosight."Everythingthat
canbeseenisseenonlywhenlightfromthatobjecttravelstooureyes.Whetheritbealuminous
object(thatgenerateslightofitsown)oranilluminatedobject(thatreflectsthelightthatisincident
uponit),youcanonlyviewtheobjectwhenlightfromthatobjecttravelstoyoureye.Asyoulookat
Maryinclass,youareabletoseeMarybecausesheisilluminatedwithlightandthatlightreflectsoffof
herandtravelstoyoureye.IntheprocessofviewingMary,youaredirectingyoursightalongalinein
thedirectionofMary.IfyouwishtoviewthetopofMary'shead,thenyoudirectyoursightalongaline
towardsthetopofherhead.IfyouwishtoviewMary'sfeet,thenyoudirectyoursightalongaline
towardsMary'sfeet.AndifyouwishtoviewtheimageofMaryinamirror,thenyoumustdirectyour
sightalongalinetowardsthelocationofMary'simage.Thisdirectingofoursightinaspecificdirection
issometimesreferredtoasthelineofsight.
Itisarathersimpleprinciple:

Inordertoviewanobject,youmustsightalongalineatthatobjectandwhenyoudolight
willcomefromthatobjecttoyoureyealongthelineofsight.

Aluminousobjectemitslightinavarietyofdirectionsandanilluminatedobjectreflectslightina
varietyofdirections.Althoughthislightdivergesfromtheobjectinavarietyofdirections,youreyeonly
seestheverysmalldivergingconeofraysthatiscomingtowardsit.Ifyoureyewerelocatedata
differentlocation,thenyouwouldseeadifferentconeofrays.Regardlessoftheeyelocation,youwill
stillneedtosightalongalineinaspecificdirectioninordertoviewtheobject.

Whilesimple,thisconceptofthelineofsightisalsoprofound!Thisveryprincipleofthelineofsightwill
assistusinunderstandingtheformationofimagesinboththisunit(reflection)andthenextunit
(refraction).

UsingtheLineofSight
AcommonPhysicslabinvolvesthedeterminationoftheimagelocationofapencil
(orsomeobject)asformedbyaplanemirror.Intheprocessofdeterminingthe
imagelocation,themannerinwhichlightfromtheobjecttravelstoyoureyeis
investigated.First,themethodofparallaxisusedtolocatetheimageofthe
object.Twopencilsareinsertedintorubberstoppersonestopperedpencilserves
astheobjectandtheotherservestoassistthestudentinlocatingtheimage.
Theobjectpencil .
isplacedinfrontofaplanemirror Thenthestudentsightsattheimageoftheobject
pencilinthemirror.Asastudentsightsalongaline(thelineofsight)attheimageofthepencil,the
secondpencilisplacedbehindthemirroralongthesamelineofsightthisiscalledthe imagepencil .
Whenplacedalongthelineofsight,theportionoftheimagepencilthatextendsabovethemirrorwill
bealignedwiththeimagethatisseeninthemirror.Thentheeyelocationisrepositionedtotheother
sideoftheobjectpencilandtheprocessisrepeated.Thepreciseimagelocationoftheobjectisthe
locationwherealllinesofsightintersectregardlessofwheretheeyeislocated.Twoimportantideasare
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3/6/2017 TheLineofSight

gleanedfromsuchalab:onepertainstohowlighttravelsfromtheobjecttotheeyeandonepertains
tothelocationoftheimageofanobject.
Asyousightattheimageofanobjectinthemirror(whetheritbeastopperedpenciloranyobject),
lighttravelsalongyourlineofsighttowardsyoureye.Theobjectisbeingilluminatedbylightinthe
roomacountlessnumberofraysoflightarereflectingofftheobjectinavarietyofdirections.When
viewingtheimageoftheobjectinaplanemirror,oneoftheseraysoflightoriginatesattheobject
locationandfirsttravelsalongalinetowardsthemirror(asrepresentedbythebluerayinthediagram
below).Thisrayoflightisknownastheincidentraythelightrayapproachingthemirror.The
incidentrayintersectsthemirroratthesamelocationwhereyourlineofsightintersectsthemirror.The
lightraythenreflectsoffthemirrorandtravelstoyoureye(asrepresentedbytheredrayinthe
diagrambelow)thisrayoflightisknownasthereflectedray.

Sothemannerinwhichlighttravelstoyoureyeasyouviewtheimageofanobjectinamirrorcanbe
summarizedasfollows.

Toviewtheimageofanobjectinamirror,youmustsightalongalineattheimage.
Oneofthemanyraysoflightfromtheobjectwillapproachthemirrorandreflect
alongyourlineofsighttoyoureye.

Thesecondimportantideathatcanbegleanedfromthisstopperedpencillabpertainstothelocationof
theimage.Observeinthediagramabovethattheimageispositioneddirectlyacrossthemirroralonga
linethatrunsperpendiculartothemirror.Thedistancefromthemirrortotheobject(knownas
theobjectdistance)isequaltothedistancefromthemirrortotheimage(knownastheimage
distance).Forallplanemirrors,thisequalityholdstrue:
Objectdistance=Imagedistance

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