As a part of my graduation project, I worked with a not-for-profit organisation called Dharohar that aims to build a community of lifelong learners. Third Space Mini is a play-based learning centre hosted by Dharohar where they run thematic playful activities to trigger learning. I worked on the theme, Light and Sight and here is a short description I collated at the end of my project. Link to the project outcome
Physics influences our perception which is governed by our physiology.
Light as an entity can be understood in a variety of forms- as energy/radiation/path.
In a micro close-reach understanding, light is something that helps us see. Zooming out, its significance takes the form of energy that governs life on earth through a source called Sun.
As energy it is has properties that are dependent on a variety of other things- most of them exist in our near surrounding. The source, the path light takes, the atmosphere it is in and the subject where it ends- form the journey of this energy. From light source to subject is where the energy takes the form of light radiation and gives it up(though this is also dependent on a variety of other factors).
We can also call this journey, the physicality of light in the physicality of the world. This journey is what our eyes interact with (or any eye!).
Eyes are what helps one living being take in the visual detail. Depending on the species, the environment it lives in, the need for the existence of eyes and the kind of eyes one may have vary. One can have simple dots as eyes to sense lightness/ darkness, or have eyes to sense heat or many eyes to get multiple images of the world or maybe even see the world in 2D or 3D. This ability to take in the visual data is called vision.
The information from our eyes go to the brain which interprets it in a certain way. This ability to interpret the information is called sight. Our sight is thus governed by the biological form of our eyes and brain(also, other parts of the body). Even our past experiences play a role here. The interpretation is what one calls perception.
When the interpretation is based on visual information which is governed by the physicality of our surroundings and light, we call it visual perception.
Thus, the theme takes narrowed down meaning that connects both the words: Physics influences our perception which is governed by our physiology.
August 2019