Physics in the Arts » (1st Edition)

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

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