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Light and Color

Light and Color
Reading Level
     edHelper's suggested reading level:   grades 8 to 9
     Flesch-Kincaid grade level:   7.7

Vocabulary
     challenging words:    bioluminescence, opaque, electromagnetic, magenta, subtraction, translucent, infrared, spectrum, ultraviolet, transparent, finding, subtract, indigo, prism, photosynthesis, rays
     content words:    Sir Isaac Newton

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Light and Color
By Sharon Fabian 		  
1     The very first people on earth depended on sunlight. Sunlight allowed them to see the world around them. Early people used sunlight to look for food and to keep a lookout for dangerous animals or other people. Sunlight has produced heat for the earth since earliest times. It is what plants use to produce food in the process called photosynthesis. Sunlight also began the process of forming our fossil fuels long before the first people arrived on earth.
 
2     Sunlight was so popular that soon creatures on earth began finding ways to produce light for themselves. Fireflies and a few other creatures produce their own light naturally. This is called bioluminescence. People found ways to make light for themselves using campfires, candles, and oil lamps. Later, gaslights were developed to light city streets. Even later electric lights were developed. Today electricity provides most of our man-made light.
 
3     Light is a form of energy. It is one part of the whole spectrum of energy called the electromagnetic spectrum. This type of energy is also called radiant energy. Besides light energy, the electromagnetic spectrum also includes radio waves, microwaves, infrared waves, ultraviolet waves, and other waves. The visible light part of the spectrum is the part that includes light that humans can see. One interesting fact about the visible light spectrum is that it is not the same for all creatures. For example, bees can see ultraviolet light, but they can't see the color red that we see. Crocodiles miss out on a lot -- they can only see black, white, and shades of gray.

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