A closed room as all the 6 walls as mirrors. A person standing inside,
shines a torch, then switches it off. Will the light continue to bounce off the mirrors ? ie. will the room continue to be lit ?
2006-09-06 05:39:00 · 7 answers · asked by Samvit 1 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Physics
Explain.
2006-09-06 05:42:42 · update #1
no. mirrors are only a certain amount reflective. the rest of the light gets absorbed in the form of energy. furthermore, the different colors of objects in the room (ie you) absorb certain photons and only a few in the spectrum range of that object's "color." over time (VERY short time due to the excessive speed of light) the photons would all be absorbed by the mirrors and/or items in the room and the room would be dark (more or less as soon as you shut off the torch)
2006-09-06 05:44:59 · answer #1 · answered by promethius9594 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If we imagine that these are perfect mirrors and the room is vacuum, then light will keep on bouncing. The description of the room will be a space bathed with crisscrossing photons. Is it lit? The act of seeing will eventually stop all these because seeing is photon interacting with something, in our case, eyes.
But matter always interacts with energy. So ultimately all the photons from the lighted torch will be absorbed. An the room will be unlit.
2006-09-06 12:57:15 · answer #2 · answered by dax 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Its a good experiment=If light was a wave which travels as a group,as soon as you switch the source off at that instant the wave should still arrives and move to the mirror and be reflected.If This does not happen, it would indicate that light is not a wave.
2006-09-06 12:50:34 · answer #3 · answered by goring 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
No.It would only stay lit for a few seconds I think.Good question.
2006-09-06 17:40:02 · answer #4 · answered by John G 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
No. You thought you had something there, didn't you?
2006-09-06 12:56:07 · answer #5 · answered by Sick Puppy 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
no
2006-09-06 12:41:40 · answer #6 · answered by kkkkki9j89j 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
no.
2006-09-06 12:44:47 · answer #7 · answered by practicalwizard 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋