Did the same thing to a science teacher when they said, “light only travels in a straight line” thing. It DOES only travel in straight lines, but refraction is a thing, and geodesics are never perfectly straight.
You can also move in a straight line but still go on a curve to an outside observer, just make the outside observer something off earth and walk a significant portion of the circumference of the earth.
When talking about normal refractions, it can be argued that thoose are still two peices of straight lines just like reflections.
But there was some experiment which light bends in curved path in a solution of varying concentration from top to bottom. So there was a gradient of optical density(higher at bottom) and caused smooth curving of light
When I was TAing gen chem we had a cute lil red 40 UV-VIS spectrometry lab. I got done explaining absorbance and a student raises her hand and asks, “But then what is reflection?” Like lay off kid I’m just an undergrad.
Another time when I was TAing quant one of my students was confused by the hydronium-hydroxide thing and asked if there were any other structures for water. I told him that there were loads and that it was a question for the professor who confronted me a couple days later telling me not to confuse his students lol
The approximations, assumptions, and historic artifacts we use to make science digestible to students can be frustrating, but also kinda fun. It makes it feel all secret and wizardry.
Did the same thing to a science teacher when they said, “light only travels in a straight line” thing. It DOES only travel in straight lines, but refraction is a thing, and geodesics are never perfectly straight.
Bonus, it only travels through a straight line through curved space, so to an outside observer the light did curve.
Why does light get to be so special? It makes the rest of us feel bad.
You can also move in a straight line but still go on a curve to an outside observer, just make the outside observer something off earth and walk a significant portion of the circumference of the earth.
Ooo I guess planes are a good example
That’s less light being special and more space thinking it’s funny to fuck with physicists by not being euclidean
When talking about normal refractions, it can be argued that thoose are still two peices of straight lines just like reflections.
But there was some experiment which light bends in curved path in a solution of varying concentration from top to bottom. So there was a gradient of optical density(higher at bottom) and caused smooth curving of light
Edit: Oh it was just sugar solution http://physicsed.buffalostate.edu/pubs/StudentIndepStudy/EURP09/Sugar/sugar.html
Edit 2: Found this too which is much better demo https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=rnNjV3fh-4M
When I was TAing gen chem we had a cute lil red 40 UV-VIS spectrometry lab. I got done explaining absorbance and a student raises her hand and asks, “But then what is reflection?” Like lay off kid I’m just an undergrad.
Another time when I was TAing quant one of my students was confused by the hydronium-hydroxide thing and asked if there were any other structures for water. I told him that there were loads and that it was a question for the professor who confronted me a couple days later telling me not to confuse his students lol
The approximations, assumptions, and historic artifacts we use to make science digestible to students can be frustrating, but also kinda fun. It makes it feel all secret and wizardry.