The beginning of Lightomics

As a scholar we learn about atoms. We are told there is a nucleus and it is surrounded by various numbers of electrons. The nucleus is made of various parts and the arrangement of all this determines what part of our life the atom plays. Combination of these particles can become a solid, fluid or gas depending on how many have gathered together. We are also told the distances are vast. The electrons orbit the nucleus in much the same way as the planets go around our sun. We are told the area between these various components is filled with nothing.

You may question why there is nothing between the nucleus and the electrons which circulate it, a vacuum is the usual vague answer. This poses a huge dichotomy, on one hand we are told there is nothing in a vacuum, usually accompanied with “nature abhors a vacuum”. This makes little or no sense to anyone. However to us all other space is filled with light. So perhaps it is not a vacuum, merely different degrees of light.

So what is light, here again lies another dichotomy. On one hand we are told it is an electromagnetic wave with troughs and peaks, it even has a frequency. The frequency of this light can vary giving us all ranges of light. Infra red is a dangerous wave as is x-ray. Other frequencies manifest themselves as the colours of the rainbow. Yet man has harnessed these to great effect, some good some bad.

Then we are told it is a flow of particles. These particles are called photons and can interact with our atoms in a seemingly solid structure.  We all feel the warmth of the sun’s rays when it hits our bodies. What is photography but the permanent scarring of a material effected by light. Think of a camera, a pinhole of light interacts with a plate coated in a light sensitive film.

For those who see, we are told that the light travels along the optic nerve to our brains. This is then interpreted into what we understand as vision. What about blind people what do their brains see? Surely the physical side of light has some impact on their eyes. Maybe it is possible to see without the optic nerve processing the light in the same way as what we call a normally sited person.