To understand the physics of color, one must first understand the basics of color perception. Color is, first and foremost, a perception. Even though the stimulus that enters our eyes and produces the perception can be described and measured in physical terms, the actual color that we perceive is the result of a complex series of processes in the human visual system. Isaac Newton expressed this clearly in his famous treatise Opticks when he said:
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© 1992 American Institute of Physics.
1992
American Institute of Physics
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