Reflection

Reflection (computer programming)

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And is one way more correct than the others? How to use a word that literally drives some people nuts. The awkward case of 'his or her'. Identify the word pairs with a common ancestor. Test your vocabulary with our question quiz! Synonyms for reflection Synonyms comment , note , remark Visit the Thesaurus for More. Examples of reflection in a Sentence She was looking at her reflection in the mirror. He saw the reflections of the clouds on the lake. Recent Examples on the Web Or an act of rebellion? The essence of Memorial Day," 1 June Muslims around the world observe Ramadan, a month of fasting, reflection , and prayer.

First Known Use of reflection 14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1. History and Etymology for reflection Middle English, alteration of reflexion , from Late Latin reflexion-, reflexio act of bending back, from Latin reflectere.

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Explore the year a word first appeared. Dictionary Entries near reflection reflecterize reflecting galvanometer reflecting telescope reflection reflection grating reflection plane reflection twin.

Time Traveler for reflection The first known use of reflection was in the 14th century See more words from the same century. English Language Learners Definition of reflection. Kids Definition of reflection. More from Merriam-Webster on reflection Rhyming Dictionary: Words that rhyme with reflection Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for reflection Spanish Central: Translation of reflection Nglish: The refracted light in the glass is the combination of the forward radiation of the electrons and the incident light.

The reflected light is the combination of the backward radiation of all of the electrons.

In metals, electrons with no binding energy are called free electrons. Light—matter interaction in terms of photons is a topic of quantum electrodynamics , and is described in detail by Richard Feynman in his popular book QED: The Strange Theory of Light and Matter. When light strikes the surface of a non-metallic material it bounces off in all directions due to multiple reflections by the microscopic irregularities inside the material e. Thus, an 'image' is not formed. This is called diffuse reflection.

The exact form of the reflection depends on the structure of the material. One common model for diffuse reflection is Lambertian reflectance , in which the light is reflected with equal luminance in photometry or radiance in radiometry in all directions, as defined by Lambert's cosine law. The light sent to our eyes by most of the objects we see is due to diffuse reflection from their surface, so that this is our primary mechanism of physical observation.

Some surfaces exhibit retroreflection. The structure of these surfaces is such that light is returned in the direction from which it came.

When flying over clouds illuminated by sunlight the region seen around the aircraft's shadow will appear brighter, and a similar effect may be seen from dew on grass. This partial retro-reflection is created by the refractive properties of the curved droplet's surface and reflective properties at the backside of the droplet.

Some animals' retinas act as retroreflectors see tapetum lucidum for more detail , as this effectively improves the animals' night vision. Since the lenses of their eyes modify reciprocally the paths of the incoming and outgoing light the effect is that the eyes act as a strong retroreflector, sometimes seen at night when walking in wildlands with a flashlight. A simple retroreflector can be made by placing three ordinary mirrors mutually perpendicular to one another a corner reflector. The image produced is the inverse of one produced by a single mirror.

A surface can be made partially retroreflective by depositing a layer of tiny refractive spheres on it or by creating small pyramid like structures. In both cases internal reflection causes the light to be reflected back to where it originated. This is used to make traffic signs and automobile license plates reflect light mostly back in the direction from which it came.

In this application perfect retroreflection is not desired, since the light would then be directed back into the headlights of an oncoming car rather than to the driver's eyes. When light reflects off a mirror , one image appears. Two mirrors placed exactly face to face give the appearance of an infinite number of images along a straight line.

The multiple images seen between two mirrors that sit at an angle to each other lie over a circle. A square of four mirrors placed face to face give the appearance of an infinite number of images arranged in a plane. The multiple images seen between four mirrors assembling a pyramid, in which each pair of mirrors sits an angle to each other, lie over a sphere.

If the base of the pyramid is rectangle shaped, the images spread over a section of a torus.

Note that these are theoretical ideals, requiring perfect alignment of perfectly smooth, perfectly flat perfect reflectors that absorb none of the light. In practice, these situations can only be approached but not achieved because the effects of any surface imperfections in the reflectors propagate and magnify, absorption gradually extinguishes the image, and any observing equipment biological or technological will interfere. In this process which is also known as phase conjugation , light bounces exactly back in the direction from which it came due to a nonlinear optical process. Not only the direction of the light is reversed, but the actual wavefronts are reversed as well.

A conjugate reflector can be used to remove aberrations from a beam by reflecting it and then passing the reflection through the aberrating optics a second time. Materials that reflect neutrons , for example beryllium , are used in nuclear reactors and nuclear weapons. In the physical and biological sciences, the reflection of neutrons off of atoms within a material is commonly used to determine the material's internal structure. When a longitudinal sound wave strikes a flat surface, sound is reflected in a coherent manner provided that the dimension of the reflective surface is large compared to the wavelength of the sound.

As a result, the overall nature of the reflection varies according to the texture and structure of the surface. For example, porous materials will absorb some energy, and rough materials where rough is relative to the wavelength tend to reflect in many directions—to scatter the energy, rather than to reflect it coherently.

This leads into the field of architectural acoustics , because the nature of these reflections is critical to the auditory feel of a space. In the theory of exterior noise mitigation , reflective surface size mildly detracts from the concept of a noise barrier by reflecting some of the sound into the opposite direction. Sound reflection can affect the acoustic space. Seismic waves produced by earthquakes or other sources such as explosions may be reflected by layers within the Earth.

Reflection (physics)

Study of the deep reflections of waves generated by earthquakes has allowed seismologists to determine the layered structure of the Earth. Shallower reflections are used in reflection seismology to study the Earth's crust generally, and in particular to prospect for petroleum and natural gas deposits. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Diagram of specular reflection.

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