The Invisible Beauty of Evening Primrose

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    Beauty Invisible
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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the visibility of ultraviolet (UV) patterns in evening primrose flowers, particularly how these patterns, which are invisible to the human eye, can be captured and represented in photographs. Participants explore the implications of UV sensitivity in insects compared to human perception, and the technology used to visualize these patterns.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Technical explanation
  • Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants note that while humans cannot see UV light, certain photographs can reveal patterns visible to insects, raising questions about how this is possible.
  • Others argue that sensors capable of detecting UV light can translate these wavelengths into visible colors, allowing us to see representations of UV patterns in photographs.
  • A participant expresses interest in the specific sensors that can detect UV light and whether such technology can be integrated into microscopes to observe normally invisible patterns.
  • There is a mention of a photographer who specializes in UV and infrared photography, discussing how color assignment works for these wavelengths, which do not have inherent colors.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants generally agree on the existence of technology that allows for the visualization of UV patterns, but there are differing views on the specifics of how this technology works and its applications. The discussion remains unresolved regarding the exact mechanisms and implications of these observations.

Contextual Notes

Some participants highlight the limitations of human vision in relation to UV light and the potential risks of UV exposure to the eyes. There is also an acknowledgment of the subjective nature of color representation in UV and infrared photography.

AryaUnderfoot
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I understand that the wavelength of UV is too short to be absorbed by our cone cells, but I've came across 2 photos of evening primrose, which to our eyes are a dull yellow, but to insects (can see the UV light), it has a special pattern. My question is, I thought we're not able to see it. but how can we know it's it from the photo
 
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AryaUnderfoot said:
I understand that the wavelength of UV is too short to be absorbed by our cone cells, but I've came across 2 photos of evening primrose, which to our eyes are a dull yellow, but to insects (can see the UV light), it has a special pattern. My question is, I thought we're not able to see it. but how can we know it's it from the photo

You want us to explain what you see in the photo without us actually seeing the photo?

You might want to re-read your post again, because I don't quite understand what you're asking.

Zz.
 
ZapperZ said:
You want us to explain what you see in the photo without us actually seeing the photo?

You might want to re-read your post again, because I don't quite understand what you're asking.

Zz.
Umm, my English is not good..but I'll try. So there were 2 photos of the same evening primrose. One showed it as the way we normal human will see it--yellow and without pattern; the other one showed it as the way bees see it--with special pattern. It is known that bees can see into UV range while human can't, so we shouldn't be able to see that pattern--it was not meant for us. My question is, how come we can see it from the photo? I mean, like for a color-blind person, they cannot see color even though we present them with colored photograph.
 
AryaUnderfoot said:
Umm, my English is not good..but I'll try. So there were 2 photos of the same evening primrose. One showed it as the way we normal human will see it--yellow and without pattern; the other one showed it as the way bees see it--with special pattern. It is known that bees can see into UV range while human can't, so we shouldn't be able to see that pattern--it was not meant for us. My question is, how come we can see it from the photo? I mean, like for a color-blind person, they cannot see color even though we present them with colored photograph.

You DO know that (i) we have sensors that can detect UV light, or sensors that have a wider range than our eyes; and (ii) these sensors can then "translate" these varying frequencies into color scales that we can see?

I mean, what do you think is happening in infrared goggles that allows us to see at night?

Zz.
 
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ZapperZ said:
You DO know that (i) we have sensors that can detect UV light, or sensors that have a wider range than our eyes; and (ii) these sensors can then "translate" these varying frequencies into color scales that we can see?

I mean, what do you think is happening in infrared goggles that allows us to see at night?

Zz.
Ahh I never knew! What does this sensor call? I tried to google it but I can't find its principle. I'm interested to know if we can (or already did?) fit that in the fluorescent or uv microscope to observe the patterns that are normally invisible to us.
 
AryaUnderfoot said:
Ahh I never knew! What does this sensor call? I tried to google it but I can't find its principle. I'm interested to know if we can (or already did?) fit that in the fluorescent or uv microscope to observe the patterns that are normally invisible to us.
http://www.hamamatsu.com/jp/en/4005.html
 
AryaUnderfoot said:
I understand that the wavelength of UV is too short to be absorbed by our cone cells,

Not exactly- UV light is absorbed by other parts of your eye, depending on the wavelength. Don't look at UV sources, you will damage your eyes.

AryaUnderfoot said:
but I've came across 2 photos of evening primrose, which to our eyes are a dull yellow, but to insects (can see the UV light), it has a special pattern. My question is, I thought we're not able to see it. but how can we know it's it from the photo

There's a guy who does really nice UV and IR photography:

http://www.naturfotograf.com/index2.html

He explains a bit about assigning color to the UV and IR, but since those parts of the spectrum have no color (because of the way 'color' is defined), it's easy to assign false colors or some other palette as you see fit.
 
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Andy Resnick said:
There's a guy who does really nice UV and IR photography:

http://www.naturfotograf.com/index2.html

He explains a bit about assigning color to the UV and IR,...

Nice pictures, but his website palette makes me want to see less colors, not more.
 

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