Scholars of Light

Throughout history, scholars have observed the basic principles of optics, or the science of light, as they relate to image formation.

Mo Ti, Chinese philosopher, ca 472-ca 391 BC
Light creates an inverted image when it passes through a pinhole in a screen.

Aristotle, Greek philosopher, 384-322 BC
Images of the partially eclipsed sun are projected on the ground as sunlight travels through the holes of a strainer, or the gaps between the leaves of a tree. The smaller the hole, the sharper the image.

Alhazen, Arab scientist, AD ca 965-1039
An image of the sun can be produced in a darkened room by light shining through a small hole in one wall.

Leonardo da Vinci, Italian artist and scientist, AD 1452-1519
"When the images of illuminated objects pass through a small round hole into a very dark room, if you receive them on a piece of white paper placed vertically in the room at some distance from the aperture, you will see on the paper all those objects in their natural shapes and colours. They will be reduced in size, and upside down, owing to the intersection of the rays at the aperture."