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Indeed, Isaac Newton noticed that a thermometer placed just beyond the red band of a prism-produced rainbow showed a higher temperature than shadow or indeed th

Indeed, Isaac Newton noticed that a thermometer placed just beyond the red band of a prism-produced rainbow showed a higher temperature than shadow or indeed the red band itself. From this he deduced and described infrared light.

jeffwass 5y ago
That was William Herschel, not Newton.
- gilrain 5y ago
  Ah, I misremembered; thanks! Newton proved that prisms split light into colors it was already comprised of, rather than coloring the light by themselves. Herschel then discovered there were more of those “colors” than could be seen.
- dotancohen 5y ago
  Good of you for mentioning Herschel. The contrast between him and Newton is stark. Newton was considered a genius, but Herschel was considered to have average intelligence at best. However Herschel's curiosity is as legendary as Newton's indignation is legendary. Herschel made many discoveries, infrared and ultraviolet light among them, just by being curious and testing and trying new things. Such as measuring the temperature of the colors of the rainbow, and even the areas off to the sides.
  - mmmpop 5y ago
    > Herschel was considered to have average intelligence at best. I just looked the guy up and he seems like he was well above average intelligence... what's your source? I feel like people here often are disengaged with "average" people. Think of the "dumbest" person you know in your day-to-day; I bet they're actually fairly average.
    - dotancohen 5y ago
      > I just looked the guy up and he seems like he was > well above average intelligence... what's your source? University professor. Reading Herschel's wikipedia page, I see that the guy was exceptionally curious. I don't see mention of his intelligence going one way or the other.
      - perl4ever 5y ago
        "In addition to the oboe, he played the violin and harpsichord and later the organ. He composed numerous musical works, including 24 symphonies and many concertos, as well as some church music." (emphasis mine) Obviously he wasn't Newton, but who is? It's kind of amusing that Uranus could have ended up named "George" if it wasn't for the French.
        dotancohen 5y ago
        Such interest in music was not uncommon for someone of Herschel's social standing in his time. Note that we're not listening to Herschel's Ninth. This is like saying today "In addition to Python, he coded in Javascript and PHP, and later in C#. He wrote numerous scripts, including 24 websites and many text-processing utilities, as well as some CRM plugins for his local church."
        perl4ever 5y ago
        No, it isn't like that. People are engineers, scientists, or programmers, and also have musical interests today. Usually they're way above average in their STEM career.
        cyberbanjo 5y ago
        I agree, I think it's more like being good at golf
        perl4ever 5y ago

jeffwass 5y ago

That was William Herschel, not Newton.

gilrain 5y ago
Ah, I misremembered; thanks! Newton proved that prisms split light into colors it was already comprised of, rather than coloring the light by themselves. Herschel then discovered there were more of those “colors” than could be seen.
dotancohen 5y ago
Good of you for mentioning Herschel. The contrast between him and Newton is stark. Newton was considered a genius, but Herschel was considered to have average intelligence at best. However Herschel's curiosity is as legendary as Newton's indignation is legendary. Herschel made many discoveries, infrared and ultraviolet light among them, just by being curious and testing and trying new things. Such as measuring the temperature of the colors of the rainbow, and even the areas off to the sides.
- mmmpop 5y ago
  > Herschel was considered to have average intelligence at best. I just looked the guy up and he seems like he was well above average intelligence... what's your source? I feel like people here often are disengaged with "average" people. Think of the "dumbest" person you know in your day-to-day; I bet they're actually fairly average.
  - dotancohen 5y ago
    > I just looked the guy up and he seems like he was > well above average intelligence... what's your source? University professor. Reading Herschel's wikipedia page, I see that the guy was exceptionally curious. I don't see mention of his intelligence going one way or the other.
    - perl4ever 5y ago
      "In addition to the oboe, he played the violin and harpsichord and later the organ. He composed numerous musical works, including 24 symphonies and many concertos, as well as some church music." (emphasis mine) Obviously he wasn't Newton, but who is? It's kind of amusing that Uranus could have ended up named "George" if it wasn't for the French.
      - dotancohen 5y ago
        Such interest in music was not uncommon for someone of Herschel's social standing in his time. Note that we're not listening to Herschel's Ninth. This is like saying today "In addition to Python, he coded in Javascript and PHP, and later in C#. He wrote numerous scripts, including 24 websites and many text-processing utilities, as well as some CRM plugins for his local church."
        perl4ever 5y ago
        No, it isn't like that. People are engineers, scientists, or programmers, and also have musical interests today. Usually they're way above average in their STEM career.
        cyberbanjo 5y ago
        I agree, I think it's more like being good at golf
        perl4ever 5y ago