The Human Eye and The Colourful World

The Human Eye : -

Cornea : -
➢ Light enters the eye through a thin membrane called the cornea.
➢ It forms the transparent bulge on the front surface of the eyeball.
➢ The eyeball is approximately spherical in shape with a diameter of about 2.3 cm.
Most of the refraction for the light rays entering the eye occurs at the outer surface
of the cornea.
Iris : -
➢ Iris is present behind the cornea. Iris is a dark muscular diaphragm that controls
the size of the pupil.

Pupil : -
➢ The pupil regulates and controls the amount of light entering the eye.

The eye lens : -

➢ The eye lens is composed of a fibrous, jelly-like material.
➢ It forms an inverted real image of the object on the retina.
➢ The crystalline lens merely provides the finer adjustment of focal length required
to focus objects at different distances on the retina.

The retina : -
➢ It is a delicate membrane having enormous number of light-sensitive cells.
➢ The light-sensitive cells get activated upon illumination and generate electrical
signals. These signals are sent to the brain via the optic nerves.

Q. 1 - Write the function of each of the following parts of human eye :

Cornea; iris; crystalline lens; ciliary muscles

PRAMOD KUMAR TGT N.Sc. S.P.M.S. (Co.Ed.) VIDYALAYA c. R. PARK Page 1

 Q.2 (a) Write the function of each of the following parts of human eye :
(i) Cornea (ii) Iris (iii) Crystalline lens (iv) Ciliary muscles
(b) Why does the sun appear reddish early in the morning ?
Will this phenomenon be observed by an astronaut on the Moon ? Give
reason to justify your answer. [Delhi 2018]

Ans. – (a). Function of : -

• Cornea: focuses light rays / permits the light to enter the eye..
• Iris: Controls amount of light entering the eye. / controls the size of pupil.
• Crystalline Lens: Converges light rays onto retina.
• Cilliary Muscles: Adjusts focal length of eye lens by contraction and
relaxation so that sharp image can be obtained on the retina. / helps in
accommodation
(b). In early morning, sun light has to cover larger distance in the atmosphere.
So, the shorter wavelengths scatter out. Only the longer wavelengths like
red reach our eye.
On moon – No Cause: Moon has no atmosphere

Power of Accommodation : -
The ability of the eye lens to adjust its focal length is called
Power of accommodation.
➢ However, the focal length of the eye lens cannot be decreased below a certain
minimum limit.
➢ The curvature of eye lens can be modified to some extent by the ciliary muscles.
The change in the curvature of the eye lens can thus change its focal length.
➢ When the muscles are relaxed, the lens becomes thin. Thus, its focal length
increases. This enables us to see distant objects clearly. When you are looking at
objects closer to the eye, the ciliary muscles contract. This increases the curvature
of the eye lens. The eye lens then becomes thicker. Consequently, the focal length
of the eye lens decreases. This enables us to see nearby objects clearly.

Q.3- Define the term power of accommodation. Write the modification in the
curvature of the eye lens which enables us to see the nearby objects clearly ?
[Delhi 2019]
Q.4- Trace the sequence of events which occur when a bright light is focused on
your eyes? [Delhi 2019]

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Near Point & Far Point of the Normal Eye : -
➢ The minimum distance, at which objects can be seen most distinctly without
strain, is called the least distance of distinct vision. It is also called the near point
of the eye. For a young adult with normal vision, the near point is about 25 cm.
➢ The farthest point upto which the eye can see objects clearly is called the far point
of the eye. It is infinity for a normal eye.
➢ You may note here a normal eye can see objects clearly that are between 25 cm
and infinity.

Cataract : -
Sometimes, the crystalline lens of people at old age becomes milky and cloudy. This
condition is called cataract. This causes partial or complete loss of vision. It is possible
to restore vision through a cataract surgery.

DEFECTS OF VISION AND THEIR CORRECTION

➢ Sometimes, the eye may gradually lose its power of accommodation.
In such conditions, the person cannot see the objects distinctly and comfortably.
The vision becomes blurred due to the refractive defects of the eye.
➢ There are mainly three common refractive defects of vision. These are
(i) myopia or near-sightedness,
(ii) Hypermetropia or farsightedness, and
(iii) Presbyopia.
These defects can be corrected by the use of suitable spherical lenses.

(A) Myopia : -
➢ Myopia is also known as near-
sightedness.
➢ A person with myopia can see nearby
objects clearly but cannot see distant
objects distinctly.
➢ A person with this defect has the far
point nearer than infinity. Such a person
may see clearly upto a distance of a few
metres.
➢ In a myopic eye, the image of a distant
object is formed in front of the retina
and not at the retina itself.
➢ This defect may arise due to
(i) excessive curvature of the eye lens,
(ii) elongation of the eyeball.
➢ This defect can be corrected by using a
concave lens of suitable power.

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(B) Hypermetropia : -
➢ Hypermetropia is also known as far-
sightedness.
➢ A person with hypermetropia can see distant
objects clearly but cannot see nearby objects
distinctly.
➢ The near point, for the person, is farther
away from the normal near point (25 cm).
Such a person has to keep a reading material
much beyond 25 cm from the eye for
comfortable reading. This is because the
light rays from a closeby object are focussed
at a point behind
the retina.

 This defect arises either because

(i) the focal length of the eye lens is too long, or
(ii) the eyeball has become too small.
 This defect can be corrected by using a convex lens of appropriate power.
 Eye-glasses with converging lenses provide the additional focusing power
required for forming the image on the retina.

(C) Presbyopia
➢ The power of accommodation of the eye usually decreases with ageing. For most
people, the near point gradually recedes away. They find it difficult to see nearby
objects comfortably and distinctly without corrective eye-glasses. This defect is
called Presbyopia.
 It arises due to the gradual weakening of the ciliary muscles and diminishing
flexibility of the eye lens.
 Sometimes, a person may suffer from both myopia and hypermetropia. Such
people often require bi-focal lenses. A common type of bi-focal lenses consists of
both concave and convex lenses. The upper portion consists of a concave lens. It
facilitates distant vision. The lower part is a convex lens. It facilitates near vision.
 These days, it is possible to correct the refractive defects with contact lenses or
through surgical interventions.

Q.5 - (a) What is presbyopia ? State its cause. How is it corrected ? [Delhi 2018 C ]
(b) Why does the Sun appear reddish early in the morning ?
Explain with the help of a labelled diagram.

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 Q. 6 –(a) A student is unable to see clearly the words written on the black board
placed at a distance of approximately 3 m from him. Name the defect of
vision the boy is suffering from. State the possible causes of this defect and
explain the method of correcting it.
(b) Why do stars twinkle ? Explain. [Delhi 2018]
Ans. - Defect of vision – Myopia or short sightedness or
near sightedness
Causes of myopia: (i) Excessive curvature of eye lens/eye lens
becomes more converging
(ii) Elongation of eye ball
Methods of correction:
By the use of concave lens of suitable power or focal length the
defect is corrected. / suitable diagrammatic representation.
(b). Due to atmospheric refraction
The density of different layers of air keeps on changing due to
which the apparent image of the stars keeps on changing.
This changing position of stars appears as twinkling of stars.

Q.7 - Due to gradual weakening of ciliary muscles and diminishing flexibility of

the eye lens a certain defect of vision arises. Write the name of this defect.
Name the type of lens required by such persons to improve the vision.
Explain the structure and function of such a lens. (3) [Delhi 2017]
Ans.-
• Presbyopia ½
• Bifocal lens ½
• Upper portion/ part - Concave / Diverging lens ½
- To view far off objects ½
• Lower part - Convex/ converging lens ½
- To facilitate/ view nearby objects ½

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 Q.7- Varun instead of copying from the black board use to copy regularly from
the Note book of his friend, Sudhir with whom he sat on the same desk.
Sudhir told the teacher about it. The teacher asked Varun to get his eyes
checked by a doctor and explained to whole class the reason why Varun
copied from Sudhir’s notebook.
(i) What in your view, is wrong with Varun’s eyes and how can it be corrected ?
(ii) If the doctor prescribes Varun to use lenses of power – 0.5 D, write the
type of these lenses. (3) [Delhi 2017 C ]
Ans.- (i) Suffering from myopia/ shortsightedness; using spectacles having
concave lenses of appropriate focal length. ( ½, ½ )
(ii) Concave lenses (1)

Q.8 - A person is unable to see distinctly the words printed on a newspaper.

Name the defect of vision he is suffering from. Draw ray diagram to
illustrate this defect. List its two possible causes. Draw a ray diagram to
show how this defect may be corrected using a lens of appropriate focal
length. (5) [Delhi 2017 C ]
Ans. –
• Hypermetropia (1)
• Defective eye

• Two causes:
(i) the focal length of the eye lens is too long 1
(ii) the eyeball has become too small. 1
• Correction of the defect using appropriate lens

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 Q. 9 – A student is unable to see clearly the word written on the black board
placed at a distance of approximately 4 m from him. Name the defect of
vision the boy is suffering from. Explain the method of correcting this
defect. Draw ray diagram for the : -
(a) defect of vision and also
(b) for its correction. [Delhi 2015]
Ans. - Defect – Myopia / Nearsightedness (1)
Correction – By using a concave lens of suitable power (1)

REFRACTION OF LIGHT THROUGH A PRISM

➢ A triangular glass prism has two triangular bases and three rectangular lateral
surfaces. These surfaces are inclined to each other. The angle between its two
lateral faces is called the angle of the prism.

➢ Here PE is the incident ray, EF is the refracted ray and FS is the emergent ray.
➢ A ray of light is entering from air to glass at the first surface AB. The light ray on
refraction has bent towards the normal.
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 ➢ At the second surface AC, the light ray has entered from glass to air. Hence it has
bent away from normal.
➢ The peculiar shape of the prism makes the emergent ray bend at an angle to the
direction of the incident ray. This angle is called the angle of deviation. In this
case ∠D is the angle of deviation.

Q.10- (a) Draw a ray diagram to explain the term angle of deviation. (3) [Delhi 2017]
(b) Why do the component colours of incident white light split into a spectrum
while passing through a glass prism, explain.
(c) Draw a labelled ray diagram to show the formation of a rainbow.

Q.11- In the following diagram the correctly marked angles are : (1) [Delhi 2017]

(a) ∠A and ∠e (b) ∠i, ∠A and ∠D (c) ∠A, ∠r and ∠e (d) ∠A, ∠r and ∠D

Q. 12 - Select the diagram in which the path of a ray passing through a glass prism is
correctly drawn – (1) [Delhi 2017 C]

(a) A (b) B (c) C (d) D

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 Q. 13- After tracing the path of a ray of light through a glass prism a student
marked the angle of incidence ∠i , angle of refraction ∠r , angle of
emergence ∠e and angle of deviation ∠D as shown in the diagram.
The correctly marked angles are : - (1) [ Delhi 2015]

(a) ∠i and ∠r (b) ∠i and ∠e (c) ∠i, ∠e and ∠D (d) ∠i, ∠r and ∠e

DISPERSION OF WHITE LIGHT BY A GLASS PRISM

➢ The splitting of light into its component colours is called dispersion.
➢ The prism has probably split the incident white light into a band of colours. The
various colours seen are Violet, Indigo, Blue, Green, Yellow, Orange and Red.
The acronym VIBGYOR will help you to remember the sequence of colours.
➢ The band of the coloured components of a light beam is called its spectrum.
➢ You might not be able to see all the colours separately.
➢ Different colours of light bend through different angles with respect to the incident
ray, as they pass through a prism. The red light bends the least while the violet the
most.
➢ Isaac Newton was the first to use a glass prism to obtain the spectrum of sunlight.

Rainbow

 A natural spectrum of sunlight appearing in the sky after a rain

shower.

PRAMOD KUMAR TGT N.Sc. S.P.M.S. (Co.Ed.) VIDYALAYA c. R. PARK Page 9

  It is caused by dispersion of sunlight by tiny water droplets, present
in the atmosphere.
 A rainbow is always formed in a direction opposite to that of the Sun.
 The water droplets act like small prisms. They refract and disperse the incident
sunlight, then reflect it internally, and finally refract it again when it comes out of
the raindrop. Due to the dispersion of light and internal reflection, different
colours reach the observer’s eye.

ATMOSPHERIC REFRACTION
(A) Twinkling of stars
➢ The twinkling of a star is due to
atmospheric refraction of starlight.
➢ The starlight, on entering the earth’s
atmosphere, undergoes refraction
continuously before it reaches the earth.
➢ The atmospheric refraction occurs in a
medium of gradually changing refractive
index. Since the atmosphere bends
starlight towards the normal, the apparent
position of the star is slightly different
from its actual position. The star appears
slightly higher (above) than its actual
position when viewed near the horizon.
(B) Advance sunrise and delayed sunset
The Sun is visible to us about 2
minutes before the actual
sunrise, and about 2 minutes
after the actual sunset because
of atmospheric refraction.

Q.14- What is rainbow ? [Delhi 2019 ]

Draw a labelled diagram to show the formation of a rainbow.

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SCATTERING OF LIGHT
 The phenomenon in which a part of the light incident on a
particle is redirected in different directions is called scattering
of light.
Exa. The blue colour of the sky, colour of water in deep sea, the reddening of the sun
at sunrise and the sunset are some of the wonderful phenomena we are familiar
with.The scattering of light by colloidal particles is also the example of scattering.

Q.15 – (a)What is scattering of light ? (3) [Delhi 2017 C]

(b)Why is the colour of the clear sky blue ? Explain.
Ans. (a) The phenomenon in which a part of the light incident on a particle is
redirected in different directions is called scattering of light.
(b) When sunlight passes through the atmosphere, its fine particles scatter
The blue colour more strongly than red. The scattered blue light enters
our eyes. Hence the sky appears blue.

Tyndal Effect : -
➢ When a beam of light strikes such fine particles, the path of the beam becomes
visible. The light reaches us, after being reflected diffusely by these particles.
The phenomenon of scattering of light by the colloidal particles gives rise to
Tyndall effect.
➢ Tyndall effect can also be observed when sunlight passes through a canopy of a
dense forest. Here, tiny water droplets in the mist scatter light.

Why is the colour of the clear Sky Blue?

➢ The molecules of air and other fine particles in the atmosphere have size smaller
than the wavelength of visible light. These are more effective in scattering light of
shorter wavelengths at the blue end than light of longer wavelengths at the red
end. The red light has a wavelength about 1.8 times greater than blue light. Thus,
when sunlight passes through the atmosphere, the fine particles in air scatter the
blue colour (shorter wavelengths) more strongly than red. The scattered blue light
enters our eyes.
➢ If the earth had no atmosphere, there would not have been any scattering. Then,
the sky would have looked dark. The sky appears dark to passengers flying at very
high altitudes, as scattering is not prominent at such heights.

Colour of the Sun at Sunrise and Sunset

➢ Light from the Sun near the horizon passes through thicker layers of air and larger
distance in the earth’s atmosphere before reaching our eyes.
➢ However, light from the Sun overhead would travel relatively shorter distance. At
noon, the Sun appears white as only a little of the blue and violet colours are
scattered. Near the horizon, most of the blue light and shorter wavelengths are
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 scattered away by the particles. Therefore, the light that reaches our eyes is of
longer wavelengths. This gives rise to the reddish appearance of the Sun.

Q. 16–With the help of a labelled diagram, explain why the Sun appears reddish
at the sun-rise and the sun-set. (3) [Delhi 2015]
Ans.
• Light from the Sun near the horizon passes through thicker layers of air
and longer distance.
• Most of the blue light and shorter wavelengths of sunlight are scattered
away by the particles. Light of larger wavelength reaches us giving the
reddish appearance.
Draw diagram as shown above.

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