'Life is short and progress slow.'
'This result is due to a phenomenon of interference which occurs within the sensitive layer.'
Gabriel Lippmann.
Interference is the interaction of two or more waves. Wave motion is a common phenomenon in everyday life. Light and sound, for example, are transmitted by waves. In addition, waves can often be seen on lakes, ponds, and other bodies of water.
Constructive and destructive interference
In general, waves can interfere with each other in one of two ways: constructively or destructively. When the crests of two waves and the troughs of two waves arrive at a given spot at the same time, their effects are added to each other. The result is constructive interference. When the crest of one wave and the trough of a second wave arrive at the same time, their effects cancel each other out. The result is destructive interference.
Interaction in Life
One could easily substitute the word interference for interaction. Human interaction can also be constructive or destructive. Constructive and destructive interaction can be detected by the intensity of the result. Working together should produce a greater result that could be acheived by working individually. ...and that's this weeks 'Thought of the Week'
The Nobel Prize in Physics 1908
Professor Lippmann had evolved the general theory of his process for the photographic reproduction of colour in 1886 but the practical execution presented great difficulties. However, after years of patient and skilful experiment, he was able to communicate the process to the Academy of Sciences in 1891, although the photographs were somewhat defective due to the varying sensitivity of the photographic film. In 1893, he was able to present to the Academy photographs taken by A. and L. Lumière in which the colours were produced with perfect ortho-chromatism. He published the complete theory in 1894.
In 1895, Lippmann evolved a method of eliminating the personal equation in measurements of time, using photographic registration, and he studied the eradication of irregularities of pendulum clocks, devising a method of comparing the times of oscillation of two pendulums of nearly equal period. He contributed to astronomy with his invention of the coelostat, a device which immobilizes the image of a star and its surrounding stars so that a photograph may be taken. He was also responsible for many more ingenious devices and improvements to standard instruments to the benefit of many branches of physics.