May 13, 2010
How come when I shine a laser pointer through my finger I can see light come through but not bone?
This may be a really dumb question but I've always been curious about this.
When I shine a laser pointer through my finger I can see the light coming through but I can't see any bones.
The only things I can think of is that the bones are thinner than I think, but how dense are bones that light would be able to shine through?
Thanks!
The laser light is refracted and diffused through the soft tissue. That's not a dumb question at all; that's the kind of curiosity that is very, very useful in life. Without curiosity there is no drive to find out "why…?" and there are just far too many interesting things in life to wander around content in ignorance. Every good scientist worth his or her salt has that same innate curiosity. 
Filed under Pointer Puppies by Maria
Comments on How come when I shine a laser pointer through my finger I can see light come through but not bone? »
As the laser shines through your flesh, it gets spread out (diffused). As a result the laser beam sort of bends around the bone, so you don't see its shadow.
References :
The laser light is refracted and diffused through the soft tissue. That's not a dumb question at all; that's the kind of curiosity that is very, very useful in life. Without curiosity there is no drive to find out "why…?" and there are just far too many interesting things in life to wander around content in ignorance. Every good scientist worth his or her salt has that same innate curiosity.
References :