Abstract
THE content and meaning associated with any word is always liable to vary with the mental outlook of an individual. Thus the word “distance “may convey to a psychologist the idea of a psychological experience developed by various means through the senses; to a physicist the same term conveys the idea of a magnitude to be expressed in centimetres or other arbitrary units. In practice, however, this causes very little inconvenience. The fundamental concepts are identical; it is the principle of measurement which varies.
Article PDF
References
"Colour and Methods of Colour Reproduction.” Blackie, 1923.
Journal Opt. Soc. Amer., Vol. 6, No. 6, 1922.
The Illuminating Engineer, Vol. xv. No. 8, p. 227. The definition of “brightness” is given there, but “luminosity” is not defined in British practice. Colloquially, it refers to self-luminous surfaces. The American report says: “Relative light quantities are called luminosities"
For a concise statement of Ostwald's theory see “Die Grundlage der messenden Farbenlehre.” (Barth, Leipzig, 1921.)
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
MARTIN, L. Colour Nomenclature. Nature 114, 790–791 (1924). https://doi.org/10.1038/114790a0
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/114790a0