# black (color)

a visual state of a thing that is an exact mark of little intensity

- Computed level: L8 (depth in the emergence graph, not abstraction)
- Status: review  ·  Domain: everyday  ·  Arena: black

## Emergence
**Emerges from:** [matter](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-matter.substance), [energy](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-energy.capacity), [just](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-just.exact), [little](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-little.size), [marks](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-marks.visual), [state](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-state.condition), [visual](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-visual.perceptual), [exact](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-exact.precision)

**Through:** the matter absorbs most of the arriving energy, so the visual mark that remains is of little intensity

**Novel properties:**
- low-intensity appearance
- exact visual absorption
- persistent dark state

## Examples
- The night sky over the Atacama Desert appears black because so little light reaches it from nearby sources. *(astronomy)*
- Vantablack, made from carbon nanotubes, absorbs 99.96% of visible light, appearing as a visual void. *(materials)*
- In digital imaging, a pixel with RGB value (0,0,0) is rendered black, marking the absence of emitted light. *(computing)*

## Used by
- [white](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-white.color) (L9)

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*Canonical: https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-black.color*  
*Structured data: https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-black.color.json*  
*Every definition provably resolves to space, time, energy and pattern.*