# color (visual)

a visual property of a thing that arises when energy interacts with the surface of matter in a regular pattern

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

## 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), [pattern](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-pattern.regularity), [surface](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-surface.exterior), [interaction](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-interaction.process), [property](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-property.attribute), [visual](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-visual.perceptual), [regular](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-regular.frequency)

**Through:** the surface of matter interacts with energy, producing a regular pattern that constitutes a perceptible attribute

**Novel properties:**
- perceptible hue or shade
- wavelength-dependent reflection
- surface-based visual signature

## Examples
- The sky appears blue due to Rayleigh scattering of sunlight by air molecules, peaking at shorter wavelengths. *(physics)*
- Chlorophyll in spinach leaves reflects green light at 550 nm while absorbing other wavelengths for photosynthesis. *(biology)*
- The red hue of Mars's surface comes from iron oxide particles regularly scattering light across its dusty expanse. *(astronomy)*

## Used by
- [blue](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-blue.color) (L12)
- [brown](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-brown.color) (L13)
- [gold](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-gold.metal) (L23)
- [green](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-green.color) (L9)
- [red](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-red.color) (L9)
- [silver](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-silver.metal) (L14)
- [yellow](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-yellow.color) (L22)

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