Why Is It A Colour Wheel & Not A Line?

The Rest Is Science

Colour wheel or colour line? Light itself runs in a straight line from red to violet, yet every colour theory chart bends that spectrum into a circle and the reason has nothing to do with physics.


Professor Hannah Fry and Michael Stevens (VSauce) dig into why human vision refuses to see colour the way light actually behaves, tracing the visible light spectrum from one end to the other and asking where all the "missing" colours, like magenta and purple, actually come from if they don't exist on that spectrum at all.


It turns out the colour wheel is less a description of light and more a diagram of a workaround your brain performs constantly.


Send your questions to therestofscience@goalhanger.com or find us at r/TheRestIsScience on Reddit.


Find the wetter water Michael discusses at - https://winsol.com/products/wetter-water


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For more information about Cancer Research UK, their research, breakthroughs and how you can support them, visit ⁠⁠https://cancerresearchuk.org/restisscience⁠⁠


Cancer Research UK is a registered charity in England and Wales (1089464), Scotland (SC041666), the Isle of Man (1103) and Jersey (247). A company limited by guarantee. Registered company in England and Wales (4325234) and the Isle of Man (5713F). Registered address: 2 Redman Place, London, E20 1JQ.


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Find The Rest Is Science all over the internet by ⁠⁠clicking here.⁠⁠


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Video Producer: Adam Thornton + Oli Oakley + Jack Meek

Animator: Sam Benson

Video & Social: Bex Tyrrell

Assistant Producer: Lucy Lipscombe

Producer: Simona Rata

Senior Producer: Lauren Armstrong-Carter

Chief Digital Officer: Samuel Oakley

Exec Producer: Neil Fearn

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

More description

Colour wheel or colour line? Light itself runs in a straight line from red to violet, yet every colour theory chart bends that spectrum into a circle and the reason has nothing to do with physics.


Professor Hannah Fry and Michael Stevens (VSauce) dig into why human vision refuses to see colour the way light actually behaves, tracing the visible light spectrum from one end to the other and asking where all the "missing" colours, like magenta and purple, actually come from if they don't exist on that spectrum at all.


It turns out the colour wheel is less a description of light and more a diagram of a workaround your brain performs constantly.


Send your questions to therestofscience@goalhanger.com or find us at r/TheRestIsScience on Reddit.


Find the wetter water Michael discusses at - https://winsol.com/products/wetter-water


-------------------


For more information about Cancer Research UK, their research, breakthroughs and how you can support them, visit ⁠⁠https://cancerresearchuk.org/restisscience⁠⁠


Cancer Research UK is a registered charity in England and Wales (1089464), Scotland (SC041666), the Isle of Man (1103) and Jersey (247). A company limited by guarantee. Registered company in England and Wales (4325234) and the Isle of Man (5713F). Registered address: 2 Redman Place, London, E20 1JQ.


-------------------


Find The Rest Is Science all over the internet by ⁠⁠clicking here.⁠⁠


-------------------


Video Producer: Adam Thornton + Oli Oakley + Jack Meek

Animator: Sam Benson

Video & Social: Bex Tyrrell

Assistant Producer: Lucy Lipscombe

Producer: Simona Rata

Senior Producer: Lauren Armstrong-Carter

Chief Digital Officer: Samuel Oakley

Exec Producer: Neil Fearn

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

2026-08-05 47 min
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