Question

If, while standing on the bank of a stream, you wished to spear a fish swimming in the water out in front of you, would you aim above, below, or directly at the observed fish to make a direct hit? If you decided to instead zap the fish with a laser, would you aim above, below, or directly at the observed fish? Defend your answers.

Answer 1

Answer:

a) below the observed position

b) directly at the observed position

Explanation:

If I'm standing on the bank of a stream, and I wish to spear a fish swimming in the water out in front of me, I would aim below the observed fish to make a direct hit. This is because the phenomenon of refraction of light in water causes the light coming from the fish is refract away from the normal as it passes  into the air and into my eyes.

If I'm to zap the fish with a taser, I would aim directly at the observed fish because the laser (a form of concentrated light waves) will refract into the water, taking the same path the light from the fish took to get to my eyes.