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3. Light: Waves Or Particles?
Ever since very ancient times, the sun has been regarded and worshipped as a divine being in India as well as in some western countries such as Italy, Greece etc. and it is just and proper for the simple reason that it is the only source of energy in the microcosm and macrocosm, since times immemorial, is giving energy to all living beings in the whole universe and it will no doubt continue to do so throughout eternity.
On the strength of the belief that an atom is the cheap, clean and harmless source of energy, all the twentieth century scientists give importance to it as an alternative souce of energy. Experimental experience of a long period of as many as thirty five years, has proved that atomic energy is neither cheap nor clean nor harmless and therefore, the sun as a source of energy enjoys and will no dout continue to enjoy sovereign position for ever. In the book 'The Turning Point' the scientist named Fritjof Capra, writes in this connection as under :
"Twenty five years ago, world leaders decided to use 'atom for peace' and presented nuclear power as the reliable, clean and cheap energy source of the future. Today we are becoming painfully aware that nuclear power is neither safe nor clean nor cheap."
The sun gives immeasurable quantity of energy to the whole world only in the form of light. Since long, scientists have been doing their best to know the complete structure of light but they have not been able to know fully its structure in its real form.
According to some scientists light is in the form of waves, while in the opinion of others it is in the form of particles. But scientists have of late unanimously come to the conclusion that since some physical phenomena of light cannot be understood and explained without accepting the particle theory of light and some such phenomena cannot be comprehended or fully explained without accepting the wave theory of light, light is in the form of particles
