The Blind Man's Reality: What it means to be 99.9999999999996 % blind and enjoying it!

Sometimes you learn a lot when you are a witness rather than a participant in an argument between two groups, each with their own rigid point of view.

One such recurring theme is the face-off between theists and atheists, philosophers and scientists, tradition versus evidence. Most of the time, it boils down to one group saying, “Prove it,” while the other desperately tries to explain why their belief is sensible.

One statement in particular — “I am practical. I believe what I can see” — struck me as worth analyzing. It seems a no-brainer: if you can’t see something, it most probably doesn’t exist. At least in most cases.

Here are my findings.

The light that enables us to see is an electromagnetic energy field. It propagates as a wave, and the distance between consecutive wave peaks is called the wavelength. The visible portion of the spectrum starts at about 380 nanometers (violet) and ends at about 780 nanometers (deep red). Anything below or above these wavelengths cannot be perceived by the naked eye.

Now let’s look at the highest and lowest wavelengths recorded so far.

The largest wavelength detected by finely tuned instruments on satellites are ELF radio waves, with a wavelength of approximately 100 million meters or 10 raised to 8 (10⁸ m). The smallest wavelength ever measured comes from a burst of high-energy gamma radiation, at roughly 1 divided by 10 raised to 22 meters or 10 raised to minus 22 (10^‐²²)

Let’s assume this smallest captured wavelength is considered one “slice.” Then the entire detected electromagnetic spectrum could be divided into 10³⁰ discrete spectral variations.

Now consider visible light. Between 380 nm (violet) and 780 nm (red) lies a 400 nm range. Broken into the same 10^{-22} m slices, we get 4 x 10^¹⁵ possible discrete wavelengths in the visible spectrum.

Let us calculate the percentage of visible wavelength slices versus the total number of slices across the entire detected spectrum:

4 x 10¹⁵ / 10³⁰ = 4 x 10^-15

As a percentage:

4 x 10 ^-15 times 100% = 0.0000000000004%

That means while we can perceive a tiny fraction, we are blind to approximately 99.9999999999996% of the electromagnetic spectrum. This is true even just within the range our own instruments have already detected.

I couldn't believe my eyes. The calculation too seemed to indicate the same. So I turned to NASA and found a more reassuring number: 0.0035% visibility, or 99.9965% in the invisible range. However, it turned out that while NASA had used a logarithmic scale, I had used a simple man's equal slice method. Both of us were right in our respective paradigms. The added numbers on my blindness scale were, in a way, adding more weightage, just like the added contrast on an LED panel gives it that oomph over less contrasty LCD panels.

Regardless of our handicap, we are a very positive species. We have two genuine worldviews: the contentment view and the curiosity view. The former believes in what is seen and considers it to be all that is. This is a wonderful way to remain content and happy with the status quo.

And for those like me, driven by insatiable curiosity, there is a sense of excitement in knowing that 99.9999999999996% of the spectrum is not yet perceived by me. This indicates that the beauty I have perceived so far is just the tip of the tip of the iceberg. There is a world filled with endless possibilities, endless explorations and surprises open to me.