Book 13, Question 33
Why Do Screens Use Only Red, Green, and Blue Dots?
A screen is covered in tiny dots, called pixels, that shine red, green, or blue. Your eyes blend the three lights together. Making each dot brighter or dimmer lets the screen show nearly every color!
More fun facts
- Phone and computer screens use red, green and blue subpixels.
- Each subpixel shines at different brightness to make all the colors we see.
- Red, green and blue are called the additive primary colors of light.
- Green and blue light together look cyan.
- Red and blue light together look magenta.
- Red and green light together look yellow.
Sources: Exploratorium, Exploratorium
Questions kids ask
Why does a screen look white?
When the red, green and blue subpixels all shine brightly, the mix looks white.