How a new poetry project bridges science and art through rainbows

A new poetry project called Reweaving the Rainbow is bringing together science and art. The initiative, led by writer Maria Popova and Overview editor Willow Defebaugh, turns words from science articles into verse. It also revisits a centuries-old debate about how we understand nature's wonders.

The project's name nods to a famous moment in 1817, when poet John Keats and essayist Charles Lamb discussed rainbows at a dinner party. Keats later worried in his poem *Lamia* that science might 'unweave' the magic of such phenomena—though modern thinkers see it differently.

Rainbows have fascinated people for centuries, but their science was transformed in 1666. Isaac Newton used a prism to split white light into seven distinct colours: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet. His work proved that colour is a property of light itself, not just an illusion.

Later, in 1810, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe explored a different angle. His theory focused on how humans *perceive* colour, including emotional responses and complementary contrasts. By the early 20th century, this understanding helped develop subtractive colour mixing (CMYK), which became essential for printing. Today, we know the human eye can distinguish around 10 million colours—though digital screens can display even more. A rainbow forms when sunlight refracts through water droplets suspended in the air. Yet most people never see its full circular shape, as the horizon usually blocks the lower half. The colours visible also depend on where the observer stands in relation to the sun. Modern voices like biologist Richard Dawkins argue that science deepens wonder rather than destroys it. He calls the awe inspired by scientific discovery one of humanity's greatest experiences. Popova shares this view, insisting that science *magnifies* nature's magic—not diminishes it. The *Reweaving the Rainbow* project builds on this idea, blending scientific language with poetic form to celebrate both art and understanding.

The project highlights a shift from Keats' 19th-century scepticism to today's embrace of science as a source of wonder. By turning research into poetry, Popova and Defebaugh offer a new way to engage with both disciplines. Their work also reminds us that rainbows—whether studied through prisms or admired in the sky—remain a bridge between curiosity and beauty.