Nanoworld in 3-D

Abstract

The 3-D version of James Cameron’s last movie, “Avatar”, has been considered a breakthrough in the cinematographic world and I, personally, still remember the strong impact of the experience of watching this film at the IMAX-3D cinema. The 3-D movies must all be grateful to the advent of stereoscopic photography, which dates back to 1838, when Sir Charles Wheatstone invented the first 3-D stereoscope. Stereoscopy creates an illusion of depth by using eyeglasses to combine two perspectives (2-D images) which differ by a minor deviation. Although it has only recently been applied for entertainment and in photogrammetry, its basic principles were already noted by the Greek Mathematician Euclid in 300 BC. As beautiful as it can be, it also reveals the great capacity for illusion in the human brain.