Put a spoon in a clear glass of water. Look at it from the side. The spoon looks broken. It is not magic. It is refraction.
Light travels fast through air. Water is thicker than air. Light slows down when it enters water.
This speed change bends light waves. Scientists call this refraction. Light bends when passing from one transparent material into another at an angle.
Your brain assumes light travels in straight lines. When bent light rays hit your eyes, your brain traces them backward along a straight path. This creates a false image. The submerged part of the spoon appears shifted upward and sideways. The spoon looks bent at the water's surface.
Water is not the only material that bends light. Glass and diamonds do it too. Diamonds bend light sharply. That creates their famous sparkle.
Refraction also helps us see clearly. Eyeglasses use curved glass lenses to bend light rays. This fixes blurry vision before light hits the retina inside the eye. Without refraction, lenses would not work.
Next time you see a straw in a cold drink or a coin at the bottom of a pool, remember refraction. Things are not always where they appear to be.
Why do objects underwater look closer to the surface than they actually are?