[i]infra Prep. with acc. , [below, under], in position, size, or rank; in time, [later than]. Adv. [below, underneath; in the lower world; to the south]; in rank, [lower]. Compar. inferius, [lower down].[/i]

Thus "infrared" refers to the region beyond or beneath the red end of the visible color spectrum. The infrared region is located between the visible and microwave regions of the electromagnetic spectrum. Because heated objects radiate energy in the infrared, it is often referred to as the heat region of the spectrum. All objects radiate some energy in the infrared, even objects at room temperature and frozen objects such as ice.

Active Astronomy: Classroom Activities for Learning About Infrared Light

This is a pretty cool site to learn about infrared light and how it plays a role in our every day lives. Active Astronomy has a set of four activities that focus on improving student understanding of infrared light.

Implementation of a Low-Power Infrared Port (IrDA) Controller

Matthew Last has presentations for his class project. The PowerPoint presentation breaks the concepts down into small bits. I suggest you review the presentation quickly, then read the Word document to have some idea of what he is writing about.

Herschel Infrared Experiment

Herschel's experiment was important not only because it led to the discovery of infrared light, but also because it was the first time that someone showed that there were forms of light that we cannot see with our eyes. As we now know, there are many other types of light that we cannot see and visible colors are only a very small part of the entire range of light which we call the electromagnetic spectrum.

Laptop Infrared File Swapping for Dell machines

Step-by-step instructions on how to turn on the wireless infrared (irDA) link on your laptop. Requires PowerPoint.