Speed of light fibre optic signals which travel 30–40% slower at the speed of light through glass. There are different ways to determine the value of "c". One way is to measure the actual speed at which light waves propagate, which can be done in various astronomical and earth-based setups. However, it is also possible to determine "c" from other physical laws where it appears, for example, by determining the values of the electromagnetic constants "ε" and "μ" and using their relation to "c". Historically, the most accurate results have been obtained by separately determining the frequency and wavelength of a light beam,
Speed of light to propose that light must have a finite speed, and that the speed of light is variable, decreasing in denser bodies. He argued that light is substantial matter, the propagation of which requires time, even if this is hidden from our senses. Also in the 11th century, Abū Rayhān al-Bīrūnī agreed that light has a finite speed, and observed that the speed of light is much faster than the speed of sound. In the 13th century, Roger Bacon argued that the speed of light in air was not infinite, using philosophical arguments backed by the writing of Alhazen and Aristotle.