Radiation — Describe

Describe an experiment to distinguish between good and bad absorbers of infrared radiation.

Two identical plates, one painted dull black and one left shiny/silver, each with a thermometer (or a drawing pin stuck on with wax) attached to the back, are placed the same distance from a radiant heat source. The dull black plate shows a faster temperature rise (or its wax/pin drops off sooner), showing that dull black surfaces absorb infrared radiation better than shiny surfaces.