Thread: A color to Me, A color to You....

Originally Posted by dreamingofdreaming

Me and my friend were discussing colors one day. How red to me looks red, blue looks blue, green looks green and so forth. However, what if some people see red like this and see green like so?

How would they ever know the difference?

I used to ask this question when I was a kid.

These days I ask a different question.

As humans we perceive color with sight. Color is light. We don't just see light though, we feel it too. The sun's light is very hot.

Imagine if you could feel each color differently. Why even be limited to temperature? Maybe green is soft. Maybe yellow never stays still. Maybe red stings.

Or smell. What do colors smell like?

Or taste? I bet the color orange is really sweet.

Or sound. What do colors sound like? Ohhh..could you imagine what gold sounds like?? Or silver??

I'm being serious here!

The only reason why we see color the way we do is because our brains were designed to see light the way we do. There is no universal standard that everything conscious in the universe must see light, let alone see it as the way we see it!

I've read some stories where people in their visions/hallucinations/dreams perceive 'reality' differently. People have tasted 'green' and say it tastes like watermelon. That evil or evil intentions has a smell. It smells like rotting flesh and sulfur. Or loving and kind thoughts look like a stream of colorful light.

That's what got me thinking....Is there a right or wrong way to perceive reality??

There's probably an unlimited number of ways for any consciousness to perceive information. And being human is only one of them.

I've thought about this many times, that perhaps others perception of colors is different. The tricky part is, there's really no way to know.

I have thought about this a lot myself...I just don't really know how to explain it. I'm sure there are environmental and genetic effects that can change how we all percieve collors. My theory is that for the majority of the population, there is a difference, but it may be too slight for people with "normal" vision to notice, but I have no way to test this, so it's all speculation.

The difficult thing is, how would you explain a color to someone who see's it differently to you. Such as, if you're trying to explain to someone that see's red as yellow, what would you say? You could say things like, the color of a strawberry, but since strawberries look yellow to them, it would get you nowhere... We were told to discuss this in an art class once, we found no way to describe a color without maning something of that color.

But scientifically, color perception has to do with cones, which has been said. Humans have a relativly low sensitivity to them. For example, we can't see low frequencies (like infra red) or very high ones (like ultra violet). Some animals can, some can't. For example, game that tigers naturally pray on lack a certain cone, and therefor tigers look greenish to them, which is why it poses as an advantage for the tiger.

How can a colour blind person prove that he's colour blind? (without medical help)

They have tests of pictures made out of colors that are different in hue, but the same in tone.

For example, it might be a collection of dots or shapes, and in the middle is a ketter or number made of shapes of a different color. If you're colorblind, it looks like a bunch of gray shapes (or dots that are all the same color, depending on what branch of colorblindness you have/are being tested for). These can be found lots of places. Though there are many different versions testing for varying sight capabilities.

Originally Posted by SpiderLily_x

They have tests of pictures made out of colors that are different in hue, but the same in tone.

For example, it might be a collection of dots or shapes, and in the middle is a ketter or number made of shapes of a different color. If you're colorblind, it looks like a bunch of gray shapes (or dots that are all the same color, depending on what branch of colorblindness you have/are being tested for). These can be found lots of places. Though there are many different versions testing for varying sight capabilities.

So with that being said. There's a clear difference between someone being colour blind and us seeing different colours?

It really depends on how you define your terms.
I've heard somepeople say that 'color blind' doesn't mean you can't see colors, but rather for some reason, you don't see the right color.

That, I believe is not quite what the topic-starter meant, though (I could be wrong). Assuming you're perfectly healthy, have no defects that could alter your visual perception, and yet, you're "blue" is slightly "greener" then someone elses "blue". The "blue" sky looks more like a "blue/green/teal" to you. so, say if you were to take one of the tests I mentioned, you see a "blue" (which is really blue-green) shape within the picture that you wouldn't see if you had some defects in the cones that control color perception. so when you get the results, the test would say "you should have seen a blue shape in the center" and you pass, assuming your vision is fine. But in reality, your idea of "blue" is slightly different.

So, yes, I believe there is a difference.

Very simple.

Anyone here that does not see the number which is stated to the right of each circle?

Anyone here that does not see the number which is stated to the right of each circle?

That's being color blind. Which, I believe is different...and tried to coherently explain minutes ago.

This subject always confuses me with colour blindness.

This subject always confuses me with colour blindness.

The best way I can think to describe it is, if you pass the test Specialis Sapientia posted, then you are not colorblind.

BUT

Let's say the colors of the dots that make up the numbers look different to me then to you. Yet, we both have no way of knowing, because in the first circle, the outside dots appear "blue" and the inner dots are "orange", but my "blue" and my "orange" looks different.
That is what seeing different colors means.

EDIT:

've read some stories where people in their visions/hallucinations/dreams perceive 'reality' differently. People have tasted 'green' and say it tastes like watermelon. That evil or evil intentions has a smell. It smells like rotting flesh and sulfur. Or loving and kind thoughts look like a stream of colorful light.

There is a mental abniormality where this occurs. Synesthesia, I believe. It's like having wirses crossed in your brain; colors have personalitites, words have feelings, numbers and letters have colors, music has a texture, and so on. Plus it's become a popular conversation subject because people think that certain variations of it would make for a fascinating way of living, though I'm sure it depends on what kind.

There is a mental abniormality where this occurs. Synesthesia, I believe.

Correct. But there are various degrees of synesthesia. The senses affected vary, and so does the reaction to them; one person might see colour when hearing sounds, another might feel cold when hearing certain sounds. Another person might taste things when they see colours.

And some people experience even more senses at the same time, seeing colours and having tastes when hearing music, for instance.

But that's not necessarily seeing colours differently, though apparently it can cause letters that looks black to normal people to appear coloured.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Synesthesia

Correct. But there are various degrees of synesthesia. The senses affected vary, and so does the reaction to them; one person might see colour when hearing sounds, another might feel cold when hearing certain sounds. Another person might taste things when they see colours.

And some people experience even more senses at the same time, seeing colours and having tastes when hearing music, for instance.

But that's not necessarily seeing colours differently, though apparently it can cause letters that looks black to normal people to appear coloured.

I agree, and I don't claim to be an expert on the subject, but a user did mention "what would it be like if..." and what they were reffering to was a certain branch of synesthesia, rather then seeing different colors.

my dad taught me the colours wrong and i only found out when i went to school. i grew up thinking red was called blue, yellow was called red and blue was called yellow. he also never told me the names for non-primary colours, he just told me to say things like yellow-red for orange and blue-yellow for green (which for me was red-blue and yellow-red).
It led to alot of confusion when i found out...

Originally Posted by derb

my dad taught me the colours wrong and i only found out when i went to school. i grew up thinking red was called blue, yellow was called red and blue was called yellow. he also never told me the names for non-primary colours, he just told me to say things like yellow-red for orange and blue-yellow for green (which for me was red-blue and yellow-red).
It led to alot of confusion when i found out...

Did you find out by yourself, or did your dad tell you the truth?