Why is the sky blue? And is it a feminist issue?

[LRDtheFeministDragon]

I'm pondering.

I realize this is kind of a facetious thread to start, but apparently, that's all fine and dandy. Please, do spend your time and energy with detailed answers ... I'll just lie back and ignore.

I tried to do that test on an iphone.

Now THAT was a dumbass plan.

But it means I can add "distinguishing colours" to my Matriarchal Olympics list. Yay!

Oh, yes. I've done that test. Apparently I can see quite a lot of colours - not the absolute top, but not bad. I do get frustrated when people put together shades that look very different to me, but the same to them.

My dad definitely has the 'sludge brown' issue!

Evidently the way the brain adapts to lack of visual input is to massively increase sensory input (to the brain) via other senses. It develops in childhood. My niece has quite a serious problem with one of her eyes (very very short sighted) - it's treatable but if nothing is done about it by about 7 she'd be blind in that eye - as the brain matures it only develops the bits it's actually using. It's why completely deaf people need cochlear implants to be done in early childhood apparently. Brain plasticity...

And yes, it is annoying that despite all evidence to the contrary people prefer a simple "male brain/female brain" dichotomy. When I'm feeling uncharitable I put it down to other people being stupid.

They aren't stupid, they're light clever!

Humans (and most primates) see three colours because we have three types of cone in the retina that respond to different wavelengths of light: red, green, and blue (more or less). Every shade of colour we perceive and name is just a combination of those three basic colours.

But some women - and only women, not men - have four types of cones and can see extra colours the rest of us don't. They can perceive differences in colour that most of us will never be able to. I think that's rather cool (research is ongoing).

Bet the sky isn't blue for those women!

Oh, that is so cool!

I'm really glad I started this thread, just for that.

Ooh Matriarchal Olympics! What else is in?
I did quite well on "seeing colours" too. I think this is why I was so happy when we upgraded Excel at work from the old version with the ugly colours to the new version with the better colours.

I was about to apologise for my aesthetic snobbery then it occurred to me that maybe "things looking pretty" is a traditionally female thing hence my instinct to apologise. Fuck it, I like things to look nice!

thanks for that geeka!

So far I have "surviving on the least amount of water" and "distinguishing the most colours" but I'm working on it!

Does anyone know why blue is now considered a boy's colour?

I heard it used to be the other way round (blue for girls, pink for boys) - but now it's not. What's with that?

Did someone decide that the sky was too important to be a girly colour?

Thank you for this. You are all wonderful.

Even if you are all terrible bullies.

The CPK colourscheme is something I've known and used for years. I was at a science museum with DH (also a scientist but a physicist) and made some comment about the elements in a model molecule and he was amazed I knew what was what. I was amazed everyone didn't immediately see a yellow ball and think 'sulphur'.

Missing the point entirely...

These women who have a fourth type of cone, do they see in UV like birds (and insects, is that right?)? And do you all know that stripy animals are stripy because mammals that only see in black and white find it really hard to see stripy animals in grasslands?

Terrible bullies, capt. Horrible.

games - I did know about stripy animals - I guess all sorts of animals must use similar camo. I always wondered why lily beetles are bright red when they live on green plants, then realized whatever is their natural predator presumably can't tell?

FFS, why are you all so hellbent on forcing the sky into a box labelled "blue"?

Personally I think it's up to the sky to decide what colour it identifies as.

Actually it's now well understood that the sky's colour is on a spectrum and it can play with what colour it wants to identify as that day.

I'm just a SERF.

This thread is cheering and educating me in equal measure. Hurrah! anyone?

Ooh sorry. Not the pub. Wine probably inappropriate.

I get to be a Professor when I'm impersonating the MRAs? I suddenly see the appeal.

It is actually a lovely parallel, isn't it? We could argue for hours whether the sky is blue or pink, but it's all just an illusion ... (somehow, I suspect this isn't going to help on the next gender essentialism thread really).

SERF and TERF, LRD?

Tasty!

Penguins I think is entirely appropriate, personally...