Do you believe colors are subjective?

This is kind of paradoxical, but I am pretty sure there is a correct answer. I'm just curious what others think. Note that I am being very high-level about the arguments I am presenting, if you don't like my examples, that's fine, but try to provide better ones.Argument 1: Colors are subjective.
Evidence: It is impossible to correctly describe colors to the blind.Argument 2: Colors are not subjective.
Evidence: The color spectrum has specific wavelengths for colors.Thoughts?Do you believe colors are subjective?
Well if someone has been blind their whole life, then it would be rather pointless to try and describe color to them. Do you believe colors are subjective?
what if what ive grown of seening and being told is blue is what you see as orange :shock:
The appearance of a colour is subjective, but it is a real distinction, due to specific wavelengths of light, just asmuch as there is between visible light and infra-red.
[QUOTE=''_glatisant_'']The appearance of a colour is subjective, but it is a real distinction, due to specific wavelengths of light, just asmuch as there is between visible light and infra-red.[/QUOTE]

Right...So the paradox comes in...



If color has a definitive wavelength, is it that color if it's not being seen? This is much like 'if a tree falls and no one's around to hear it, does it make a sound?'
[QUOTE=''WhenPicklezFly'']what if what ive grown of seening and being told is blue is what you see as orange :shock:[/QUOTE]

Well, light and colors are on a continuous wavelength. The colors I see make sense, because they are a logical progression from violet to red. It wouldn't make sense for them to be randomly switched for somebody else (blue next to orange, etc).
[QUOTE=''spazzx625''][QUOTE=''_glatisant_'']

The appearance of a colour is subjective, but it is a real distinction, due to specific wavelengths of light, just asmuch as there is between visible light and infra-red.[/QUOTE] Right...So the paradox comes in... If color has a definitive wavelength, is it that color if it's not being seen? This is much like 'if a tree falls and no one's around to hear it, does it make a sound?'[/QUOTE]

Color is not color until it is perceived by a sentient being. Light is just energy otherwise.
While I am no expert in the process but everything I've seen indicates color does seem to be fairly grounded in science.
[QUOTE=''Engrish_Major''][QUOTE=''WhenPicklezFly'']what if what ive grown of seening and being told is blue is what you see as orange :shock:[/QUOTE]

Well, light and colors are on a continuous wavelength. The colors I see make sense, because they are a logical progression from violet to red. It wouldn't make sense for them to be randomly switched for somebody else (blue next to orange, etc).[/QUOTE]



Ah, but what if for half of us the colors are all reversed? Or, what if some people have an entirely different set of colors?
[QUOTE=''spazzx625''][QUOTE=''_glatisant_'']The appearance of a colour is subjective, but it is a real distinction, due to specific wavelengths of light, just asmuch as there is between visible light and infra-red.[/QUOTE] Right...So the paradox comes in... If color has a definitive wavelength, is it that color if it's not being seen? This is much like 'if a tree falls and no one's around to hear it, does it make a sound?'[/QUOTE]Let's look at it like this, 700nm light could appear differently to one person than to another. But 700nm will always be associated with lower frequency light than 400nm light, although two people looking at this might see different shades of blue. If we shine a beam of uniform wavelengths through a double split we can show that a colour the vast majority associate with blue has a higher frequency than that which the majority associate with red. They might see this ''red'' and ''blue'' as a completely different colour, but could still identify this colour as the ''blue'' or ''red'' that people refer to.
[QUOTE=''duxup'']While I am no expert in the process but everything I've seen indicates color does seem to be fairly grounded in science.[/QUOTE]Yeah, colors have definition scientifically, but you can't just tell a blind person that red has a wavelength of about 650 nm...
[QUOTE=''Head_of_games''][QUOTE=''Engrish_Major''][QUOTE=''WhenPicklezFly'']

what if what ive grown of seening and being told is blue is what you see as orange :shock:[/QUOTE] Well, light and colors are on a continuous wavelength. The colors I see make sense, because they are a logical progression from violet to red. It wouldn't make sense for them to be randomly switched for somebody else (blue next to orange, etc).[/QUOTE] Ah, but what if for half of us the colors are all reversed? Or, what if some people have an entirely different set of colors?[/QUOTE]

I guess it's possible, but humans are constructed very similarly. Maybe someone with DNA that is different than most peoples' could see things differently, but I think that it would be far more likely to be simply colorblind than to see different, or 'enhanced' colors.
Too early for this kind of thinking. :P Anyway, I used to think to myself sometimes about what if colors are perceived differently by each person. What if blues to one person are reds to another, while greens may be yellows to someone else, etc. It's kinda like that part in the Matrix when the kid was talking about why everything tastes like chicken. Who knows, maybe we're just part of some matrix controlled by robots who have no idea what color is supposed to like, and everything we see is wrong anyway! :P
the wavelengths of the colors are strictly defined.. however the peron's brain may interpret them slightly different.
[QUOTE=''JustPlainLucas'']Too early for this kind of thinking. :P Anyway, I used to think to myself sometimes about what if colors are perceived differently by each person. What if blues to one person are reds to another, while greens may be yellows to someone else, etc. It's kinda like that part in the Matrix when the kid was talking about why everything tastes like chicken. Who knows, maybe we're just part of some matrix controlled by robots who have no idea what color is supposed to like, and everything we see is wrong anyway! :P[/QUOTE]Colors don't even exist, at least not that we know of. Reptiles were the first animals to develop eyesight so advanced that they could visually see the difference between differenct shades of white and black. Hence the colors. But that sight was subjective to them. It is unknown what the world really looks like, maybe it doesn't look like anything. It IS different for some animals, Like cats, bees etc.
[QUOTE=''spazzx625''][QUOTE=''duxup'']While I am no expert in the process but everything I've seen indicates color does seem to be fairly grounded in science.[/QUOTE]Yeah, colors have definition scientifically, but you can't just tell a blind person that red has a wavelength of about 650 nm...[/QUOTE] No but you also can't tell me about infrared either, but that doesn't make it subjective.
[QUOTE=''duxup'']No but you also can't tell me about infrared either, but that doesn't make it subjective.[/QUOTE]Not having something in our visible spectrum could be subjective, though. Just because we can't see it doesn't mean that it doesn't have a 'color' to something.
[QUOTE=''spazzx625'']This is kind of paradoxical, but I am pretty sure there is a correct answer. I'm just curious what others think. Note that I am being very high-level about the arguments I am presenting, if you don't like my examples, that's fine, but try to provide better ones.Argument 1: Colors are subjective.
Evidence: It is impossible to correctly describe colors to the blind.Argument 2: Colors are not subjective.
Evidence: The color spectrum has specific wavelengths for colors.Thoughts?[/QUOTE]Well, perhaps they're both right in a way, with colours themselves being objective but our sensory experience of them being subjective.
It would be hard to describe anything to the blind(if they cant touch it). If colors are subjective because of the difficulty it takes to describe them then that means a lot of other things are too, right? Like say, stars.So yeah, no. I dont think colors are subjective.
[QUOTE=''spazzx625''][QUOTE=''duxup'']

No but you also can't tell me about infrared either, but that doesn't make it subjective.[/QUOTE]Not having something in our visible spectrum could be subjective, though. Just because we can't see it doesn't mean that it doesn't have a 'color' to something.[/QUOTE]

It doesn't have a color to humans, at least.