Blogpost 7: R A I N B O W

 "Let no one who loves be unhappy, even love not returned has its rainbow." - J.M. Barrie

This is a saying that gives inspiration to anyone who feels like giving up whenever he or she gets rejected or left by their special someone. There are so many good things in life, and most of them are free. If we learn to forgive and forget, we will find true happiness. The key to this is to look at the brighter and wonderful side of life and never give up.

 So why am I saying this? The rainbow is not just some sort of object that appears after a rain. A lot of hidden things are found within. Since the rainbow is composed of many colors, there are fun facts not yet much known. According to the Franklin Institute, a RAINBOW is like the color red that can be seen differently from one person to another. The reason behind this is that people view it from different angles. You may be beside someone, but the view you are seeing is different. Also, the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow is a childhood lie. The fact is, every time we move away from the sight of the rainbow, it also moves away from us.

 

  The rainbow is believed to be the connection between heaven and earth. As discussed by Whitney Hopler on her article WHAT ARE ANGEL COLORS, some say that these represent the 7 archangels namely Michael, Jophiel, Chamuel, Gabriel, Raphael, Uriel and Zadkiel. They stood before God on the day of Revelation. These rays have their own meaning as: blue, holy angels; yellow, beautiful thoughts; pink, peaceful relationships; white, revelation; green, healing; red, wisdom; and purple, mercy. Religion is not really the main focus here but the symbols and people that the rainbow portrays.

 

 As a whole, rainbows are not only present after a rain, they are with us in our everyday life. They are like souls that may not be seen but their essence can be felt. Most of us may view it as a combination of ROYGBIV, but there are so many hidden colors that cannot be seen by the naked eye. Just like in life, there are more things yet to be discovered with a beautiful structure as a rainbow. It gives hope and everlasting inspiration to those who are about to lose hope. Look up to the skies, and feel the entity of the magical rainbow.

Blogpost 6: Thinking Beyond

 All of us will not last a day without playing a music on our computer, iPod or any gadget with music in it. Music has been part of our daily lives. From the moment we celebrated our 1st birthday up to the moment that we will be sent to our final destination, the entity of music is around. We may not like the tune of the song we hear, but the message that it conveys catches our attention. So why am I saying this? Music can be connected to colors because they give one's life a beautiful meaning. Without music, the world will be dull and monotonous. This is one of the ways on how we can express our thoughts and emotions through the use of musical accompaniment.

 BACH TO THE BLUES, OUR EMOTIONS MATCH MUSIC TO COLORS, an article written by Yasmin Anwar, states that whenever we hear a certain genre of music, different colors are formulated in the back of our mind. When we hear a fast-paced song, the light and bright colors are given more emphasis compared to the slow-paced songs that portray dark, mellow colors. It has also been said that songs with faster tempos can be associated with positive emotions while the ones played that have slow tempos show that the person playing it has a negative emotion. It is like putting our favored colors for the white spaces of a coloring book.

 SYNESTHESIA, as discussed by several faculty members from Washington, D.C. such a new word for most of us, but this is one common condition that we subtly have. It is where two organs work to perceive a single thought. However, this may bring confusion to 2 people that experience the same condition. One may see the letter "A" as red, but the other one may see it as blue. I was quite surprised that left-handed people like me are more prone to this condition. Some conditions are involuntary, while some are on purpose with regard to our emotions. Scientists find this study interesting because it shows how people perceive the things that they see.

 Music is not only composed of a musical staff and a note. The way our brain processes the information we see will give meaning to the music that we hear. By that way, synesthesia comes in and 2 of our senses collaborate and we are able to taste, feel or vision the simple words that we read.

Blogpost 5: C O L O R A T I O N S

Humans are not the only ones who can see color. Have you ever wondered if your pets can see colors like us? However, some animals see poor color vision while some have very good color vision. I am pretty sure that most of us have seen a bullfight in television or live. Almost all of the bulls would attack the red cape that is being faced in front of them. But did you know that bulls are colorblind? They do not actually see the color red. The only reason why they attack the red cape is because it is moving.

 HOW ANIMALS SEE COLOR is a very nice topic written by Jill Morton. It is quite odd how scientists were able to know what colors animals can see. Most were known by observing behavioral patterns against different colors. The bees and the butterflies can see colors beyond our range. They use this to pollinate the flowers around. We see different colors of flowers, but bees and butterflies can see ultraviolet

in them. This is the main reason why they are easily attracted to these. Another unique kind of vision is possessed by snakes. It is the thermal vision which makes use of the heat that is present within. They actually do not need their eyes to see their prey, merely feeling their body heat makes them recognize their presence. Other animals have stronger color perception during night time, like the gecko and the owl. The gecko is the first reptile known to be able to distinguish color blue from gray under dim light.

Animals have different defense mechanisms they use to protect themselves whenever they are in danger. Other animals risk their lives in order to protect themselves. Like in the case of bees, when they sting you, part of their internal organs remains with the stinger, leaving them dying. Some have venom to protect themselves and quite a number uses different kinds of COLORATION, as mentioned by Biocyclopedia. Mimicry occurs when one copies the color of a dangerous animal. Camouflage is similar to mimicry in such a way that an animal copies the color of his surroundings. Seasons also contribute to the reasons why animals change color. An Arctic fox turns brownish during summer to adapt to the color of the land, and during winter, it turns snow white.

Blogpost 4: Brighten Me Up

 Everything has its own given color. Have you ever wondered how the world was like when there will only be shades of black and white? Everything will be very dull. When an object appears, a certain color will be illuminated by white light. This means that it is reflecting light of that certain color and it is absorbing all other colors. The more light the object absorbs, the more heat that will be absorbed since light is energy. If you consider it a color, black absorbs the most heat. A black object absorbs all wavelengths of light and reflects none. Objects that are white, on the other hand, reflect all wavelengths of light and therefore absorbs the least heat.

 According to WHY ARE THINGS THE COLOUR THEY ARE by Color Therapy Healing, there are 4 things that colors can do depending on its exposure to light. The following are: reflection and scattering, absorption, transmission and refraction. 

 Reflection is the change in direction of light. Example is the bouncing of light on a surface like a mirror. Scattering is the dispersion of light. Example is when you turn on a flashlight, there is one straight path of bright light, while the rest are blurred. Absorption is the process in which energy of light radiation is transferred to a medium through which it is passing. Transmission is the process wherein light passes through a medium without being absorbed or scattered. A good example for this will be the lighting of laser through a vacuum tube. Lastly, refraction is the bending of light as it passes through another medium.

 Another article that I have read about is with regard to the argument if BLACK AND WHITE ARE COLORS by Jill Morton. Scientists
see that white is a color and black is not, while kids view black a color and white as not. I have the same belief as scientists because I know that black is the presence of color and the absence of light, while white is the absence of color and the presence of light. When you combine all the colors in the color wheel, black will dominate. On the other hand, it will be very hard to create the color white from mixing all the colors. When looking through the colors of the ink on a printer, black is included. If only the colors cyan, magenta and yellow are included, it will not produce the right colors properly, but it will create a muddy brown color.

 To imagine one person in a black and white world is not nice. It will be very boring to look at. Thanks to the vision that we have and we can see things multicolored. Also, the presence of light is very important in our daily lives. Without it, everything will be in total darkness.

Blogpost 3: V I S I O N S

 The sense of sight consists of the eye. All the basic things we need to know about the functions of the eye were taught way back in grade school then continued in high school. Without this, we will not be able to see and witness the wonders of life. There are many parts of the eye and here are some such as the sclera, the outer white part; the iris, the colored part; the pupil, the opening in the center of the iris; the cornea, a clear membrane on the front surface; the lens, a transparent and somewhat flexible ball-like entity at the front of the pupil; the retina, the light sensitive surface at the back of the eye that contains the rods and cones; the rods, the receptors in the retina that are exquisitely sensitive to light but are not very useful for color vision; the cones, the receptors in the retina for color vision; and the blind spot, an area on the retina, directly in front of the optic nerve, that does not contain any receptors.

 Knowing the different parts of our eyes is not enough to understand how our vision works. Different theories have been presented to explain why each person gives a different perspective on what we see. Based on my findings from the THEORIES OF COLOR VISION, there are 2 major theories which are the trichromatic theory and the opponent-process theory.

 The trichromatic theory as proposed by Thomas Young and Hermann von Helmholtz, explains that color perception results from mixing three distinct color systems, one system maximally sensitive to short wavelengths (blue), another maximally sensitive to medium wavelengths (green), and another maximally sensitive to long wavelengths (red).

On the other hand, the opponent-process theory as proposed by Ewald Hering explains that color perception is based on three systems of color opposites. Each color system is sensitive to two opposing colors – blue and yellow, red and green, black and white.

 According to WHAT IS COLORBLINDNESS AND THE DIFFERENT TYPES by TestingColorVision.com, people with normal color vision are trichromats. They can match a range of colors using three primary colors (red, blue and green). People who have deficiencies in perceiving color are often referred to as color blind. Some are dichromats, meaning they can match a range of color using two primaries (red and green or blue or yellow). Others are monochromats, meaning they see the world in black and white or shades of gray. Colorblindness is hereditary and may be diagnosed using the ISHIHARA TEST FOR COLORBLINDNESS.

 Our eyes may be small in size, but it can help us in everything that we do. We should give it proper care because it is our only window to the world that surrounds us. To place myself in such situation would make my life incomplete; black is the only shade that I will see. To see the different colors helps in visioning the true beauty of every color in life.

Blogpost 2: Wonders of Colors

  The eye is the part of the body used for the functioning of the sense of sight. As each day passes by, we have a lot of questions in mind with regard to colors. Honestly, it may take us a lifetime to know all information about colors. As what others say "To see is to believe." But how can we believe in something we see if we have less information about it?

From the time we start to blink our eyes up to the time we close it, the presence of different colors have been with us. You may admit that you are familiar with a lot of things about colors, but I’ll prove you wrong. I myself knew 10 FASCINATING FACTS ABOUT COLOR from the website LISTVERSE and these are just some but there are actually a lot of them.

Top 10: MEN AND WOMEN SEE THE COLOR RED VERY DIFFERENTLY

It is because of the 2 X chromosomes that women possess while men only have 1 of it. This is very obvious especially when women buy clothes at department stores. Maybe that is why it takes a lot of time for women to choose the right red dress for an evening event compared to a man who only takes a minute or 2 to pick something to wear.

Top 9: SILVER WILL SAVE YOUR LIFE

Whenever we purchase an automobile, it is best suggested to paint it silver. Though it may not have a research background, many see silver very visible during night time thus making it safe from accidents. Also, based on my experience, when we bought a car, my brothers and I kept arguing on what color the car must be painted. But in the end, we have decided to paint it silver for visibility and simplicity. Lastly, it will also depend on the person driving the car if he will be accident-prone or not.

Top 7: BRIGHT COLORS WILL WIN YOU FRIENDS

Others perceive our personality with the colors we wear. If one wears a bright colored shirt, the people he tries to interact with will see a bright aura in him. But if he wears something dark, there is a big chance of him being perceived as too serious or hot-tempered of some sort.

Top 4: YELLOW MAKES YOU HUNGRY

I was surprised to have known this thing because our kitchen and dining room walls are painted yellow. When it comes to clothing, yellow is good, but when it comes to eating, it is not that good. Yellow, together with orange, is believed to stimulate one's appetite. That is why if you are someone who is weight conscious, try to avoid restaurants or fast food chains with yellow or orange painted walls.

 As what I have learned from COLOR THERAPY - CHROMOTHERAPY, an article by Dr. Laura De Giorgio, colors impact one's moods, feelings and behaviors. Different meanings can be given to a certain color based on the event and the person.

 Way back Ancient times, Egyptians and Chinese started giving meanings to colors. Some colors can act as stimulants and others can act as depressants. Colors that can act as depressants have soothing and calming effects such as green and blue. While colors that stimulate the mind can evoke creativity, hunger and stress like red, orange and yellow. Violet, which is hard to produce from nature, was made the color for royalty.

                   

 Nowadays, people give different meanings to different colors. Some may be negative but most are positive. But it is still up to one person on how he will portray the essence of a color. We have our own minds, so it is always up to us to convey the meaning of the colors that we see.

Blogpost 1: R O Y G B I V

 Red. Orange. Yellow. Green. Blue. Indigo. Violet. These were the 7 colors that first became familiar to the eyes of a preschool child with the use of the ever-famous rainbow figure. At first it may seem odd that such object can be multicolored, but after every rain, the rainbow becomes a reality to one’s eyes. But did you know that a rainbow does not actually have 7 colors? In the article READ THE RAINBOW: 'ROY G. BIV' PUTS NEW SPIN ON COLOR WHEEL written by NPR Staff, Jude Stewart indicated that the 7 colors of the rainbow just so happened in an instant. When Sir Isaac Newton discovered the color wheel, he had to make up 7 random colors in order to fit the musical scale.

 In 1666, the first color wheel was discovered by Sir Isaac Newton which gave emphasis on the 3 primary colors of red, yellow and blue. Once 2 of the primary colors are combined, secondary colors of orange, violet and green will be formed. Lastly, combination of a primary color and a secondary color results to any of the tertiary colors of red-orange, red-violet, yellow-orange, yellow-green, blue-violet and blue-green. From then on, different debates with regards to the variation of colors took place and the one with the higher number of correct color sequence was given recognition. As indicated by Jill Morton, author of COLOR MATTERS, colors must also have that sense of harmony. Compared to us humans, we must have that sense of belonging in a certain group so as to add life to the party. That goes the same with colors, in order to appear pleasant to the eyes of one’s surroundings, perfect combination must take place at all times.

 Have you ever wondered why we tend to see different colors around us and how it affects our perception of things that happen every single moment? According to Jill Morton’s WHY COLOR MATTERS, colors have a big effect on how people choose the things that they purchase from a store. The ones that involve more details of color are the ones to be sold out first. While the ones that have the fewer amounts of colors becomes 2^nd choice thus taking a longer period of time before it is consumed. Another observation is that colors affect how appetizing food can be. A good example for that would be the made-up color for ketchup because one may think that it has been naturally red. But when a ketchup brand in the US conducted a study about changing its color, the result concluded that adults rejected the idea of altering the ketchup’s color. On the other hand, children enjoyed playing with green ketchup.

 Colors give us a natural perspective of things, which makes us quite conservative of how objects should be. Going back to the first article, there are actually a lot of fun facts from studying colors. One is with the wrong assumption of scientists with the color of the universe. They thought that it was turquoise, but then after numerous recalculations, they arrived with the plain color of beige. Another one is with the ridiculous idea of the British empire of painting their warship pink so as to blend with the sky's color at dusk. Not everybody has the same outlook towards color usage. Some may like vivid and colorful displays, while some prefer the simple ones. Tradition tells us to stick with certain color motifs for certain occasions. Even our brain rejects certain color schemes that does not seem to work at all.

We have our own LIFE.

We have our own STYLE.

We have our own ROYGBIV.