Have you ever wondered if you see the same colours as other people? Most people know what blue is when they see it. They call it "blue" because they were taught the word and connected it with what they saw. But how do you know what you see as blue isn't someone else's red?
The ability to perceive (感知) different colours is up to receptors (接受器) in our eyes. Light waves hit these receptors and they react (反应) depending on which colour the light is, sending signals to the brain. The brain then reads these signals to determine which colour light the eyes are receiving.
Some people's receptors are more developed than others. The inability of the receptor to feel the light waves correctly means that some people cannot tell the differences between similar colours. Those with more developed receptors can see more colours. We sometimes hear people having an argument about whether something is dark blue or black. It might be because one person has stronger receptors to feel the light than another.
In the past, most scientists would argue that everyone saw colours in the same way. However, research was conducted on monkeys, in which their receptors were changed. This enabled them to see more colours than usual. Normally monkeys can only see blue and green, but the change allowed them to see red. Their brains automatically (自动地) got used to new colours. This suggests that our brains may find new colors of the things we see. Colours could be a very personal experience , unique(独特的) to everyone.
So, the next time you talk about your favourite colour, just remember if yours is blue and your friend says red, you two might actually be thinking about the same colour. What if everyone in the world has the same favourite colour, but just calls it different names?
