How does one describe the color red to somebody who has been blind their entire lives?
82299
I once saw a movie (I think might have been Mask, with Cher in it, but I'm not sure) where a guy was trying to describe colors to a blind girl. He had her feel something hot for red, then cold for blue. He "showed" her grass for green and so on. There really are no words to describe the colors. You could also try using emotions like passion and anger for red, jealousy for green, depression or sadness for blue, grief for black, etc.
461513
I dont think you can. =^P It would be wierd if I was seeing blue and somebody else was seeing (my version of) red and saying it was blue... Mabye everybody has different color views. Never know.
246414
I'm not aware of any cures for color blindness, however, my brother has this problem. What he does if he doesn't have someone with him when he's shopping for clothes is he looks for racks that have coordinates on them. If he's in doubt, he asks a clerk if the outfit he's chosen looks good. He only has problems with green and blue. He chooses to take someone shopping with him, because most of his wardrobe consists of different shades of blue and green. \n\nYou may want to ask your opthamologist if there is anything that can help you with this. Good luck!
1015142
"In most colorblindness, the person has a different mixture of cones from normal. The cone cells on the retina are the crucial physical components in seeing color. People with normal color perception have three different cones, each cone is tuned to perceive mostly either Long wavelengths (reddish), Middle wavelengths (greenish), or Short wavelengths (bluish), referred to as L-, M-, and S- cones. Our minds determine what "color" we are seeing by determining the ratio between signals from different types of cones. In people with colorblindness, either a type of cone is missing, or the cone has a different peak absorption from normal.\n\n"Congenital color vision deficiencies overwhelmingly affect the L-cones or the M-cones. Full color blindness and insensitivity to blue light are relatively rare. L-cone and M-cone deficiencies are collectively known as red-green colorblindness, because they reduce the ability to distinguish those two colors. Yellow-blue colorblindness stems from the much rarer deficiencies involving the S-cones.\n\n"Colorblindness is primarily a congenital defect. However, colorblindness can also be acquired, as a result of disease or accident (as in the painting at right). In this case, the color vision deficiency is caused by disruption to the neural pathways between the eye and the vision centers of the brain, rather than by loss of cone function in the eye. For example, achromatopsia, the loss of all color vision, can be acquired as a result of brain damage, and Parkinson's disease commonly induces symptoms that are similar to tritanopia."
483277
There is no treatment for color blindness.  It occures when there is a lack of certain color receptors in the eye. The person could be 'trained' to differentiate between the colors,\nbut would never be able to see true green or red.\n\nFYI- color blindness is a trait carried by the female but only shows up in males.
659347
RED RED RED RED RED THATS THE BEST COLOR!!! RED MEAN POWER, AND RESPECT!!!!
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see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Color_vision\nhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Color_blindness
392414
red green colour blind people see shades of grey where we see  those colours.
749137
I hope you can show them that you are a better person then they are by ignoring their stupidity. We all need to give everyone a chance, if they blow it its their loss not yours !!\nDo not give up, there are alot of good people who are color blind, you dont want to miss out on meeting them.
133429
red - black is so depressing.  well, black really isn't a color anyway, it's the absence of all color
21647
You can't, since it's knowledge based off of what we learn from our environment. It'd be the same as trying to describe, for example, a horse, to someone who has never seen a horse. With that example you might could give him a broad idea of what it looks like, but it would be impossible to get an accurate  and completely correct image without having actually experienced seeing one before. With colors, it's more absolute; you either know what a color looks like or you don't (unless you try to explain jungle green as a mix between forest green and dark green or something really confusing like that :-P)
186686
Color is only skin deep. Everyone bleeds red blood, so what is your hang up, you scared someone will say something that is going to hurt your feeling and you get to crying.
172271
Red because it can represent so many things. Love, passion, anger, chaos etc.
1012841
my favorite color is bright red...like the devil...it matches my personality....;) but you should know that
618977
Yes. My grandmother is blind from a disease known as maculuar degeneration.  She dreams in full color.  She doesn't know if the colors look like what everyone else sees, according to her.  But she dreams about an apple and it is what she thinks red should be.  She can "see" what an apple looks like by feeling its shape and texture.  She imagines the rest.
858607
Hi Maddy, I am taking a few moments this morning to reduce stress, pre-wedding jitters, not really nerves, just the usual worries of everything going correctly, as planned. lol \n\nSo, here I am anwering one of your great questions! ;-)  I too have often mused on how the blind or others who have lost a sense, manage to do things, normal everyday things those who have all five senses take for granted on a daily basis. I have mused on what it would be like to be blind. You see, one of my daughters had a knife put out her left eye when she was six. It was a horrific experiance for her and also her father and I. While she has not been completely blind sense birth, we have always been very worried, and sensitive of the worry she may lose sight in her one remaining eye. She was able to 'keep' her damaged eye, but she is basically 90% blind, only able to see shadows and blurred color in it. So, you can imagine this is something I have thought about a great deal. \n\nI read the answers you received when I first clicked here. Bonacua B is as close to an honest interpretation, or considered response than any other. Now, imagination does not require sight. They 'way' they imagine things will be different than those with sight, but they still will have dreams and imagination. Blind folks are as capable of those with sight of being able to be imaginative, innovative, creative and otherwise intuitive. They are in a unique position to provide an alternate view, which can be very impressive. When we are in a 'think tank' it is of best interest to implement as diverse a group as possible. When we keep the group diverse we are able to obtain a uniquely cohesive thought process which can produce great innovative and creative 'out of the box' thinking. This will enable the group to come up with a tremendously increased measure of ideas and concepts. When we place a group of non diverse members into a position of requiring innovative and creative ideas, they are limited to only simular processes as they all have the same abilities and therefor are limited. \n\nThe blind may not be able to see 'color' but color has more than a visual affect. Color is uniquely viewed by each individual with sight. Men and women see colors differently. There are scientific studies which demonstrate these differences between the sexes when it comes to seeing color. The blind are able to imagine colors by using verbal stimuli to create a visual concept. Colors also create emotions, blue is calming, red is stimulating, yellow is comforting, black can be either rage, or blankness, grey is dismal, etc. By utilizing all the elements of color the blind are able to concepulize these and form their own unique 'vision' of color. \n\nEmotions are very strong elements, and they are created from many differing sourses. When we are able to utilize all of our resourses we are then able to acheive our highest potentials. The blind are not any different in this as those who see. \n\nThose who are born blind do NOT increase other senses to 'compensate' for the lost sense. Studies have shown that the other senses which are seeminly increased, are available for the sighted to acheive those inhanced heighths. We ALL have the capasity to use our senses to a maximine capasite, the same as the blind, we just don't do it. When we are trained to use our senses to the highest levels we are able to acheive seeminly spiritual elements within our abilities to minipulate them. Most people just do not work on increasing their senses to the degree of their full capasity. The blind are trained to do so. So, it is not an ability to obtain any higher degree of use in remaining senses, above the ability of any seeing person, it is just they work at acheiving these 'high' degree of developed senses. \n\nI firmly believe the born blind are as able as any other to imagine and dream. The way this is manifested may be different, of course it
639952
Color blindness is a result of a defect in the cone receptors in the retinas of the eyes. Color blindness is a male dominant trait, but is carried by the female. One male in twenty suffers from some form of color blindness, but only one in several hundred females are color blind.\n\nColor blindness is the general term used by most people but maybe in this politically correct world we should refer to it as chromatically challenged. However in reality the symptoms range from an inability to see one color, or shades of one color, to a lack of ability to see any color at all. Because it is a result of a cone defect, colorblind people are also prone to night blindness, and may have extreme difficulty in seeing in low light, or their color perception may be greatly reduced in low light.\n\nWhat color blind people actually see is hard to explain or describe to one who isn't colorblind, and probably equally hard to determine by someone else. To get an idea of the degree of difficulty, try closing your eyes and describing the color green to someone who cannot see or who is totally color blind.\n\nDescribe it without using descriptors such as it is the color of grass, etc. With the exception of blue (which has become synonymous with cold) and red (which has become synonymous with hot) it is very difficult if not impossible to describe a color except in terms of things which are that color, or in terms of another color.\n\nRegardless of the level of color blindness involved, almost all those afflicted can see dark objects on a light background. They may see them as shades of gray but they can distinguish. As the level of intensity approaches equilibrium the ability to distinguish diminishes.\n\nBy equilibrium I mean that the intensity of the colors involved approach each other (the dark objects become lighter and the background becomes darker).\n\nThe most common color perception problems are with certain color combinations such as yellow on green, green on red, red on green, blue on red, red on blue, and red on black. This last is particularly annoying and dangerous, because it means that unless we are concentrating, those flashing little LED displays become almost invisible. I have almost no perception of LED displays unless I am up close, and the diode is very bright.\n\nBy contrast since color blind people don't see color the same way others do, we tend to come up with combinations that are offensive to others but may be neutral or even pleasing or to us.\n\nSome color blind people tend to gravitate to bright, vivid colors because they can be detected more easily. Muted colors or low intensity colors (text, lines or bands where there isn't enough color to register) cause difficulty or are indistinguishable.