Re: Color names, color discrimination

[Rick Tarara <rtarara@SAINTMARYS.EDU>]

While David's note is clearly tongue in cheek, CYAN is defined in RGB color
systems as equal mixes of green and blue each at the same intensity.

FWIW

Rick

**********************************************
Richard W. Tarara
Associate Professor of Physics
Saint Mary's College
Notre Dame, IN 46556
rtarara@saintmarys.edu

FREE PHYSICS INSTRUCTIONAL SOFTWARE
www.saintmarys.edu/~rtarara/
PC and MAC software
NEW! E&M package for the  Animated Chalkboard
CD-ROMs now available
******************************************************


----- Original Message -----
From: "David Bowman"

> Regarding:
> > ...
> > I have an ongoing argument with my wife about the color blue.  She wants
to
> > call cyan blue.
>
> &
>
> > ...
> > I guess it's like a foreign language.  In Paris, I don't use German
> > color-names.  In a clothing store, I don't use print-shop color names.
> >
> > I suppose a latter-day Prof. Henry Higgins could tell what culture you
come
> > from by listening to the color-names you use.
>
> Apparently, it *is* a foriegn language.  I thought I would mention that
> according to the etymology listed in my dictionary for the entry on
> "cyan", it seems that the word comes from the Greek "kyanos"
> (kappa|upsilon|nu|omicron|sigma) whose meaning is/was 'dark blue'.
> Apparently, over the millenia, maybe dark blue has evolved into a sort of
> green-tinged blue?  It seems that properly defining this color is Greek
> to me.
>
> David Bowman
> David_Bowman@georgetowncollege.edu