NPR story about color
February 10, 2014 2:04 PM   Subscribe

This is driving me batty. In the last year or three I heard a story on NPR about color. I would have heard the story on a Saturday afternoon (I don't know if that helps). The topics ranged from people who can (in theory) see colors that most people can't, the history of dyes and the names we give colors, etc. The narrator tested a theory on his daughter regarding color. Like, he didn't ever mention the color blue to see if she could figure it out on her own. Can anyone help me find this story? thanks in advance, Andres
posted by pibeandres to Grab Bag (10 answers total) 14 users marked this as a favorite
 
Best answer: http://www.radiolab.org/story/211119-colors/
posted by capnsue at 2:06 PM on February 10, 2014 [5 favorites]


I'm pretty sure it's the second story in the Color episode of Radiolab.
posted by Lutoslawski at 2:06 PM on February 10, 2014 [2 favorites]


Radiolab - Colors
posted by bcwinters at 2:07 PM on February 10, 2014 [1 favorite]


Fourthing the Radiolab episode. I specifically remember the researcher and his daughter (in fact, he and his partner never told her what color the sky was, to see what would happen based on a culture that didn't name the color 'blue' and therefore didn't see the sky as a separate entity).
posted by cooker girl at 2:39 PM on February 10, 2014


n-thing the Radiolab episode on color.

The narrator tested a theory on his daughter regarding color. Like, he didn't ever mention the color blue to see if she could figure it out on her own.

I remember this bit, too: Why isn't the sky blue?
posted by amf at 2:42 PM on February 10, 2014




The Mantis Shrimp, mentioned prominently in the Radiolab color episode, was also featured in a comic by The Oatmeal.
posted by matildaben at 2:54 PM on February 10, 2014


The redoubtable mantis shrimp also appears in this amusing (although explicit) video from ze frank.
posted by clerestory at 7:43 PM on February 10, 2014


You may also be interested in Guy Deutscher's book Through the Language Glass which has a chapter on colour and mentions the whole "ixnay on the ueblay" experiment.
posted by nomis at 9:29 PM on February 10, 2014


Response by poster: I love y'all! This story inspired a quilt I'll be soon starting on and I really wanted to have a link to the inspiration. Thanks again!
posted by pibeandres at 4:52 PM on February 11, 2014


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