Category Archives: Science

Tickle me pink! Is that really another colour?

• Pink is a light red to red-purple colour with the hexcode of #FFCBDB and RGB code of (255, 203, 219).
• The term ‘pink’ originates from a species of the Dianthus plant that goes by the same name, most likely in reference to its flowers that have a zigzag edge that look like they have been cut with pinking shears.
• Common shades of pink include orchid, cherry blossom, Barbie, cotton candy, pastel, baby, Mountbatten and rose.
• ‘Pink’ was originally referred to as ‘rosy’ until the former word’s use in the late 1600s, while ‘rosy’ originated from the Latin term ‘roseus’.
• During the Medieval and Ancient eras, pink was generally reserved for describing or painting the colour of the skin of people.

• Ham, pigs, roses, sunsets, tulips, galahs, cherry blossoms, berry-flavoured sweets, rose quartz, cotton candy and lipstick are all commonly coloured pink.
• Pink is typically used to symbolise sweet, youth, female, love, innocence, charm, beauty and politeness.
• Due to its base of red and shades of white, pink is useful to attract attention but it is also quite passive and it can have a calming affect, hence its use in some circumstances in some prisons.
• In some countries, pink is strongly associated with young girls, and as such, they are dressed in this colour, and this practice began in the early 1900s, which also saw boys being dressed in blue.
• Pink pigment is typically made with red and white, however, some say pink is not technically a colour due to its absence on the light spectrum, as it is made from violet and red light, located on opposite ends of the spectrum.

Bibliography:
Pink, 2015, Color Matters, http://www.colormatters.com/the-meanings-of-colors/pink

Pink, 2015, Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pink

Smith K, All About the Colour PINK, n.d, Sensational Color, http://www.sensationalcolor.com/color-meaning/color-meaning-symbolism-psychology/all-about-the-color-pink-4342#.VaMv34uUd8E

Sorry girls, but the colour pink doesn’t exist and is just a pigment of our imagination, 2012, Daily Mail Australia, http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2112339/Sorry-girls-colour-pink-doesnt-exist-just-pigment-imagination.html

Mixing up the browns is quite entertaining.

• Brown is a tertiary colour made by mixing red, yellow and blue/black pigments together, or by blending red and green light.
• The hex code of brown is #964B00 while the RGB code is (150, 75, 0), and the colour sits on a variety of wavelengths approximate to red, orange or yellow.
• Common shades of brown include khaki, beige, chocolate, dirty, sandy, wooden, amber, umber and tan.
• ‘Brown’ comes from the word ‘brún’, which is an old English word meaning ‘dusky’ or ‘dark’.
• Various brown shades were used in depictions of both animal and people in prehistoric paintings and ancient art, and this has been evident in both Egypt and Greece.

• After the Ancient Age, brown was rarely chosen for artworks until later in the 1400s, and after this time the colour became particularly common and its use peaked around the 1600s and 1700s.
• Natural brown colour is often sourced from clay, and two of the shades, umber and sienna, are high in iron oxide which contributes to their colour; while sepia is sourced from certain cuttlefish; and nuts and nut-trees have been used to produce natural dyes in this colour.
• Hair, eye and skin are commonly brown, while other objects commonly found in this colour include chocolate, coffee, dirt, and some military uniforms; while many mammals such as bears and deer, as well as birds, display this colour.
• Brown is often used to symbolise dependability, plainness, humility, a rustic nature, low wealth and peasantry.
• According to surveys conducted across both the United States and Europe, brown is marked by the majority as the least appealing colour.

Bibliography:
Brown, 2015, Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brown

Color & Branding, 2015, Color Matters, http://www.colormatters.com/color-and-marketing/color-and-branding

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If a rhyme is what you seek, don’t choose orange or it may reek.

• Orange is a colour and part of the visual spectrum, situated between yellow and red, with a wavelength of 590 to 620 nanometres, a hex code of #FF7F00, and an RGB code of (255, 127, 0).
• In pigments, orange can be made by mixing red and yellow from the RYB colour wheel, while in light, it can be made with higher quantities of red light with the addition of lower quantities of green light.
• The term ‘orange’, first used in the early 1500s, was taken directly from the Old French word ‘orenge’ in reference to the fruit of the same colour and name, while previously the colour was known as ‘ġeolurēad‘ which literally meant ‘yellow-red’.
• Common shades of orange include peach, apricot, carrot, bronze, mango, terracotta, vermillion, burnt and saffron.
• Realgar, orpiment and crocoite are all natural minerals that were commonly used in the past to create an orange colour paint, while saffron and turmeric were plant based materials used to dye cloth and other items.

• Carrots, mangoes, desert sand, pumpkins, apricots, mandarins, marigolds and other flowers, autumn leaves, tigers, peaches, goldfish, and marmalade are things that commonly feature the colour orange.
• Natural objects that appear orange typically have a high content of the chemical carotene, and this can be seen in flowers, leaves, vegetables and fruit that display this colour.
• Orange attracts the eye and is the easiest colour to see in low lighting, low visibility, or next to water, hence its popularity for use on some boats, bridges and life jackets, traffic cones and signage, as well as ‘black box’ flight recorders.
• Orange is commonly used to symbolise health, safety, energy, cheerfulness, positivity, passiveness, loudness, warmth and comfort.
• It is normal for a person to find orange either a highly displeasing colour or a highly pleasing colour; and the colour is commonly used for robes worn by Buddhist monks, and represents a commitment to perfection or illumination.

Bibliography:
The Many Meanings of Orange, 2015, Color Wheel Artist, http://www.color-wheel-artist.com/meanings-of-orange.html

Orange, 2015, Color Matters, http://www.colormatters.com/the-meanings-of-colors/orange

Orange (Colour), 2015, Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orange_(colour)

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