If humans could see more of the electromagnetic spectrum, what would colors look like?

[Nikki1989]

Updates

1 mo

I assume if our eyes expanded to extreme wavelengths, the visual experience would shift from colour to structural transparency, am I correct?

[FenixG45]

A synthesthete is a person whose senses or concepts blend together in unusual ways.

For example, they might:
- see colors when hearing music
- associate numbers or letters with specific colors
- taste words or sounds
- feel shapes when touching textures

It’s a real neurological difference, not a disorder by itself. Some synesthetes have one form, others have several.

[FenixG45]

Thank you for MHG!

[ohsheeT]

Good question im not really sure. Since our eyes are dialed in to vibration of frequency that it is

They might be more vibrant or more fluorescent and maybe more transparent

[Iyaelsorai]

There is no definitive answer to this, because what colors look like now is more or less arbitrary; there's nothing about the electromagnetic spectrum that in itself determines that blue would look blue, or that blue looks blue when we see in three primary colors, or what the peak wavelengths of each primary would be, etc.

I mean yes, it's kind of determined by evolutionary stressors, but that just means that if we saw more of the electromagnetic spectrum instead, then the stressors would have to have been different, so it entirely depends on in what way they'd be different in this hypothetical universe.

Also, it's more or less impossible to see much more of the electromagnetic spectrum. The reason we see in the range we do is that it's the range of frequencies that are (a) high enough that they have enough to cause electrochemical reactions (so the retina can register them) and (b) low enough that they don't have so much energy that they actually destroy the chemicals that detect them... or something like that, I don't remember exactly. (There are some animals who can see infrared (through a very special apparatus involving corpuscles of water or something) and animals who can see ultraviolet, but that's still pretty close to the within the same range.)

And yes, there are tetrachromats who can see in more than one primary, but they don't see a wider range of the electromagnetic spectrum than we do, they just see the same frequencies in four primaries instead of three.

[NathanDavis]

more than seeing colors... we would perceive different things

infrared for example, yes... we would perceive the heat, or if gamma rays... solid states would not matter much... in fact, other that our regular vision we could be blinded and perceive WAY TOO MUCH information than our brains are not ready to decode... lol

[xawyx-3]

Well, we would be able to see infra-red and ultra-violet, so it would look more colorful obviously... some animals actually can see those colors.

[bummy]

Let's say we could see infrared and ultraviolet. We could see a lot of firey orange and red the hotter the air got; we could see purple skies of ultraviolet sunlight, just like the ultraviolet lights you see in some public places such as museums, certain stores and things.

[Bricealan]

@Nikki1989 I wish I knew how to answer "intelligently"?

[AngryCarl3]

I don't know. Is that what happens when you take LSD?

[andreasderjuengere]

They look like...

[bear34]

We don't have the chance to experience what you're describing. I can't even imagine what that would be like.

[Smegskull]

There are some, people who can. I think they are all women though. Tetrachromancy.

[_Jenny_]

@Nikki1989 All of the colors

[Paige2006]

I don't know anything about this