The Existence of Pink
By: Benjamin Livney, '17
(CHAOS 2016 EDITION)
(CHAOS 2016 EDITION)
We can see because our eyes receive light reflected off of various objects, and those objects have color because it may absorb most frequencies of light but reflect one, say red, and another object may reflect violet and absorb all the others. When Isaac Newton first discovered refracted light through a prism, he gave names to the colors: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet. However, indigo is more of a transition color between blue and violet. In the 1600s Newton deemed blue what we would now call cyan or teal, and in what he named violet, we recognize a deep blue color. (hence “roses are red, violets are blue”). But then where is the purple? And for that matter, where is pink in any of this? There is no pink wavelength. Pink light does not exist on the visible spectrum, thus the color pink does not exist.
To start, pink light is what does not exist. There is no wavelength of pink light. Pink as a concept exists because anything to which we give a name, such as “lamp,” thereby exists as a lamp. Yet, like a more sophisticated concept such as dark matter, we have given pink a name but cannot prove its scientific existence. All colors of the visible spectrum are made apparent when white light is refracted through a prism, however pink is not one of them. The only way to get pink light is by mixing gradients of red and blue light, but since those two colors are on opposite ends of the spectrum, they cannot blend. The only feasible way to blend them is to roll up the visible spectrum so that each end—red and violet—touch. But this cannot occur because there would be a gap between them where all kinds of non-visible light exist—UV rays, gamma rays, infrared, radio waves, etc. Thus, red and violet can’t even mix when the spectrum of light is bent to point at itself.
Under certain circumstances, we can see a purple color and sometimes even a shade of pink in a rainbow. Aside from the existence of the concept of pink, this is due to the nature of rainbows themselves. Rainbows are formed when white light from the sun is refracted in water droplets in the air, producing the visible spectrum. A double rainbow is caused when the water droplets allow extra rings of each color, or supernumerary rings, to be produced (the smaller the droplets, the stronger the supernumerary rings). When the size of the droplets is just right, the primary violet or blue rings might coincide with one of the supernumerary red rings, causing red and blue to mix and produce purple or pink. While this is a blend between red and blue to produce “pink”, it isn’t a blending of wavelengths. There is no place on the visible spectrum where a wavelength can get progressively longer or shorter from red to blue or from blue to red. It’s only the mixing of individual wavelengths to produce a color, similar to how all visible colors combine into white light, but there is still no pink wavelength.
What about all of the pink paint in famous paintings? We see pink in our everyday lives, but the pink that we perceive isn’t the reflection of a pink wavelength. Rather, when we create pink artistically, we combine red dye or paint with white dye or paint to lighten it. But all the white is doing is restricting the eye’s ability to perceive the red, because less of the red is being reflected back to the eye. The red is still red, but we see less of it and perceive it as pink.
One can still perceive pink with combinations of different wavelengths of light, namely, if one takes the green wavelengths out of white light, the result is pink. This can only be done on the quantum level. There are two ways to shine light: to emit light directly, like the sun or a fire, or to reflect light in a different direction. So far we have only dealt with the latter. To emit light, an atom must enter the excited state, when its electrons absorb energy causing a jump from their normal orbital to the next one up. It must then return to the ground state, when the electrons return to their normal orbitals. But the law of conservation of energy states that the amount of energy put into something must then be released. When electrons return to the ground state, they release energy in the form of electromagnetic radiation, or light. For example, when the electrons in hydrogen atoms return to the ground state, it emits a pink-ish glow. When one eliminates the green wavelengths, the combination of wavelengths usually perceived as white is now perceived as pink, as the human brain cannot distinguish between individual wavelengths. However, the absence of green forces the brain to perceive the combination differently. Now, excited hydrogen actually emits four different colors: violet, blue-violet, blue-green, and red. One can view these colors individually using a spectroscope, which breaks down the pink-ish glow into its component colors. Therefore, it is the combination of the emitted violet, blue-violet, blue-green, and red that we perceive together as pink.
We have a name for pink, however there is no pink light. We perceive combinations of light as pink, however there is no wavelength of light that is pink. Maybe non-visible light is pink but we can’t see it because we have no way of accurately seeing nonvisible light without technology to transfer it into visible light. Rainbows and paint and excited hydrogen all can appear to be pink, but actually do not reflect pink light, so the next time you see pink a rainbow, think to yourself: “that color isn’t real.
To start, pink light is what does not exist. There is no wavelength of pink light. Pink as a concept exists because anything to which we give a name, such as “lamp,” thereby exists as a lamp. Yet, like a more sophisticated concept such as dark matter, we have given pink a name but cannot prove its scientific existence. All colors of the visible spectrum are made apparent when white light is refracted through a prism, however pink is not one of them. The only way to get pink light is by mixing gradients of red and blue light, but since those two colors are on opposite ends of the spectrum, they cannot blend. The only feasible way to blend them is to roll up the visible spectrum so that each end—red and violet—touch. But this cannot occur because there would be a gap between them where all kinds of non-visible light exist—UV rays, gamma rays, infrared, radio waves, etc. Thus, red and violet can’t even mix when the spectrum of light is bent to point at itself.
Under certain circumstances, we can see a purple color and sometimes even a shade of pink in a rainbow. Aside from the existence of the concept of pink, this is due to the nature of rainbows themselves. Rainbows are formed when white light from the sun is refracted in water droplets in the air, producing the visible spectrum. A double rainbow is caused when the water droplets allow extra rings of each color, or supernumerary rings, to be produced (the smaller the droplets, the stronger the supernumerary rings). When the size of the droplets is just right, the primary violet or blue rings might coincide with one of the supernumerary red rings, causing red and blue to mix and produce purple or pink. While this is a blend between red and blue to produce “pink”, it isn’t a blending of wavelengths. There is no place on the visible spectrum where a wavelength can get progressively longer or shorter from red to blue or from blue to red. It’s only the mixing of individual wavelengths to produce a color, similar to how all visible colors combine into white light, but there is still no pink wavelength.
What about all of the pink paint in famous paintings? We see pink in our everyday lives, but the pink that we perceive isn’t the reflection of a pink wavelength. Rather, when we create pink artistically, we combine red dye or paint with white dye or paint to lighten it. But all the white is doing is restricting the eye’s ability to perceive the red, because less of the red is being reflected back to the eye. The red is still red, but we see less of it and perceive it as pink.
One can still perceive pink with combinations of different wavelengths of light, namely, if one takes the green wavelengths out of white light, the result is pink. This can only be done on the quantum level. There are two ways to shine light: to emit light directly, like the sun or a fire, or to reflect light in a different direction. So far we have only dealt with the latter. To emit light, an atom must enter the excited state, when its electrons absorb energy causing a jump from their normal orbital to the next one up. It must then return to the ground state, when the electrons return to their normal orbitals. But the law of conservation of energy states that the amount of energy put into something must then be released. When electrons return to the ground state, they release energy in the form of electromagnetic radiation, or light. For example, when the electrons in hydrogen atoms return to the ground state, it emits a pink-ish glow. When one eliminates the green wavelengths, the combination of wavelengths usually perceived as white is now perceived as pink, as the human brain cannot distinguish between individual wavelengths. However, the absence of green forces the brain to perceive the combination differently. Now, excited hydrogen actually emits four different colors: violet, blue-violet, blue-green, and red. One can view these colors individually using a spectroscope, which breaks down the pink-ish glow into its component colors. Therefore, it is the combination of the emitted violet, blue-violet, blue-green, and red that we perceive together as pink.
We have a name for pink, however there is no pink light. We perceive combinations of light as pink, however there is no wavelength of light that is pink. Maybe non-visible light is pink but we can’t see it because we have no way of accurately seeing nonvisible light without technology to transfer it into visible light. Rainbows and paint and excited hydrogen all can appear to be pink, but actually do not reflect pink light, so the next time you see pink a rainbow, think to yourself: “that color isn’t real.
Works Cited
Kilmas, L. (2013, November 15). The Color Pink Does Not Exist (Really). Retrieved January 11, 2015, from <http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2013/11/15/the-color-pink-does-not-exist-really/>.
Krulwich, R. (2012, March 2). They Did It To Pluto, But Not To Pink! Please Not Pink! Retrieved January 11, 2015, from <http://www.npr.org/blogs/krulwich/2012/02/28/147590898/they-did-it-to-pluto-but-not-to-pink-please-not-pink>.
Latin, P. (6-11 January 2015) Science Question. Interview by Ben Livney.
Locker, M. (2012, March 7). Does the Color Pink Exist? Scientists Aren't Sure. Retrieved January 11, 2015, from <http://newsfeed.time.com/2012/03/07/does-the-color-pink-exist-scientists-arent-sure/>.
Reich, H. (2011, October 16). There is no pink light. Retrieved January 11, 2015, from <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S9dqJRyk0YM>.
Reich, H. (2014, October 28). This is Not a Rainbow. Retrieved January 11, 2015, from <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9udYi7exojk>.
Seeing colour. (1998, January 1). Retrieved January 11, 2015, from <http://web.atmos.ucla.edu/~fovell/AS3/theory_of_color.html>.
Kilmas, L. (2013, November 15). The Color Pink Does Not Exist (Really). Retrieved January 11, 2015, from <http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2013/11/15/the-color-pink-does-not-exist-really/>.
Krulwich, R. (2012, March 2). They Did It To Pluto, But Not To Pink! Please Not Pink! Retrieved January 11, 2015, from <http://www.npr.org/blogs/krulwich/2012/02/28/147590898/they-did-it-to-pluto-but-not-to-pink-please-not-pink>.
Latin, P. (6-11 January 2015) Science Question. Interview by Ben Livney.
Locker, M. (2012, March 7). Does the Color Pink Exist? Scientists Aren't Sure. Retrieved January 11, 2015, from <http://newsfeed.time.com/2012/03/07/does-the-color-pink-exist-scientists-arent-sure/>.
Reich, H. (2011, October 16). There is no pink light. Retrieved January 11, 2015, from <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S9dqJRyk0YM>.
Reich, H. (2014, October 28). This is Not a Rainbow. Retrieved January 11, 2015, from <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9udYi7exojk>.
Seeing colour. (1998, January 1). Retrieved January 11, 2015, from <http://web.atmos.ucla.edu/~fovell/AS3/theory_of_color.html>.