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That's Life: Color CodingBy Phyllis McGuire - June 25, 2008
iBerkshires Columnist
Curiosity leads me down many roads, searching for answers to the "Why?" "When?" or "How?" that pops into my mind at the least provocation.
That can be quite distracting, especially when I do not have time to look for the answers. Under those circumstances, I am haunted by such questions as "Why do rainbows form in the sky after rain stops falling?"
No matter how much time or energy I might expend, I would not be able to find the answers to some questions pertaining to the political scene that currently bounce around in my head, as they have yet to be revealed: "Who will Barack Obama choose for his running mate?"
"Will the people who supported Hillary Clinton vote for Obama?"
 Questions about where Obama and John McCain are campaigning send me to the newspapers or CNN for an answer.
A frivolous question came to mind the other day as a truck driver shouted a disparaging remark at a male pedestrian because he was wearing a pink shirt. And I wondered why pink is associated with females.
Later, hoping to satisfy my curiosity, I sat at my computer, clicked "Favorites" and scrolled to Google. Riding on Google's search engines, I visited several Web sites, where I discovered a few studies on color preferences had brought forth similar results.
One Web site reported that a research project scientists undertook a year of so ago showed that given a choice of 250 colors, women selected shades of pink and lilac, while men veered to mainly blues. 
It is believed that those preferences are rooted in the roles our forebearers played in the era when food was foraged, not bought at a store.
Men, therefore, are drawn to blue, as clear blue skies were a sign of a good day for hunting, or so the scientists say. Women's part in providing food was a safer endeavor; they gathered fruits and berries, which were of pink and red hues.
Being drawn to pink and red may be helpful in choosing a mate, a professor involved in the research said, "As rosy cheeks signify good health and a blush is attractive."
Hmmm, rosy cheeks also come with a fever or tuberculosis.
Of the 15 comments appended to that article, some were critical of the scientists' conclusions.
Anon said, "This is not what I call science."
 Another reader opined that the people who had participated in the "test" undoubtedly had been influenced by stereotypes: "If boys' toys were pink, the men in the test would have favored pink, etc."
I have a few thoughts on the subject, but I am not about to take the time to be the 16th person to comment on the article.
I would rather seek an answer to a new question that just occurred to me. "Why and when did it become tradition to dress boy babies in blue and baby girls in pink?"
Stay tuned! |
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