I just read somewhere (sorry, don't remember which manufaturer's web site) that red is not a good color because 20% of males have red color-vision deficiency. For the same reason, greens and some blues should be avoided. While I doubt any SAR pilots/spotters have color-blindness, that powerboater speeding toward you may very well be color-blind. Graphics that have large repeating patterns are helpful (as in the Coast Guard red bow-slash), but varied patterns can act as camouflage: as the British effectively used to their advantage during the Battle of the North Atlantic with their "dazzle" paint schemes. Robb (still trying to decide on yum-yum yellow or omigod orange) *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced/forwarded outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
RBHoltKayak_at_aol.com wrote: but varied patterns can act as camouflage: as the > British effectively used to their advantage during the Battle of the North > Atlantic with their "dazzle" paint schemes. Dazzle paint schemes, or broken plane and jaggered silohuette, date back to WWI. I believe they were discovered by Picasso. :-) ralph diaz -- ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Ralph Diaz . . . Folding Kayaker newsletter PO Box 0754, New York, NY 10024 Tel: 212-724-5069; E-mail: rdiaz_at_ix.netcom.com "Where's your sea kayak?"----"It's in the bag." ----------------------------------------------------------------------- *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced/forwarded outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
At 03:40 PM 8/2/00 -0400, RBHoltKayak_at_aol.com wrote: > I just read somewhere (sorry, don't remember which manufaturer's web >site) that red is not a good color because 20% of males have red >color-vision deficiency. I've also heard that red is not a good color because in low light it looks black which ends up looking like the rest of the water surface as it gets dark. *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced/forwarded outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
At 03:40 PM 8/2/00 EDT, RBHoltKayak_at_aol.com wrote: SNIP > Graphics that have large repeating patterns are helpful (as in the Coast >Guard red bow-slash), but varied patterns can act as camouflage: as the >British effectively used to their advantage during the Battle of the North >Atlantic with their "dazzle" paint schemes. > I thought the Coast Guard bow slash was orange. I guess I fall into the 20%. Bill Leonhardt *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced/forwarded outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
Bill thought the slash was orange --- so did I. Checked. Here's the gouge. "The design consists of a wide red bar to the right of a narrow blue bar, both canted at 64 degrees with the Coast Guard emblem superimposed. It was originally recommended in 1964 by the industrial design firm of Raymond Loewy/William Snaith, Incorporated and was adopted service-wide on 6 April 1967." JCM *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced/forwarded outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
What Ralph says is true. To my knowledge, no ships or planes camouflaged by Picasso were lost to enemy action during either WWI or WWII... Regards, Kevin ----- Original Message ----- From: ralph diaz <rdiaz_at_ix.netcom.com> To: <RBHoltKayak_at_aol.com> Cc: <paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net> Sent: Wednesday, August 02, 2000 15:56 Subject: Re: [Paddlewise] Red is not good. (was: Visability of kayakers) > *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced/forwarded outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
RBHoltKayak_at_aol.com wrote: > I just read somewhere (sorry, don't remember which manufaturer's web > site) that red is not a good color because 20% of males have red > color-vision deficiency. For the same reason, greens and some blues should > be avoided. As one of the color-blind males, let me add my two cents. Actually it's only 10% of men (and 1% of women) who are color blind. The most common form (6%) is red-green color blindness. This means that there is difficulty in distinguishing red from green. In my case, it means not being able to distinguish certain shades of red and green, with pastel colors being the most difficult. Lighting conditions affect the ability to distinguish as well. Sunlight is the only source that is reliable for me; artificial light means I can't rely on my color perception. Traffic lights are not a problem for me. Hence a red kayak on a green background (like water) would not stand out. I assume that the colors of the leaves in the autumn are less pronounced for me than for most folks. At the Georgian Bay SK Symposium, the White Squall staff mark the locations of on-water exercises by anchoring different colored canoes at different points around the bay. The furthest one was a red canoe. In the background was a marshy area with tall green grasses. Guess which canoe was the one for all the sessions I signed up for? From the dock, I couldn't see the red canoe at all. But neither could the instructor! He was also RG colorblind. > While I doubt any SAR pilots/spotters have color-blindness, > that powerboater speeding toward you may very well be color-blind. The only time I was tested for color blindness for work was when I was hired by an airline. All critical staff (pilots, flight attendants, ground workers etc) cannot be color blind. I would expect various rules prevent an SAR pilot from being accepted if color blind. Those who are color blind and aware of it can make up for the deficiency in some respects. If judging color is critical, for example, I take something into sunlight. In general, I know when to be cautious about color. I like paddling with Amie, because she's not color blind and has razor sharp vision. Not bad for an old gal. I often ask her to confirm sightings of things. My own take on color, based on observing kayakers with visibility in mind, is that international orange is the best (as mentioned by Jack and Kevin). I have an orange PFD and recently bought a yellow one (that brand didn't come in international orange). Yellow is second best. Putting orange Scotchlite tape on the back of your paddle blades is probably a good idea. Mike PS The other dichromats are blue-green and red-blue deficiency. The monochromats see only one color and have even greater problems. It is a misconception that color blind people see black and white. PPS I dream in color - most men don't. *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced/forwarded outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
At 09:12 PM 8/2/2000 -0400, Michael Daly wrote: >My own take on color, based on observing kayakers with visibility in mind, is >that international orange is the best (as mentioned by Jack and Kevin). I have >an orange PFD and recently bought a yellow one (that brand didn't come in >international orange). Yellow is second best. Putting orange Scotchlite tape >on the back of your paddle blades is probably a good idea. Mike, In the past I have wrapped reflective tape around the paddle shaft near the base of the blade. At night, light is reflected in an double arc as the blades move through the air. Pretty cool thing to watch actually. You can also tape different patterns of tape-no tape-double tape (etc..) so that you can I.D. a particular paddle/paddler at night. Jeff. *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced/forwarded outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
I believe that this camouflage did not actually 'mask' the vessel but actually made it difficult to determine where the sensitive or weaker parts of the ships were located to deter an accurate aim. but varied patterns can act as camouflage: as the > British effectively used to their advantage during the Battle of the North > Atlantic with their "dazzle" paint schemes. > > Robb > -- : : Gabriel L Romeu : http://studiofurniture.com furniture from the workshop : http://members.xoom.com/gabrielR life as a tourist, daily journal : http://users.aol.com/romeugp paintings, photographs, etchings, objects *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced/forwarded outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
Gabriel L Romeu wrote: > > I believe that this camouflage did not actually 'mask' the vessel but > actually made it difficult to determine where the sensitive or weaker > parts of the ships were located to deter an accurate aim. > > but varied patterns can act as camouflage: as the > > British effectively used to their advantage during the Battle of the North > > Atlantic with their "dazzle" paint schemes. > > > > Robb > > It broke up their silohuette and made it hard to determine the ship's size which meant the submarine lost perspective and would not know whether the target was 1,000 yards away or 3,000 yards away, complicating aiming and arming of the torpedo. -- ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Ralph Diaz . . . Folding Kayaker newsletter PO Box 0754, New York, NY 10024 Tel: 212-724-5069; E-mail: rdiaz_at_ix.netcom.com "Where's your sea kayak?"----"It's in the bag." ----------------------------------------------------------------------- *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced/forwarded outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
In a message dated 8/2/2000 10:23:28 PM Eastern Daylight Time, romeug_at_erols.com writes: << believe that this camouflage did not actually 'mask' the vessel but actually made it difficult to determine where the sensitive or weaker parts of the ships were located to deter an accurate aim. >> Haven't hear that one, but I really doubt it. Remember, this was not the Gulf War with computer guidance imagery (and even there the miss ratio was much higher than the public was originally lead to believe). The submariners of WWI and II had a hard enough time manuevering to get into position. They were lucky to get a decent shot off, much less try to "aim" for a vulnerable area of the ship. The dazzle paint scheme was developed in WWI, but put to very good use in WWII as just about the only defense against U-boats (until long range escort planes came into service later in the war, after which, the U-boat threat was virtually neutralized). Because there was no way to "mask" the ships like with traditional camouflage techniques, dazzle paint was developed as a way of fooling the visual sensory processes through breaking up solid images and playing with depth perception. From a distance the solid image of the ship would blend into the background of the sea. Here is a link with examples: http://www.cco.caltech.edu/~drmiles/camouflage.html The starboard view at the bottom of the page is a good example of how dazzle paint plays with our perception of depth. Robb *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced/forwarded outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
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