Researchers from the University of California, Berkeley have announced the discovery of a color never before seen by the human eye.
Through a new study, published in Science Advances, researchers used a pulsing laser on study participants to stimulate a part of the eye. Study participants reported that after their eyes were stimulated, they saw a new shade of blue-green. Outside researchers dispute the claim, saying that more study is needed to prove that this is indeed a new color. However, researchers associated with the study say that this new information could contribute to research on color blindness.
Simulating Novel Colors
Our eyes process colors and images through photoreceptors — rods and cones. These photoreceptors are located in the back of the eye on the retina. From the retina, images are sent via neurological and chemical signals to the brain, where those signals are perceived as an image. The cone cells in the retina are responsible for seeing color, and they include “short (S), medium (M), and long (L) wavelength cones.” Each one is more sensitive to blue, red, or green wavelengths.
According to the study authors, to see a novel color, the S and L cones need to be bypassed, and the M cone needs to be isolated.
“Theoretically, novel colors are possible through bypassing the constraints set by the cone spectral sensitivities and activating M cone cells exclusively,” the authors wrote in their study.
Read More: Your Eye Color, Explained
Finding the New Color: Olo
To achieve the results of this study, the research team used a device called “Oz,” which is composed of mirrors, lasers, and other optical components. The research team then used Oz to shine a pulsing laser beam into one of the study participants’ eyes. There were five participants in all, four male and one female. Three of the participants were also co-authors of the study.
The Oz machine works by only stimulating the M cells in the eye, allowing the study participant to see the novel color “olo” a “blue-green of unprecedented saturation,” according to the study. However, without Oz, it wouldn’t be possible to see olo with the naked eye alone.
The participants could “color match” olo to the best of their ability using a set of dials to adjust the hue and saturation of the color until it was closest to olo.
The Future of Oz Technology
While it could be a magnificent feat to have discovered a new color, olo is still up for debate. However, Oz’s technology is still relatively new, and more research and fine-tuning will be needed before this technology can be used on a more accessible scale.
“Oz represents a new class of experimental platform for vision science and neuroscience, which strives for complete control of the first neural layer to the brain, programmability of every photoreceptor’s activation at every point in time,” the authors wrote in the study.
However, as this technology advances, it may help further our understanding of color blindness and give people the ability to perceive the world like those with tetrachromacy (extra-sensitive color vision) can.
Read More: Our Eyes May Hold Evolutionary Secrets
Article Sources
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A graduate of UW-Whitewater, Monica Cull wrote for several organizations, including one that focused on bees and the natural world, before coming to Discover Magazine. Her current work also appears on her travel blog and Common State Magazine. Her love of science came from watching PBS shows as a kid with her mom and spending too much time binging Doctor Who.
