In today’s era of radar and laser detectors, and the infamous heartless red-light cameras, the implied answer would be no. Most police officers will explain that if you’re speeding, you’re going to be pulled over no matter the color of your car. But could law enforcement subconsciously focus on bright colors, and red in particular?
They might be, at least
based on research conducted by Dr. Mark Changizi, professor of Human Cognition
at 2AI Labs. A scientist
with expertise in theoretical neurobiology, vision, cognitive science,
Changizi’s blog biography details his studies as a way to “grasp the ultimate
foundations underlying why we think, feel and see as we do.”
According to his studies,
our eyes have evolved to detect subtle changes in blood oxygenation. In simple
terms: we notice pigment changes when, for example, someone turns red with anger
or pale with fright. “It’s all about emotions,” says Changizi. “Our eyes are
designed to see these color changes.”
Different emotional states
depend on how oxygenated your blood is. “Red is a symbol of strength
physiologically,” says Changizi, while mentioning recent studies that have
proven wearing red sportswear leads to a higher probability of winning. Changizi
says cultural factors also play an important role.
Millions of years of
evolution, along with some inventive marketing, means that bright colors,
especially reds, could simply be hard-wired in our minds as being powerful, fast
and strong. Just don’t try to talk your way out of a speeding ticket by
informing a police officer that he was genetically programmed to ticket your little
red sports car.
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