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We all know that the sky is blue. Grass is green. Blood is red.

But, how do we know that everyone sees these colours more or less the same? How does one know that my green isn't your red and vice versa? In other words: if I would see what someone else sees, would I see the same colours, or could it all be completely different? Note that I'm talking about the perception of colours, not the distinction of colours themselves.

Qmechanic
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Sherlock
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    This is likely to be closed due to being more about philosophy (or possibly biology) than physics. However, this idea has been much discussed in philosophical circles, under the term "inverted spectrum". While there is no generally accepted conclusion (there rarely is in philosophy), googling the term should give you plenty of reading material. – N. Virgo Sep 30 '13 at 12:58
  • Inverted spectrum is the apparent possibility of two people sharing their color vocabulary and discriminations, although the colours one sees — one's qualia — are systematically different from the colours the other person sees.

    Cool, that's exactly it!

     – Sherlock Sep 30 '13 at 13:02
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    Possible duplicate: http://physics.stackexchange.com/q/48731/2451 – Qmechanic Sep 30 '13 at 13:21
  • On the other side there is color blindness. Often it explains garish color combinations some people choose. I remember a workman buying a bright orange plastic chair. I suspected color blindness and asked him "what color is your chair" ? "why blue", he replied. – anna v Sep 30 '13 at 15:58

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