The You Game!

[Ambidextroid]

< is designing a lamp for product and has hit a bit of a logistical roadblock

[Hunchman801]

< knows that human eyes can only detect red, green and blue light and that we can see other colours by detecting the levels of RGB light given off by colourful objects. That's why monitors can trick us into thinking we're seeing other colours such as yellow by only using red, green and blue pixels, as they stimulate our cones in the same way a yellow object would.

< says the way the human eye works is a bit more complicated than that. We have three types of cone cells, each type returning a different response across part of the visible spectrum. As you can see in the image below, those cells do not respond to only one frequency, but rather indicate how close to a certain shade of either blue, green or yellow the received wavelength is.



Then, the opponent cells process one of three linear combinations of cone cell responses, which provides the brain with data on the red–green, blue–yellow, and light–dark properties of the image.

However, what about animals with eyes that detect other colours, like a dog? If the cones in their eyes do not detect either red, green or blue light, then would the mechanism of an RGB monitor still work or would you need differently coloured sub-pixels?
< is reminded of <'s grandma's cat which gets excited whenever there's a nature program on TV, so maybe there's more to it than < thinks.

It completely depends on the animal you're considering. Dogs have two types of cone cells and are therefore dichromats. They perceive luminance (light–dark) and only one shade (blue–yellow), meaning they can't distinguish green or red. So, obviously, they won't distinguish them on a monitor either.

I believe, however, that you were trying to imagine another trichromatic animal whose cone cell spectral sensitivities would be different from that of a human. Honeybees are an example, but their vision is shifted towards ultraviolet light, and they can't see red, meaning they won't see it on an RGB screen either.

But then, what about a trichromatic animal whose cone cell spectral sensitivities would all be in the visible spectrum but peak at different wavelengths? I assume that with a different opponent process, they may not be able to distinguish between two of red, green and blue, but also be able to perceive another color dimension we can't see. I need to give it more thought!

< has read up on the eye thing, looks like < was somewhat misinformed after all, the cones detect a whole range of the spectrum each.

< read that too late.

[Ambidextroid]

As far as < knows the only reason you can see images on a screen rather than just a big grid of red, green and blue specks or just a blur is because our cones detect the levels of RGB light which tricks our eyes into seeing a colour that is not there. < was trying to imagine things from the point of view of an animal with a different degree and spectrum of visibility. Do you think there could there be an animal with such accurate eyes that a monitor would not work on them, as they can distinguish between each pixel? Or how about an animal with just as accurate eyes as us, but a monitor looks like a dull blur of red green and blue patches due to their eyes not blending the colours? < wonders...

[Fifo]

< is making a Windows installer.

< wonders for what.

<’s making a pre-configured StepMania package.

[Ambidextroid]

< hasn't played StepMania in a while

[Harpic fraîcheur]

< never played it.

[Ray502]

< has been thinking of what to type for 15 minutes now.

< is going to work on US history class later.

[Reese Riverson]

< is hungry this morning, < wants food.

[Ray502]

< is about to eat a bowl of cereal.

[Dart]

< is getting a muffin later for breakfast

[Reese Riverson]

< is now eating some chicken for breakfast. yay

[Harpic fraîcheur]

You guys made < hungry.

[Reese Riverson]

< could try to make Harpic even more hungry.

[Ray502]

< needs to get a new phone soon.
< wants to eat pizza, and < will.

[Reese Riverson]

< won't be eating pizza today, so < hopes < won't disappoint ^.

[Harpic fraîcheur]

< could try to make Harpic even more hungry.

Well, < is gonna eat something and then <'ll be OK.

[Ray502]

^^ will be missing out on perhaps the best food ever made.
< is fixing up <'s hair.

[Harpic fraîcheur]

< wonders if ^ is wearing ^'s gangsta gold chain while fixing up his hair.

[Fifo]

< hasn't played StepMania in a while

< never played it.

< can send you an installer that contains 700+ megs of songs.

[Ray502]

Correction, ^^. < is wearing a silver chain while fixing up <'s hair.