If you were tuned into any social media platform this week (February 26th), you probably saw many discussions and pictures of this dress:
The debate came from the popular social site, Tumblr, where people debated whether the dress was white and gold, or blue and black. Celebrities, news anchors, major websites and politicians were all arguing what their eyes saw in this picture. It was revealed later in the day that the dress is, in fact, blue and black.
Why did some see white and some see blue?
This debate boils down to the science of light and color perception in your brain. The reason different people see different colors have to do with retinal cones that perceive color in light. When one person sees white and gold, it is actually caused by a difference in the development of these retinal cones and the transmission of this information to the optic nerve. Most commonly, the color discrepancy gene is found in males because the genes that produce photopigments are carried on the X chromosome.
You have 6 to 7 million retinal cones, and 2% of them perceive blue. These blue cones are the most sensitive to light, which causes some differences in perception of blue among humans depending on the lighting conditions. This is why there were so many discrepancies between white and gold vs blue and black.
Why did some see black and some see gold?
As for the black part of the dress, this has to do with the sensitivity of the “rods,” which perceive shades of dark to light, not color. These rods are active in low light, so people who can see better in dim light have more active/sensitive rods. If you saw gold instead of black, it may be an indicator that your vision at night isn’t as strong as someone who sees black. Have no fear, though, the discrepancies aren’t enough to warrant panic.
However, if this color debate has given you any reason to be concerned about your vision, you can always come in for an eye exam and we can check you out!