At first, the artist Concetta Antico was unaware of her unique ability. She thought that this property is inherent in all people. When the woman took the class to the park for drawing lessons, she often asked the children questions about the shades that flashed before her eyes. She could recognize pink reflections of a stone in the water invisible to other people or bright red edges on the leaves of trees. The students never argued with her, they only nodded in approval. And only a few years later, Concetta found out the secret. The children simply did not dare to confess: they cannot see what is given to their mentor to notice. In this post, we will talk about an amazing phenomenon.
Scientific explanation
The ability to see invisible colors is scientifically called tetrachromatism. This is by no means a gift of God, but a rare genetic abnormality that can affect the development of the retina. People suffering from tetrachromatism seem to live inside a huge kaleidoscope with an increased number of shades familiar to the ordinary eye.
They see so many colors that the gray gravel path looks like a shining shop window. If Concetta looks at any natural stone, she will see in it the play of all the colors of the rainbow. Until now, a woman is not used to the idea that other people cannot distinguish all this magnificence.
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Unique opportunity for scientists
This ability gave impetus to creative self-expression. Concetta trusts her feelings and experiences to her own canvases. With her artistic gift, the woman is of great interest to scientists. Needless to say, this rare genetic abnormality has hardly been studied. By looking at Concetta's paintings, researchers have a unique opportunity to understand the problem deeper.
Vision is a delicate mechanism
The best minds of mankind have long wondered whether all people are able to distinguish colors and shades in the same way. Initially, scientists were categorical: there can be no differences in the ability to see colors among people. Now science has moved further and received additional information.
In all humans, the retina has three types of light-sensitive cones. Each type is responsible for its own wavelength range, records information and sends it to the brain for processing. Human vision is a subtle mechanism that consists of many components. So, for example, the combinations of signals received by the brain may differ, and the light sensitivity of the cones also varies from person to person. Therefore, only the general perception of colors among the bulk of humanity is considered to be identical. There are, of course, exceptions to the rule. For example, color blind people lose the ability to distinguish certain colors due to the fact that one of the types of cones does not work in their retinas.
Reverse color blindness phenomenon
Color blindness in theory may have the opposite phenomenon. What if someone might develop an extra type of cone on their retina? Then a person acquires the ability to distinguish dozens of additional shades of each color. From a scientific point of view, this phenomenon is justified. In nature, there are birds and fish with four types of cones. So, the ability to distinguish additional shades received zebra finches and goldfish. Learning about this feature of the fauna, Gabriel Jordan from the University of Newcastle and Cambridge employee John Mollon 20 years ago suggested the almost incredible: people can also be born with four types of cones.
The anomaly may occur predominantly in women
Women have two X chromosomes. Scientists suggest that this is where the answer lies. In theory, two chromosomes can house two modifications of the same gene responsible for the color perception of a particular type of cone. If all the cones form certain combinations with each other, the woman gains the ability to see additional shades in ordinary colors. So far, the anomaly has been detected only in women, but it is possible that representatives of the strong half of humanity can also fall into the cohort of the "chosen ones."
Conclusion
Scientists have found Concetta Antico quite by accident. Looking at her incredible paintings in the San Diego gallery, one of the visitors suggested that she contact a research group working on the study of tetrachromatism. The woman agreed, passed the test, and now she is taking part in a number of experiments.
The favorite color of our heroine is white. Sometimes she gets too tired of the riot of colors, especially if she goes to the grocery store. Concetta owes her heightened visual perception to artistic preparation and daily work with color. Therefore, we can say that our heroine is unique in her kind even among her fellow tetrachromats.
Inga Kaisina