Color Blindness

On GriefCertificate, WardCunningham talks about ColorBlindness and a few other people chimed in. Someone mentioned that 10% of all males are color blind to some degree. One thing that I wonder about is correlation with other traits. It may sound silly, but I often find out that some of the best technical guys I know are ColorBlind, LeftHanded or both. I don't know whether this is just chance or not.

Isn't ColorBlindness one of those male conditions that comes about because men don't have another X chromosome? Like hemophilia?

Yes, it's recessive. Women can be color blind too, but they'd have to have the "bad" gene on both X chromosomes, which is extremely unlikely.

And if a woman has the right kind of "bad" gene on one X chromosome, she can be a TetraChromat -- one who can distinguish colors of four wavelengths, as opposed to most humans who can only see three (red, green, and blue).

8 percent of males, 0.5 percent of females - according to http://www.zipmall.com/mpm-art-colorbl.htm -- RobertField

For the first time, researchers have tracked down the genetic cause of red/green color blindness, a vision defect that affects 1 out of 20 men in the United States. The finding may lead to a blood test for the condition, which is now diagnosed using color charts. --Reuters October 31, 1996. http://www.cactus.org/~kingman/CVDlast.html

Short story and quick test -- http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/8833/coloreye.html

Note: Any color blindness test done through your computer monitor will be unreliable, because computer monitors aren't tuned for precisely correct color rendering.

Short guide on color blindness issues in web design, with a "safe" palette: http://www.visibone.com/colorblind/

Empirical confirmation: my father is also both ColorBlind and LeftHanded. -- HelmutLeitner

Some red-green deficiency here, right handed. -- CarstenKlapp

My brother is completely ColorBlind (no colours at all), but he's right-handed. Last I heard the thinking on handedness was that it was environmental rather than genetic. Dunno if that's right though. -- AndyPierce

Well being DownUnder? I am ColourBlind ;) and right handed, one of my brothers is left handed and colour blind, he is a better puzzle solver than me. -- AndrewMcMeikan