How Is the Color Red Used in Real Life?

● Mars, the red planet, was so named after the Roman God of War .
● In the Middle Ages, a red flag was used by warships to indicate that they would
show no mercy to their enemy. A red flag was also used by defenders of a town or
castle to indicate that they would fight to defend it .
● The term “red alert” originated in World War II to designate the highest level of
alert to prepare for an enemy attack or combat. It was a signal aboard naval
warships for everyone available to go to battle stations as quickly as possible .
Since then, “red alert” has been used as the highest level of emergency or threat in
several warning systems including the U.S . Homeland Security Advisory System
and the British BIKINI state.
● A red flag is raised in automobile races if there’s a danger to the driver.
● A red card is given to a football player if he makes a dangerous play or seriously
violates the rules.
● Red is used to indicate the highest level of warning of an enemy or terrorist attack.
● On roads, red is the international color of stop signs and stop lights to warn
vehicles to stay where they are.
● Red is also used to indicate the highest threat level of natural disasters and
catastrophic hazards.
● A person who is angry is said to “see red”.
Scientific Reasoning:

Red has the longest wavelength among all the colors in the visible spectrum (remember
VIBGYOR?). Its long wavelength implies that the red color is scattered the least. Thus, it
is easily visible over long distances even in conditions such as rain and fog. Now,
obviously if you want to alert or warn somebody about an impending danger, you would
need a color that has the greatest visibility.

Also, red is the brightest color in daytime, thus able to attract the maximum attention. It
is for this same reason that lifeguards wear red-colored jackets as it enables them to be
easily found.

Psychological Reasoning:

Studies have shown that red is probably the most intense color and invokes the strongest
reaction not just among humans, but among primates as well. The level of reaction
decreases gradually with the colors orange, yellow and white. This makes red suitable for
warnings about enemy and terrorist attacks. Since red is such an emotionally charged
color, a primary school in the UK told teachers not to mark children’s work in red ink
because of the negative connotations associated with red.

Red has also long been associated with blood, which is in turn associated with courage,
sacrifice, revolution and pain. Because of this connection with pain, red evokes a feeling
of fear and alertness that makes it suitable as a color of danger or warning.
Symbolism of the Color Red:

Red stands for many things, all of them potent. Red is romantic love, and its physical
passion. Red is violence, anger, and aggression, and it frequently indicates danger.
Paradoxically–for a color associated with action and energy–red is universally used as the
color that means "stop." Red is used professionally to capture attention, elicit emotion,
and convey confidence.

Negative Associations:

Just as blood can be associated either with its life-giving properties or with violence, red
is also paradoxically affiliated with notions of violence, danger, and anger.Matadors use
red capes not to attract the attention of the bulls they fight (since bulls are colorblind,) but
rather to hide the bloodstains of their gory sport. Red can indicate anger beyond what
reason can contain–"seeing red"–and red flags indicate (or should) when something’s
wrong with a person or a situation. Red is also associated with financial loss.