What is reality?

Question

Okay, when a human looks at a flower, he would see pink petals and a yellow center. When a honey bee looks at the same flower, he would see blue petals and a black center.

I see colors other animals can't see.
They see colors I can't see.
I hear things they can't hear.
They hear things I can't hear.
Some have special senses, like how dogs can "smell" autism on a person.

So, what is reality? What color is everything in actuality? Is there even a such thing as reality? Is everything black and white or some otehr color that no living being has ever seen and each creature interprets it differently?

Is our atmosphere full of deafening and relentless sounds that some creatures hear constantly, and others don't?

What color is everything in solid, unchangeable REALITY?

And don't say it depends on what you are, because there is only ONE reality; we all just see it through different eyes.

Help me, please.

Answer 1

This question goes beyond perceived reality vs actual reality, where every observing instrument (each human being a slightly different "measuring instrument" with different perceptions) perceives/records a different observation. It extends to the possibilities of multiple dimensions introduced in string theory, including the idea of a spiritual dimension which seems to influence both preceived and actual realities.

It is actually a very good thing that we all perceive reality differently, just as it is a good thing when two cameras record the same event from different angles at the same time. The camera example allows for the construction of a third dimension (hence 3D movies) model of reality, and variations in color allow for a comparison of the mechanics of each camera in order to determine the differences or imperfections in each. So the best way to determine the authentic, "solid" reality is to correlate your own observations with the observations of several other observers and several other measuring instruments and identifying the likely causes for all differences in perceptions/recordings. Staying socially connected and understanding the perceptions of others is the best way to avoid schizophrenia and other mental disorders, where the subject is unable to distinguish non-reality created or reality altered by the mind from the reality which most people find a high correlation of observations amonst themselves.

PS: Try to avoid the use of relative terms in describing reality, such as deafening or color, because sensitive ears characterize different levels of sounds differently than deaf people and color requires the interpretation of perception. Instead, try to use words like decibel (dB) levels, and visible radiation frequencies.

Answer 2

There are two realities.. There is the ultimate reality of how things are and the perceived reality of the way we see the world around us. The ultimate reality does not change, but the perceived reality does. Your example of the bee and the flower. The light reflected off the petals of the flowers can be measured with a spectrophotometer showing a color band in the 400nm and 600nm wavelength. Wither you see pink and yellow and a bee perceives it as blue and black does not change the wavelength of the reflected light. The wavelength of reflected light is the ultimate reality, and the number of perceived realities is equal to the number of observers present. There is no law of the universe that says everyone should share the same perceived reality. This works for light, sound, and any of the other senses.

Answer 3

There is just one reality (though there may be parallel universes!) but you have to keep in mind that what we perceive is not just about whats out there but what we're using to perceive it. Bees as you point out can see in to the ultraviolet and are therefore likely to see things differently than we do but I don't think you need to conclude that they experience a different reality, they just experience reality with a different toolkit.

Colour is a subjective term and you can't get a true answer - well you can... if something is monochromatic with a fixed wavelength you could say thats definitely blue - but your blue might be my red. Philosophers have puzzled over this for a long time but the likely answer is people perceive colours the same (unless they're colour blind) so I wouldnt worry about it.

The world would certainly look interesting if you could see everything from radio waves to gamma waves. We experience only a tiny sliver of the electromagnetic spectrum through our vision but its reality.

Answer 4

You just answered your own question. Ever heard of beauty is in the eye of the beholder? You're trying to force a "be all end all" form of reality -where a is normal and everything that is not a is abnormal or wrong- when in actuality, reality is made up by the experiences of our lives. Reality is whatever we want it to be.

Answer 5

Reality is all of these things combined. We, as humans, see only a fraction of the spectrum of light that exists in the universe, we experience only a fraction of the events on this planet as there are trillions upon trillions of planets.

Reality is all of these things... we each experience our share of it.

Answer 6

Who says there is only ONE reality? Why cant reality be relative to the person viewing it?

In order to determine the "true" color of something you would have to view it through someones perspective of reality. How else would you be able to view it?