THE GEO-SAMPLER APRIL 2014 Why is it that “Geotechnics” blue makes us feel so calm? And painting the geosynthetics lab a lemony shade of yellow a bad idea? And why, instead, should we consider pink? “A word to the wise ain’t When you spend as much time immersed in shades of earthy brown as we do, well, necessary, it’s the stupid you start to wonder a lot of things. We thought you’d like what we discovered. ones who need advice.” COLOR US SURPRISED: —Bill Cosby 50 SHADES OF SHADES Blue is blue. And red is hot, right? Well, sort restful color, since its light rays fall most di- of. Turns out, there’s more to color than rectly on the retina. Not surprisingly, green meets the eye. Color can inspire, acceler- has proven to help people tolerate physical ate, enliven, and even anger. Here’s a primer pain, so it’s a good idea to bring nice leafy. Ancient Egypt was inhabited on primary (and heck, secondary) colors to greenery to a friend in the hospital. No word by mummies and they all help you choose your hues. on its affect on bulls. wrote in hydraulics.They lived in the Sarah Dessert RED Screams stop! And warning! And, in BLUE Hands down, blue is most frequent- and traveled by Camelot. China, good luck. In fact, it’s so lucky that ly the favorite color among Americans (to The climate of the Sarah is the Chinese language boasts thirty differ- the tune of 50% of all colors). It’s also the such that the inhabitants ent characters to describe different shades color that puts people at ease, particularly have to live elsewhere. of red. Be warned that red actually boosts in times of trouble. Some say it’s because In the Olympic games, blood pressure, which is why you won’t find humans feel so comfortable in an envi- Greeks ran races, jumped, it on the walls of doctors’ offices. You also ronment surrounded by sky and water. A hurled the biscuits, and won’t find red cars in Brazil and Ecuador, troublesome bridge in London was actually threw the java. since the color has been outlawed on mo- painted blue to reduce the high incidence Joan of Arc was burnt to a tor vehicles due to high incidence of traffic of suicides. steak and was cannonized accidents. PURPLE In ancient Rome, purple was one of by Bernard Shaw. Finally ORANGE Here’s a juicy bit of orange: it has the most highly coveted colors, reserved for Magna Carta provided that no man should be hanged a need for speed. And affordability. This is royalty. Seems some 20,000 shells were re- twice for the same offense. why you’ll find it so abundant in fast food quired to make just enough dye for one yard restaurants. Orange is actually one of the of cloth. In more recent times, 1971 to be ex- Gravity was invented by least favorite colors among Americans (our act, OSHA identified Purple Orchid 80100 Issac Walton. It is chiefly favorite is coming up soon in this edition of as the color to indicate nuclear hazard. It is noticeable in the autumn when the apples are falling the GeoSampler; can you guess?), but is the also the hardest color for the human eye to off the trees. national color of the Netherlands. Is it a co- discriminate, perhaps because it’s the odd- incidence that the Dutch are known for the couple marriage of red and blue. Franklin discovered House of Orange? electricity by rubbing THE BUSINESS OF COLOR There’s a whole two cats backwards and YELLOW Mellow? Hardly. Turns out, yel- host of decisions to be made based on col- declared, “A horse divided low, especially bright yellow, is the most ors. Fast food restaurant table? Orange. against itself cannot stand.” luminous color in the spectrum and, hence, Logo color for your favorite geotechni- The sun never set on the the most fatiguing color if viewed for long cal and geosynthetic lab? Blue, of course. British Empire because the periods of time. Studies show couples fight And there are whole companies designed British Empire is In the East more in lemony yellow kitch- around color marketing and and the sun sets in the West. ens. And babies cry more in color theory. You can even The First World War, caused lemony yellow rooms. (Hope- use colors to help you iden- by the assignation of the fully, not at the same time.) FYI, tify your personality type Arch-Duck by an anahist, it’s also considered unlucky to (colorcode.com, if you’re up ushered in a new error in the wear yellow at a bullfight. Es- for a free online quiz), your anals of human history. pecially for the bull. right career (What color is your parachute?), and yes, GREEN Everybody knows green means go, right? Well, your aura. except if you’re in China where Here at Geotechnics, we’re AASHTO R18 green means stop. Which fine with whatever color your NQA-1 makes sense when you consid- aura is. We accommodate all. COMPLIANT er that green is also the most Give us a call. Fluorescent colors name change in Colors Available 1998 Crayola crayon colors 1990. Atomic Tangerine, Hot Magenta, 24 new colors added available beginning 1903 Outrageous Orange, Shocking Pink, Number of Colors: 120 Number of Colors: 8 Blizzard Blue, Laser Lemon, Screamin’ Almond, Canary, Pink Flamingo, Antique Black, Brown, Orange, Violet, Blue, Green, Wild Watermelon Brass, Caribbean Green, Fuzzy Wuzzy Green, Red, Yellow Brown, Purple Heart, Banana Mania, Colors Available 1990-1992 Cotton Candy, Manatee, Shadow, Colors available 1949 - 1957 Number of Colors: 80 Beaver, Blush, Mountain Meadow, Number of Colors: 48 All Colors previously listed plus the Sunset Orange, Blue Bell, Desert Sand, Apricot, Gold, Orange, Silver, Bitterswee, following fluorescent colors added in Outer Space, Torch Red, Pink Sherbet, Gray, Orange Red, Spring Green, Black, 1990. Electric Lime, Purple Pizzazz, Eggplant, Piggy Pink, Vivid Violet Green, Orange Yellow, Tan, Blue, Green Razzle Dazzle Rose, Unmellow Yellow, Blue, Orchid, Thistle, Blue Green, Green Magic Mint, Radical Red, Sunglow, Colors Available 2000 Yellow, Periwinkle, Turquoise Blue, Blue Neon Carrot All colors previously listed with the following exceptions. Thistle Violet, Lemon Yellow, Pine Green, Violet In 1990, eight colors were retired and was removed from the 120-count (Purple), Brick Red, Magenta, Prussian replaced by eight new shades. Blue*, Violet Blue, Brown, Mahogany, assortment to make room for indigo; Red, Violet Red, Burnt Sienna, Maize, Retired Colors Green Blue, Orange torch red was renamed scarlet. Red Orange, White, Carnation Pink, Red, Orange Yellow, Violet Blue, Maize, Lemon Yellow, Blue Gray, Raw Umber Colors Available 2003 Maroon, Red Violet, Yellow, Cornflower, 4 new colors added, 4 retired Melon, Salmon, Yellow Green, Flesh, Retired colors were enshrined in the Crayola Hall of Fame on August 7, 1990. Number of Colors: 120 Olive Green, Sea Green, Yellow Orange New Colors: inch worm, jazzberry jam, Colors Available 1958-1971 Replacement Colors Cerulean, Vivid mango tango, wild blue yonder Number of Colors: 64 Tangerine, Jungle Green, Fuchsia, Retired Colors: blizzard blue, magic All colors previously listed plus Dandelion, Teal Blue, Royal Purple, Wild mint, mulberry, teal blue the following colors added in 1958. Strawberry * Name changed to “midnight blue” in 1958 Aquamarine, Copper, Lavender, Raw Colors Available 1993 Sienna, Blue Gray, Forest Green, in response to teachers’ requests. 16 new colors added in 1993, named by ** Name voluntarily changed to “peach” in Mulberry, Raw Umber, Burnt Orange, consumers Goldenrod, Navy blue, Sepia, Cadet 1962, partially as a result of the U. S. Civil Number of Colors: 96 Rights Movement) Blue, Indian Red***, Plum, Sky Blue Asparagus, Macaroni and Cheese, ***Indian Red is renamed Chestnut in 1999 Colors Available 1972-1989 Razzmatazz, Timber Wolf, Cerise, in response to educators who felt some Number of Colors: 72 Mauvelous, Robin’s Egg Blue, Tropical children wrongly perceived the crayon All colors previously listed plus the Rain Forest, Denim, Pacific Blue, color was intended to represent the skin following fluorescent colors added Shamrock, Tumbleweed, Granny Smith color of Native Americans. The name Apple, Purple Mountain’s Majesty, Tickle originated from a reddish-brown pigment in 1972. Chartreuse,Ultra Blue, Ultra found near India commonly used in fine Orange, Ultra Red, Hot Magenta, Ultra Me Pink, Wisteria artist oil paint. Green, Ultra Pink, Ultra Yellow What do you get when you burn coal? Ashes, of course. And here at Geotechnics, we test a lot of ASHES, Coal Combustion Products during the course of a week. Fly ash. Gypsum. Bottom Ash. And we’re happy to help our clients determine the unique qualities of each variety. To learn more about testing ASHES CCP’s or ask a question to stump the expert, give Randy O’Rourke a shout at (412) 823-7600. Our two facilities serve Pittsburgh – 544 Braddock Avenue • East Pittsburgh, PA 15112 • Phone (412) 823-7600 • [email protected] or [email protected] projects across the country. Raleigh – 2200 Westinghouse Boulevard • Raleigh, NC 27604 • Phone (919) 876-0405 • [email protected].