Methodology We decided to evaluate the color pink in light of the recent study "Is the pink ball still under review? Cricket umpires' perceptions of the pink ball for day/night matches," published in the Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport this year.*
Probably More Important Than r o l o C r e h t O e n O t s At Lea A Humorous Poster by Media MICE, based loosely on the full text of J Sci Med Sport. 2021;S1440-2440(21)00075-X.
Introduction
"The visibility of the pink ball used in day/night test cricket has been under scrutiny," authors reported, without stating the obvious: pink always is under scrutiny as a color. The world can be a cruel place to pink. "Twenty-seven international/first-class umpires completed a questionnaire consisting of Likert scale and free text responses covering perceptions of the pink cricket ball, with a particular emphasis on visibility.
Red. Orange. Yellow. Green. Blue. Purple.
Results "The pink ball when viewed at night under floodlights was rated as being significantly more visible than the red ball during natural lighting," authors reported. "Umpires report the visibility of the pink ball is equal to the red in natural light and at dusk but is significantly better at night."
The standard colors of the rainbow are unquestionable. But what happened to pink? Black and white: these are technically not colors. There's no rainbow grey area when it comes to black and white.
Conclusion At long last, after being left out of rainbows, pink has been vindicated as being better than red.
Again, what about pink? Pink seems to be a lesser red – literally it's a pale tint of that. Pink also can be a bit confusing.
Well, except that pink is kind of a pale tint of red, so it still needs red. And pink will never be placed between red and orange on a rainbow.
"A combination of pink and white is associated with chastity and innocence, whereas a combination of pink and black links to eroticism and seduction," according to Wikipedia. It's therefore unclear where pink stands.
Pink is safe on cricket balls; unfortunately, any other conclusion drawn at this time about pink is inconclusive. Further research is warranted, perhaps in relation to flamingoes or panthers.
We decided to clarify the matter, by determining what color pink is better than, so that it could finally perhaps find a place in rainbows or elsewhere.
*Maguire R, Timmis MA, Wilkins L, et al. Is the pink ball still under review? Cricket umpires' perceptions of the pink ball for day/night matches. J Sci Med Sport. 2021;S1440-2440(21)00075-X.
[Warning: Don’t take this poster seriously!]