Black people tend to have a much lower nose bridge than white people and it's hard to find sunglasses that fit. Sunglasses are typically made for white people and tend to rest on the cheeks.
The revolutionary idea is to make sunglasses that fit by having longer nose pads and the glasses sit higher up.-- jmvw, Jul 09 2012 Sunglasses don't fit. http://www.123rf.co...ion-sunglasses.htmlAn example of sunglasses that don't fit. If you look, you can see these are resting on the girl's cheeks and not on her nose. These are admittedly very large sunglasses, but it illustrates the issue. [jmvw, Jul 10 2012] Oakley Asian Fit http://ca.oakley.com/women/asian-fitOakley has a line called Asian Fit. This is excellent. I think these will work! [jmvw, Jul 10 2012, last modified Jul 11 2012] Polarized contact lenses http://www.invention.net/dudai.htm#link1Unfortunately contact lenses are not as easy to put on and take off. [jmvw, Jul 11 2012] Asian fit is a concept http://www.tc-chart...an-fit-eyewear.aspx [jmvw, Jul 11 2012] One size fits nobody http://www.e-potpou...ith-android-appeal/Uncomfortable for all [Phrontistery, Jul 12 2012] Same problem, discuessed in 2010 http://urocyon.word...2010/05/12/glasses/ [Inyuki, Jul 13 2012] Gunga Din http://www.bartleby.com/103/48.htmlA better tman than you are ... ? [8th of 7, Jul 14 2012] That is interesting, and not something I had considered. Do you speak from experience?-- MaxwellBuchanan, Jul 09 2012 Well it worked for combs, and I am not talking Sean P- Diddy Combes, either.-- 4whom, Jul 09 2012 Although in some stringently PC environs, this maybe deemed a bridge too far.-- 4whom, Jul 09 2012 Lets all?-- rcarty, Jul 09 2012 Hahaha, [rcarty] I applaud your insolence. Come now! Really? Let's all? You seem to imply my three, Lilly white, eider down feathers may at some point be tarred by a similar brush, and that their progeny at some point may have a need for this ridiculous "Afro-comb" nasal support solution. It is far more likely that they will need small toothpicks to make their eyes look rounder...-- 4whom, Jul 09 2012 That's racialist.-- rcarty, Jul 09 2012 Not really a new idea. Asian facial structures also need different frame shapes and nose pads, for eyeglasses.
I'm tempted to MFD this one for being unoriginal and probably racist.-- UnaBubba, Jul 10 2012 It could be simply re-worded as designing sunglasses for people with broader noses than the median. Not racist nor particularly inventive either.-- AusCan531, Jul 10 2012 Really what is needed is sunglasses that come in a special pouch and stay a little mushy in there. Once out they start to harden, but you have 10 minutes to figure out how best they fit your face. This would increase range.-- bungston, Jul 10 2012 [MaxwellBuchanan] Yes, I speak from experience. It seems to be one of those situations where nearly all of the production and distribution is targeting the majority. Just like it's impossible to find shoes over American size 13 or European size 46 in Amsterdam, even though there are many men with larger feet there.-- jmvw, Jul 10 2012 How is this not an essentially pointless racial market division that serves to only re-enforce notions that there is a "black" race with one set of typical features, when in reality there are many isolated phisiotypes with dark skin and thus no clarity re. Nose size and position. "Black" after all, represents the single weakest stereotype of all because the "black" population is actually the most genetically and phisiotypically diverse population.-- WcW, Jul 10 2012 Clearly the answer is false rubber noses for white people.-- RayfordSteele, Jul 10 2012 The problem with the idea is not that it's racist, although it very well could be, but because people who are black can be seen wearing sunglasses perhaps as commonly as people who are white. Maybe you've done sampling and followed research methodologies and determined that much fewer people who are black wear sunglasses than people who are white. Furthermore, maybe you have also speculated that prominent sunglasses wearing people who are black in the media have confounded people's' perceptions of sunglasses wearing commonality. Therefore you have proposed sunglasses for people who are black to make sunglasses access equal, and sunglasses wearing more equitable.-- rcarty, Jul 10 2012 //I'm tempted to MFD this one for being unoriginal and probably racist//
//How is this not an essentially pointless racial market division //
I may not be qualified on this topic, but I think those comments themselves are in a sense racist, by suggesting that it is in some way offensive to identify features or problems which are (according to the poster) more common among black people than among caucasians.
If the poster had suggested special chairs for tall people, or a shampoo that worked better on brunette hair than on blonde, there would be no problem because there is no discrimination against people who happen to be tall or brunette.
If I had suggested a special sunblock for Nordic tourists visiting tropical countries (because Nordic skins are typically fairer), would there be a problem with that broad generalization? No, of course there would not, because we don't really think about discriminating against Swedes (except Abba, obviously).
It is, as far as I know, a simple fact that black people are more likely to have lower nose-bridges than caucasians. Is there something wrong with that? Is it in some way offensive? No - so why is it wrong to suggest a solution to the problem of sunglass fitting?
For all I know, it may be that the epicanthic fold makes it more difficult to remove contact lenses. If so, would it be wrong to suggest some alternative contact lens design to benefit asians, many of whom have an epicanthic fold, whereas few non-asians do? I'm sure there are non-asians with epicanthic folds and vice versa, but so what? Am I being slurred if it is suggested that I have, or don't have, an epicanthic fold?
Surely, suggesting that it is wrong to mention typical differences between different ethnicities is an indication of inherent discrimination?-- MaxwellBuchanan, Jul 10 2012 Thank you for pointing that out [MaxwellBuchanan]. I know I could never have said that as eloquently as you did.
I can't find good sunglasses for my wife and I know other people who have the same issue.-- jmvw, Jul 10 2012 Racism has tricky social manifestations in practice. While very structured discourse on racism has been established, people really arn't any good at understanding things or observing rules usually unless they are specifically trained or employed to those ends, and those people usually start out dumb. For example, massive racist genocides, sadly, often make little rational sense. Racism although a real thing that has to be understood by sound minds in a rational structured discursive sense is actually the insanity of seething beasts clawing and grunting at eachother. So even if nothing particularly racist has been said, any accusation defines the situation as racial, racializes the opponents, becomes racist. This is racist just because some sort of racialization has occurred and we can argue about it.-- rcarty, Jul 10 2012 What 21Q said in his first anno. I don't like people slinging around accusations of racism (or most other -isms*). To me, these things are as much about intent as the actual language used. So whilst there is certainly some injudicious stereotyping going on in this idea, I don't see anything intended to be insulting or a put down to black people, so I would hesitate to make the racism call without knowing jmvw personally. * especially syllogisms, schisms & prisms.-- DrBob, Jul 10 2012 So can we stop talking about racism and make peace with the consideration that most sunglasses typically don't fit black people very well? Or is that too much to handle?-- jmvw, Jul 10 2012 // don't black people have an entire clothing and accessory company designed specifically for them, called FUBU (For Us By Us)? //
There is or at least was at one time, and in my lifetime I have seen more idiot wannabe rapstars who are whiter than I am wearing that crap than I have seen black people in total, including those encountered in my world travels.-- Alterother, Jul 10 2012 Refreshingly, Oakley has an "Asian Fit" line. These might work (link). This is about all I can google up.-- jmvw, Jul 10 2012 And today's award for "Letting Things Get Out Of Perspective" goes to...-- MaxwellBuchanan, Jul 10 2012 The entire world is made for right-handed people. Lefties are forced to adapt. With that in mind, I don't find it hard at all to believe that most sunglasses are made with Caucasian facial proportions in mind.-- Alterother, Jul 10 2012 The problem is that this is really an idea for people with flat noses because not only black people or even all black peoples have flat noses.-- rcarty, Jul 10 2012 (marked-for-tagline)
"We all make mistakes, so come over here for a BIG HUG!"-- normzone, Jul 10 2012 And I repeat: //It could be simply re-worded as designing sunglasses for people with broader noses than the median.//-- AusCan531, Jul 10 2012 I deleted FlyingToaster's comments as well as my responses to them. I found his series of comments to be quite disrespectful and offensive. I meant to post this idea, not to create a space where racist jokes can be excused. I've never done anything like this and I'm quite sad to do this because I believe in open discussion and of course it reflects negatively on the idea as well as put a damper on any pleasant and lighthearted discussion. I'm really tempted to delete the whole idea (which was never brilliant to begin with; there is just a need for this) but I don't think it's fair that someone can nuke an idea just by filling it with rottenness. This is my original post, and I feel that I have some ownership to it.-- jmvw, Jul 11 2012 I for one hope you keep the idea, it's subtle but powerful, it seems to have an interesting ability to set people off. I'm hoping for another couple of paragraphs from [21 Quest] at least. Great fun.
Maybe it's time for sunglasses that avoid the nose altogether. We need a new nosefree design. How 'bout it, science?-- tatterdemalion, Jul 11 2012 Tiny rare earth magnets implanted in the skull--some attracting and some repelling--could hold stemless sunglasses in place without even touching the skin.-- Alterother, Jul 11 2012 I'm both attracted and repelled by your idea [Alter]-- AusCan531, Jul 11 2012 I think I've said it before, and no doubt many other people have too, but it is interesting how people get far more worked up on the internet than they would in real life. I have a theory that it's a sort of tangential recreation, providing an adrenaline buzz in relatively safe surroundings.-- MaxwellBuchanan, Jul 11 2012 That, and a false sense of freedom to be as naughty as you want without repercussions.-- Alterother, Jul 11 2012 Like watching rugby or playing Grand Theft Auto.-- RayfordSteele, Jul 11 2012 Of for goodness' sake.-- MaxwellBuchanan, Jul 11 2012 Somebody just blink and get it over with.-- RayfordSteele, Jul 11 2012 After a bit of scoping about, I believe the answer to [jmwv]'s conundrum and my nose-free wish lies in using tinted contact lenses made for this purpose. There's a lot of noise on the topic but if you sort though, some good research has been done and product options are available.
Curious [21 Quest] do you have more details on that law? I couldn't find any information except for the Arizona thing.-- tatterdemalion, Jul 11 2012 [FlyingToaster], I see that you insist on continuing to post here. I'd much rather you stay away and stop vandalizing what was a genuine post on my side.
I suspect it would be straightforward to write a script against halfbakery that deletes your comments. But I am not going to play that game, I'm not going to play delete and repost with you.
I think you either no concept of racism or how offensive your stereotypical jokes were or you enjoy stirring things up a little. I have a strong feeling that both are true. Unfortunately you're not the only one who doesn't understand what racial stereotyping is.
You have proudly shown that you can post racist jokes here, that you can talk disrespectful about women as well as me. You post your racist jokes and with it you question my motives and demanded I tell you things about myself and you give me a choice of two simplistic stereotypes in which I ought to classify myself. So I wrote a reconciliatory comment and you respond by saying I should tell my wife to the kitchen. That is offensive. And at that point it becomes clear that your intentions are just false.
And you top it all off by telling me that my post was racist and you're feigning a moral high ground. Is this your game? We're going to call each other racist, it's a little chess match? This is Beavis and Butthead level.
If your jokes were meant in a sarcastic sense, rather than as a happy excuse to let it all hang out, I want to point out to you that nobody needs to hear that stuff. Even in sarcasm. Sarcasm can be playing with fire, because people might take your statements seriously. Just leave it out. You don't need to post racist jokes and feign sarcasm. If you think something is off, just say it.
I chose to remove your posts. I felt they were offensive, racist, rude and vandalized this idea. So I removed them. And my responses as well. And again.
You could just leave it there. But you want to come back and get even. You saved your post so you could show how you can win this game.
And you would win it, because I'm not going to keep playing this.
I'm sure you're generally a great person with sparkles of insight. I looked at some of your ideas and I like them. But what you're doing here makes no sense. It's not nice. It's not clever. It's destructive. Do we admire people who get caught up in road rage?-- jmvw, Jul 11 2012 I'm just glad I didn't post that "Burka-compatible Segway" idea I dreamt about a few days ago.
As a (relatively) disinterested party in all this - [FT], don't you think you're over-reacting, maybe just a tad?-- MaxwellBuchanan, Jul 11 2012 [FlyingToaster] I missed something that I might have to respond to: I found your comments about eyes, eskimos and clowns to be progressively offensive.-- jmvw, Jul 11 2012 Oh, for fuxake... Both of you have gone off the rails at this point. It's one foolish reprisal begetting the next. Frankly, I'd be highly surprised to discover that any Halfbakers have overt prejudices--maybe I'm wrong, but in my experience most intelligent free thinkers immediately spot the flaw inherent in any form of bigotry: it's hypocritical.
So you know what I think this is? Somebody made a comment that somebody else didn't interpret precisely the way it was meant. A strongly-worded response was drafted. This provoked amusement and maybe a little indignation, which led to goading. More self-righteous prostelytizing issued forth, answered by yet more goading. The regular cast of shit-stirrers added the odd kick here and there, and before you know it the whole thing escalated into a verbose and articulate Halfbakery flame war; let's call it an 'oven fire'. So fucking cool it, already.
Tell me I'm wrong.-- Alterother, Jul 11 2012 //I'd be highly surprised to discover that any Halfbakers have overt prejudices//
I'd agree. After all, we're all pretty smart here, and we all know that all people with prejudices are all low-brow mouth-breathers.-- MaxwellBuchanan, Jul 11 2012 Not at all. There are plenty of very intelligent bigots. But that kind of blind, unreasoning prejudice, resistance to any discussion of change, and rigid narrow- mindedness just doesn't seem to manifest here. Unless there are any 'bakers who have somehow managed to not only conceal their political and social bigotry but also somehow feign the open-mindedness, creativity, and positive-change mindset that the Halfbakery celebrates and nourishes, I find it highly implausable that any of us are knowingly racist.-- Alterother, Jul 11 2012 I say 'knowingly racist' with myself in mind. The population of Maine is usually said to be 'predominantly Caucasian', which is a ludicrous understatement. Barring travel out of state, I would say that I encounter 3-5 people a year who aren't white or American Indian.
Because of this, I sometimes act strangely around racial minorities, especially black people. This isn't because I dislike, distrust, or fear them, it's because encountering them takes me by surprise. It's like going into the kitchen and finding a rhinoceros heating up a microwave burrito. Just the same, I have come to consider that a small form of racism.-- Alterother, Jul 11 2012 Hey, what's wrong with rhinoceroses using microwaves? You think they all just roam the veldt and chew grass?-- MaxwellBuchanan, Jul 11 2012 // Hey, what's wrong with rhinoceroses using microwaves? //
I didn't say there was anything wrong with it, just that most people would be quite surprised to find one in their own kitchen. At my house, it's not so unlikely a scenario, despite repeated mandates that the rhinoceroses in residence at the Heathen Institute use the microwaves in the rhinoceros lounge. I mean, that's why we put the damn things there, and yet they insist on walking all the way down the hill from the Institute and using the microwave in our kitchen. You should see the mud they track in!-- Alterother, Jul 11 2012 [21 Quest] thanks but the linked story appears to reference a bill from the UK. I am particularly interested in the law you mentioned that was recently passed in the US.
Perhaps the nose-free idea is the wrong approach, and the solution to the problem is to design sunglasses that attach *only* at the nose like Morpheus' glasses. Better - each lens can be a separate piece which fastens to the nose using magnets poked up inside the nasal cavity. Or for enterprising individuals, piercings.-- tatterdemalion, Jul 11 2012 After giving the article a quick read, I don't see how it could be instituted without instantly becoming yet another outlet for trolling. I saw no mechanism there to prevent unwarranted accusations being made simply because one user doesn't like another user. The further I read, the clearer became a vision of beleaguered sysadmins wading through virtual heaps of trolling reports, doggedly searching for the one out of every thousand that involves actual bullying.-- Alterother, Jul 11 2012 Sometimes we need to take the things that people say with a teaspoon of forgiveness.
Happiness.
[FlyingToaster]: I apologize for offending you. I think you misread me but I'm sure you didn't quite intend things the way I took them either. Obviously we both got upset. Only people who give a can get upset, so that's not entirely bad.
Keep on posting.
And [Alterother], he seems to have some insight so he must be very old, much older than I thought he was until this day.
There are many lessons to be learned yet..-- jmvw, Jul 11 2012 What we need now are troll-fit sunglasses which decode the now-mandatorily scrambled Internet pages and deliver an electric shock should the wearer type anything embodied in an anti-troll lexicon.-- Phrontistery, Jul 11 2012 Yeah, I'm friggin' ancient... what are you, some kind of age discriminator?!-- Alterother, Jul 12 2012 Well, Sir, I thought you were in your twenties with all that wheeling or what you call that.-- jmvw, Jul 12 2012 I'm 33. And I'm kidding; I took what you said as a compliment.-- Alterother, Jul 12 2012 Well, you should. You have good insight. I'm ten years older than you, and all I got was nearsightedness. I got Lasik once, but that was only good for seven years.
Don't let it get to your head.-- jmvw, Jul 12 2012 I could still take you to school, kiddo...
Thanks, [jmvw]. I wasn't trying to offer any profundities, I just wanted to step in and blow the whistle on an escalating situation. This is the Halfbakery, not the Internet; when tempers flare and things start getting ugly, somebody always takes the role of mediator. This time it was me. All the same, I appreciate your remarks. I don't think of myself as particularly wise, but somebody once told me that itself is a mark of wisdom. Who knows?-- Alterother, Jul 12 2012 I am e^(3.617). I find I age slower using exponentials.-- RayfordSteele, Jul 12 2012 I still feel that the statement "black people have different noses" is essentially ignorant and seemingly baseless.-- WcW, Jul 12 2012 On the other hand, the statement: //Black people tend to have a much lower nose bridge than white people// seems about as reasonable as any other broad generalization. It may be innaccurate (I don't know), but racist?
It's only "racist" if you believe that a low-bridged nose is somehow inferior to a high-bridged nose.
If I'd pointed out that people from northern Italy and from some regions of France tend to have more prominent nose bridges than people from Iceland, would anyone actually really care and take umbrage in quite the way people have here?-- MaxwellBuchanan, Jul 12 2012 [WcW], would you also find it baseless that I prefer to call my genetic heritage 'Nordic' rather than 'Caucasian'? My entire family are significantly taller, leaner, and blonder than than the mean for white people. I have a long, straight nose with a promenant bridge, and I too have problems finding sunglasses that fit properly.
No, seriously, I do. They ride up too high on my face, and they wobble when I turn my head. Why can't they make sunglasses for Nordics like me?-- Alterother, Jul 12 2012 I told my wife I posted this thing here. Two days ago, I showed her how upset everyone got and that it turned into a discussion about racism.
She was as surprised as I was. I was a little embarrasssed to show it, because why can't you say "black" without the concept racism entering the discussion? That's embarrassing and I wish people wouldn't have to see that. Her comment was "see, that just goes to show that racism is very much alive".
Because some people can't handle someone stating a simple fact like black people tend to have a lower nose bridge.
Now it's two days later, someone flipped out, I got upset and apologized and now we're still talking about it. Holy moly.
I mean it's interesting enough to discuss racism, but seriously - this post triggered that discussion? Come on now.-- jmvw, Jul 12 2012 I don't think there's anything we can say to change the opinion of [WcW]. And that's fine by me. There is no need. It's not my opinion, but hey.-- jmvw, Jul 12 2012 And another thing. If you're black, you're black. Not racist. You might be racist but that's something else. You're just black. The whole concept of racism isn't necessarily part of that. But being black is part of you.
It's like being white is not related to racism, but it's a little different, because for white people in a predominantly white society, you don't stick out. So the only time your race comes into focus might be when racism is discussed. For black people, chances are they're made aware of their ethnicity a little more often. Not always, but more often.
This isn't necessarily a terrible thing, these moments of being made aware are just a simple fact of life. And I think that's what I'd like to point out, that it's not terrible.
Or trying to put it in other words, I'd like to point out that moments when the blackness is noticed are not moments of someone doing injustice and "racism". It's just an accepted fact of life. And if you're white and these things happen, don't worry. It's cool and try to laugh about it.
And I'll say that to [alterother], who was honest and courageous enough to tell us about his being somewhat startled when he meets people that look different from those he knows.
What's different is when people are treated differently because they're black, but we're not talking about that now.
And that's probably about as good as I can point that out. I'm a terrible writer sometimes. Heck, I'm not a native English speaker.
Now I've been letting this distract me from work and because of that I've been able less to go out and have fun and I've got a lot of work and that just goes to show what a fool I am. Being outside makes me happy.
And peace to ALL of you. You're a cool crowd.-- jmvw, Jul 12 2012 I think you're precisely correct, [jmvw]. There's nothing racist about acknowledging differences, in fact it can be kind of awesome.
// It's only "racist" if you believe that a low-bridged nose is somehow inferior to a high-bridged nose.
[MaxwellBuchanan] you almost had it there. It's also racist if you believe that a high-bridged nose is somehow inferior to a low-bridged nose.-- tatterdemalion, Jul 12 2012 [jmvw] In the absende of a 'like' button - LIKE/ I had the same converstaion today. Treat people like people.-- gnomethang, Jul 12 2012 // It's also racist if you believe that a high-bridged nose is somehow inferior to a low-bridged nose//
Like those people who have an issue with what they perceive to be "Jewish" nose profiles.-- UnaBubba, Jul 13 2012 Nah this is actually alright if you think about it because it doesn't say all black people.-- rcarty, Jul 13 2012 Which is pretty much the rant I was not prepared to post when I raised my concerns on July 9.
Glasses designed for the Asian market are already designed to sit slightly differently on the nose than those for other markets, so the whole idea here is unoriginal.
There are no "black" people. We're all varying shades of pink, yellowish, brownish and even bluish (in the Bougainville islands off PNG) but I've never seen someone who is actually black.-- UnaBubba, Jul 13 2012 It's that part of the annotations where, having run out of other things to argue about, everyone gets overly literal.-- tatterdemalion, Jul 13 2012 Suggestion: sister site - The HalfArguary.-- Phrontistery, Jul 13 2012 I believe there's somewhere called the Overbakery (?), where [WcW] could go and continue the argument.-- MaxwellBuchanan, Jul 13 2012 Having intelligent discourse about racism is interesting, but the idea of 'low nasal bridge eyewear' includes this idea.-- Inyuki, Jul 13 2012 // I've never seen someone who is actually black. //
Some of the inhabitants of regions of North-East Africa have remarkable levels of melanin in their dermal tissues, and in average illumination appear truly "black".
// unoriginal and probably racist. //
<stops working on idea involving Gas Ovens>
Earnestly wishing to appear racist, prejudiced and insensitive, we choose this moment to point out that the word "Negro" is in the Spanish and Portuguese languages quite simply the commonplace word for the colour black, and has no other pejorative implications.
We say this only in order to upset people.-- 8th of 7, Jul 13 2012 I'm pretty sure you don't need to say anything in order to upset people.-- MaxwellBuchanan, Jul 13 2012 So kind.-- 8th of 7, Jul 13 2012 It is instructive to note that the use on occasion of the term "Gunga Din" in the British Army to refer to soldiers with ancestry in the Indian Subcontinent is not considered an insult, but a rather a term of affection, approbation and indeed praise; those who interpret it otherwise have simply never bothered to read the poem from which the name comes.
<link>-- 8th of 7, Jul 14 2012 random, halfbakery