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>
> ... You don't need to be able
> to read to know that a pictograph of a skull and bones, wedge between an
> arm and a hand, or a red triangle with an exclamation point in it mean
> DANGER. You can also communicate an overview of an assembly process
> quicker with an image than words, or communicate how a circuit is
> constructed, or any workflow, hierarchy, or system.
In the 1980s it was found that many American children thought the skull and
crossbones was kind of funny, rather than frightening. Many companies
supplanted the traditional skull and crossbones symbol on poisonous products
with a simple symbol that looks like the 70's smiley face, but with squinted
eyes and its tongue sticking out (what was perceived as a universal symbol
for "Yuch!") Kids apparently were less willing to taste-test the strychnine
when the Yuch symbol was used.
I don't see much of this "Yuch" symbol any more, but it certainly suggests
that the obviousness of a symbol such as skull and crossbones isn't as
universal as one might think. The exclamation point inside a triangle is
even less obvious, in my opinion. You could make a good argument that it
could mean "Wow!" as much as "Look out!"
Paul Strasser
Windsor Technologies, Inc.
2569 Park Lane, Suite 200
Lafayette, Colorado 80026
Phone: 303-926-1982
FAX: 303-926-1510
E-mail: paul -dot- strasser -at- windsor-tech -dot- com
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