Mixed guest musings

A new Abstract is long overdue, for which I apologise, and herewith present you with a mishmash of musings.

Firstly, originally from my friend and colleague Susie, musings on what people see in their 'mind's eye' if they have been blind since they were born. I think this is a very interesting question, but unfortunately don't know anyone who is blind to ask them. Can they imagine colours? And if they can, are they necessarily the same way a sighted person does? Come to think of it, do two sighted people visualise colours in the same way as each other?? The direction of these thoughts perhaps takes one back to solipsism and the very first Urban Abstract I ever posted (solipsism apparently being the philosophical idea that it might be the case that nothing outside one's own mind actually exists, and even if it does, one can never conclusively determine that it does because one only has one's own mind and experiences to draw on!)

Secondly, also from Susie and principally her experiences on the tube system in London, why do people tend not to follow the simplest of functional rules in modern Urban society? For example, walking out of 'no exit' gates, not moving right down the carriage when asked to and walking on the right/left of connecting walkways when signs instruct them to walk on the left/right. For my part, I suspect in the majority of cases it is because it is most convenient for the perpetrator (at the expense of others). But I do remain puzzled sometimes, for instance I do recall seeing a shop recently which had two doors, one with a large sign saying "Please use other door --->" and yet I saw more than one person struggling to open this locked door with the sign on!

Finally, from my brother Steve, we have the ponderings regarding social norms, in particular how one responds when thanked for doing something. Often in America, you will get a 'you're welcome' when you thank someone, but over here frequently there is nothing, save for perhaps a grunt or a silent smile. Why is this? Does it signify something related to the national psyche? I'm not sure how prevalent it is in cultures around the world but would hazard a guess that it is more common to say something than not.