The mind-numbing precision of mass visual displays as shown in this recent photo of spectators at a public sporting event in North Korea is even more astonishing when you notice that each person's placard is completely unique for the seat they are occupying. The squares of color they are holding up are each made up of smaller pixel areas of differing colors! If someone felt the least bit anarchic, say, and switched signs with the guy in the next seat, the visual illusion would be compromised. Talk about control!

Image is king in one of the most repressed countries in the world.

The caption to the photo above, as shown on Boston.com is:

Young Koreans hold up colored display cards to form a background image for a performance of North Korea's Mass Games on September 12, 2008. The Mass Games are designed to entertain or celebrate holidays, and place emphasis on group dynamics rather than individual prowess. This particular show's name is "Prosper the Motherland!", dedicated to the 60th Anniversary of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, celebrated on September 9th. (© Eric Lafforgue)

Thanks to Conscientious for providing this bit of insight today.

And here's a look at how the massive coordination effort happens: Short video clip excerpted from "A State of Mind", an documentary about the lives of several Mass Games gymnists within North Korea.