They would want their vision back if they ever lost it. In many fables and stories, a blind person miraculously sees the world again, or for the first time. In real life, could this miracle actually happen?
Several new technologies can treat or reverse certain forms of vision loss. But none of these technologies is perfect. Most come with risks and restore only glimpses of light and shadow. How do they work? And how do people with vision loss feel about these so-called cures”?
Bionic Eyes
As of 2002, people with vision loss can get an implant that hacks their visual system. The device captures sights and sends them to the brain. During surgery, a doctor puts a very tiny set of electrodes onto the retina at the back of the patient's eye. Then, the patient has to wear a pair of glasses that contains a camera and computer chip. The camera captures visual information and the computer chip sends signals to the electrodes. The electrodes provide the brain with some very basic visual information. It's not going to be vision like you and I have, where we see colors and shapes and images, says Jennifer Lim, an eye doctor at University of Illinois Health. It's more of a pixelated type vision that they see, but it's really a great scientific advancement
This type of implant only works if a person's retina still functions. In some forms of blindness, that isn't the case. So, some researchers are working on implants that would go onto a person's brain instead. Brain surgery is riskier than eye surgery. But the risks seemed worth it for the volunteers testing these new implants.
Creating LightSensitive Cells
Denne historien er fra January 2022-utgaven av Muse Science Magazine for Kids.
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Denne historien er fra January 2022-utgaven av Muse Science Magazine for Kids.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Who's Your Cousin?
The great apes are among the most popular animals in most zoos. Their actions, facial expressions, and family life remind us so much of ourselves. Have you ever wondered, though, how we might look to them?
Is it possible to die of boredom?
To figure out if we can die of boredom, we first have to understand what boredom is. For help, we called James Danckert, a psychologist who studies boredom at the University of Waterloo in Canada.
THE PROBLEM WITH PALM OIL
Palm oil is all around you. It’s in sugary snacks like cookies and candy bars. It’s in lipstick and shampoo and pet food.
SERGE WICH
Serge Wich’s favorite days at work are spent out in the forest, studying orangutans in Sumatra and Borneo or chimpanzees in Tanzania.
ELODIE FREYMANN
When you’re feeling sick, it probably doesn’t occur to you to try eating tree bark.
Guardians of the Forest
EARLY, MAKESHIFT WILDLIFE DRONES HELPED TO DETECT AND PROTECT ORANGUTANS.
APE ANTICS
The Whirling World of primate play
Dr. Ape Will See You Now
HUMANS AREN’T THE ONLY PRIMATES THAT USE MEDICATION.
THE LEFT OVERS
A lot has happened for modern humans to get to this point. We lost most of our hair, learned how to make tools, established civilizations, sent a person to the Moon, and invented artificial intelligence. Whew! With all of these changes, our bodies have changed, too. It’s only taken us about six million years.
SO, WHAT IS A PRIMATE?
What do you have in common with the aye-aye, sifaka, siamang, and potto? If you said your collarbone, you re probably a primatologist—a person who studies primates. If you’re not, read on.