CYBERNETIC AKA BIONIC EYES!
Bionic eyes— also referred to as cybernetic eyes— are closer than you think!
While I was researching this post, I tweeted a quick poll. Even with a disappointingly small sample size, my results were unanimous.
THE EYES HAVE IT
If you could only keep one of your five senses, which one would you choose?
To put it another way, which is your favorite of the five senses? Which sense would you want enhanced?
SIGHT! Let’s take a look at that! And look at cybernetic eyes!
EYES ARE THE WINDOW TO THE SOUL
Throughout history, in art, culture, music, (ironic since music is a hearing-based discipline) eyes were considered a precious gift. Eyes unveil the world to our consciousness. Others read our eyes to see our thoughts.
Ancient cultures used eyes in art. From amulets for protection to giving the evil eye with a curse, to decoration, the eyes had everyone’s attention.
I thought that, ‘eyes are the window of the soul’ was written by Shakespeare, but it’s not! It’s considered a traditional proverb.
THE EYE IS THE MOST DOMINANT SENSING ORGAN
It’s no wonder that everyone who voted, choose vision. Sight is a human’s dominant sense. In fact, studies show that our brains acquire more than 80% of information about our surroundings via our eyes.
The eye is a complicated organ. It takes a stimulus, light, which is made of electromagnetic waves that travel at 186,000 miles per second (FAST), and converts the light to usable information in our brains.
The visible spectrum of light is quite narrow too. For more about the light spectrum and a chart, read here.
CYBERNETIC EYE
In the Harry Potter series, a wizard named Mad Eye Mooney lost one eye when battling death eaters, and was given a prosthetic eye. His eye could swivel around like a chameleon, see through walls and even invisibility cloaks. (For more on the magic of invisibility, I have a post here!)
What about replacing an eye, for real, not in an imaginary land of wizards?
THE TERMS CYBERNETIC EYES AND BIONIC EYES ARE INTERCHANGABLE
ARTIFICIAL VISION
The idea of artificial vision began over two centuries ago in 1752 with the writings of Benjamin Franklin, who postulated to the Royal Society of London that sight and hearing could be restored with the use of electricity.
Franklin seemed quite preoccupied with electricity.
In case you’re wondering, Franklin ‘flying a kite with a key in a lightning storm‘ is a myth. This STEM experiment works perfectly to conduct electricity, but the current produced would have killed him. (mythbusters episode if you want to take a gander)
RESTORING VISION WITH ELECTRICAL STIMULATION
The idea caught on.
Perhaps after reading Benjamin Franklin’s theory, a French scientist named Charles Leroy decided to investigate. In 1755, he strapped some poor guy up with wires and and zapped him with electricity. The blind volunteer reported seeing ‘visual disturbances.’
I just find it disturbing!
CYBERNETIC EYES STILL IN THEIR INFANCY
Flash forward (intentional pun) to 1970.
Blind people were implanted with electrical stimulators. Subjects did see flashes of light!
But the brain could not interpret the signals. Their hair started on fire. It was a valiant attempt but this tech was in its infancy.
EYE PROSTHETICS ARE MECHANICAL
It would be so cool if implants looked like this AND functioned.
This is what I envision for the aesthetics of a cybernetic eye!
Eye prosthetics have come a long way! 3-D printing is making some realistic replacements, down to the intricate blood vessels.
They are for aesthetics only, with no function. They are considered a replacement for when someone has lost an eye due to disease, trauma, or disfigurement.
These replacements are not cybernetic eyes (bionic eyes).
EYE ANATOMY AND FUNCTION
Here’s a quick synopsis of the eye and how it works. It sounds like magic!
Light enters through the pupil rushing in at 186,000 miles per second.
The iris, or colored portion of our eyes, controls how much light enters.
Next, light passes through the lens. The lens works together with the cornea to focus light correctly on the retina.
This is where glasses come in, adjusting the focus of the light.
When light hits the retina (a light-sensitive layer of tissue at the back of the eye), special cells called photoreceptors turn the light waves into electrical signals.
The retina is made up of approximately 131 million photoreceptors. These are the rods and cones you probably learned about in school.
Science Magic!
These electrical signals travel from the retina through the optic nerve to the brain. The brain turns the signals into the images we see.
More science magic.
With so many visually impaired people, researchers continue their work to cure blindness!
In 2011, the number of visually impaired people is ~ 285 million. 39 million are blind. (ouch)
We can replace livers, lungs, and hearts. Remove cataracts and replace them with new lenses. But what about an entire eye?
RETINAL IMPLANTS OR BIONIC EYES AKA CYBERNETIC EYES
The only commercially available and approved bionic /cybernetic eyes –in actuality– are retinal implants. That term doesn’t sound as cool but it IS cool!
In brief below…
Bionic eye implants seem ideal for individuals who aren’t congenitally blind but sustained severe vision loss due to degenerative diseases.
The patient sees flashes of light, but their brain must still learn to decipher their meaning ‒ a process that could take approximately six months.
BIONIC EYES : SCIENCE FICTION BECOMING FACT
Restoring sight by feeding signals directly to the brain is ambitious. We have pacemakers to regulate our hearts and cochlear implants (since 1961!) for hearing. Why not our dominant sense?
Am I sensationalizing this? If you’re vision impaired, nope. Is a bionic eye without cameras or glasses beyond our reach?
One of the difficulties fabricating a hands-free prosthetic eye–as opposed to a retinal implant–is the shape of the retina.
New research is aimed to change that. Scientists used a curved, aluminum oxide membrane embedded with nanosized sensors made of perovskite.
PERVOSKITE
Pervoskite is a material with a 3-D crystal structure that surrounds an ion with light absorbing properties. Different ions could be interspersed between the crystals to absorb different wavelengths of light.
This material has practical applications in solar cells, lasers, high-temperature superconductivity. Pervoskite is now synthesized in labs, but it is an actual mineral that was discovered in 1839.
I’m cheering them on!
Meanwhile, the above retinal implants jack into the brain and do provide rudimentary vision. It’s a start!
Maybe someday soon, the vision-impaired will have bionic eyes aka cybernetic eyes that enable them to see color and smell the flowers, or watch a lovely sunset while listening to the waves. And taste chocolate with their eyes first
BIONIC EYES : SCIENCE FICTION BECOMES FACT!
Bionic/cybernetic eyes are out there! This amazing tech could change the lives of millions of visually-impaired people all over the world!
Thoughts?
Would you be willing to wear weird glasses or carry a battery-pack to restore your vision?
Very interesting ! Herb has macular so this subject had me very curious to learn more. Thx!! Love ur blogs!!
Eyesight is precious, I hope he’s doing well. Thanks so much!
Fascinating blog, as usual. I would definitely be willing to carry a battery pack or wear weird glasses if it meant having eyesight.
Thanks Amy! You’d own it, without question!
Great blog, really the information was great
Thank you, glad you like the post!
This was a massively Interesting read, really great on a subject I’ve never even thought about, thanks for sharing!
Fantastic! I’m glad I highlighted this for you. Thanks!
I think sight would be my answer too! Losing hearing would be hard, but at least then I could SEE my babies. Never seeing their faces again pains me. Thanks for another interesting article!
I can keep my poll unanimous with sight! Babies are special, without question. Fortunately, you don’t need to worry about not seeing their gorgeous faces. Thanks so much!
This is such a cool post idea, bionic eyes are exactly what I need with my short-sightedness!
Ha! Maybe you can have them someday!
Wow! This is such a cool and informative post! I didn’t know bionic eyes were really becoming a thing. I think I need some seeing as how my vision worsens every year when I go to the eye doctor lol
At least for now there are glasses/contacts! ha Thanks so much.
Not only well researched, as always, but full of fun facts, which makes your blog posts a great read!
I’m glad you like the fun facts! I do, too. Thanks!
Wow, another fact-filled and fun post – I’ve learned so much about eyes that I didn’t know! Sight is the one sense I’d really hate to lose, I can’t imagine not being able to see my world and appreciate my surroundings. Fab post, Sue, thank you! Lisa
I agree. I feel terribly for the vision-impaired! (I would have voted for sight, too) Thanks so much, Lisa!
This was a really interesting post. I’ve learnt so much more about eyes than I ever thought possible.
I’m glad! Thank-you for stopping by!
Very informative post! I’m learning more about science with your blog. More often we take for granted our eyesight and as of this time its not that easy to replace. We should take care of it more, see an eye doctor to make sure our eyes don’t get so much stress which leads to damage.
Excellent points! Eyesight is almost like magic! Those of us with good eyesight are beyond fortunate. Thanks so much.
Really fascinating read, it certainly would be cool if they eventually do come up with a fully working bionic eye.
That would be cool! Maybe they’ll manage it with the new materials. I hope so! Thanks.
Fascinating! As I’ve started to need reading glasses for more and more things I’m more conscious of and appreciative of sight all the time! And apparently not alone there as your vote shows! Thanks for another informative, fascinating article!
I feel the same way! It’s great to know that researchers are working on this tech in order to help the visually impaired. Thanks so much!
This is very interesting! I love it 😻
Thanks so much! (Love the kitty)
This is so interesting! Learnt some things I never would have done elsewhere too!
Happy to hear it. Thanks so much!
I have terrible eyesight first thing I reach for when I wake are my glasses. But losing my sight completely would be hell. Interesting blog x
Thank goodness for glasses! Glad you found my post interesting. Thanks!
Very interesting blog! Very detailed and still easy to understand.
Then I’ve achieved my objective. Thank you so much!
The future is almost here
Exactly. In some ways that’s good, in other ways, it’ not quite as optimal. At least this post outlines the good! Thanks.
I’m very interested to see if bionic eyes will be the first to revolutionize how we view our own eyes or the eyeballs we can harvest from human-animal hybrids. Either way, both seem like really good options and interesting topics.
Interesting angle! This post was getting long so I didn’t delve into transplants. Thanks for bringing it up!
It’s something we take for granted every day but when you think about its such am amazing thing! Thanks for sharing 😊
I agree.Thanks for stopping by!
This was a fascinating post! So good to have this much information put together. To be honest, I think everyone would be glad to wear anything if it could give them back any of their senses. Vision is the obviously considered the most valuable one… that is until, God forbid, we lose any of the others. I’m so glad we have scientists working not only on bionic eyes but also bionic arms, legs, systems to support body weight for those with spinal injuries… technology is amazing!
I agree! Technology is amazing. I love reading about new advances, especially when they help people have happier lives. Thanks so much.
There was so much to discover here, thanks for sharing! I am fascinated by the idea of ‘cyborgs’ and technological enhancements for the human body, so it was interesting to dive into some of the history and context of this 🙂
I’m fascinated too. The history isn’t glamorous, but hopefully the end result will be. Thanks!
This is such an informative post a really interesting read!
Amber – The Unpredicted Page
Thanks!
This was an interesting post. Thank you for sharing your thoughts!
Lauren | http://www.bournemouthgirl.com
Thanks for stopping by!
Very intriguing post and I learnt some new knowledge, thank you for sharing 😁
Thank you. I’m happy you liked it!
Really fascinating post! I would definitely carry a battery pack around with me if it meant I had vision again!
Tash // A Girl with a View
Me, too! Thanks so much!
Very interesting topic, thanks for the post!
Thank you!
Great post! Thank you for sharing! This is very interesting!
I’m so happy that you found it interesting! Thanks!
Modern medicine is so amazing ! Thank you for always sharing interesting information ! I’m lucky enough to not have any eyesight problems but If I did, it’s reassuring to know so many cool advancements are beginning to happen !
Hurrah for your excellent eyesight! In 100 years, people may shake their heads but right now, I agree. Modern medicine is amazing. Thanks!
Great post. So much interesting things I read today. Thank you for sharing.
I’m happy you think so! Thanks.
OH that’s a future ready post. And, BTW, sight happens to be my favourite sense too
Another vote to add to my poll! Thanks so much!
I hope this becomes a reality soon. Great scientific information.
The Argus is commercially available! But it would be great to have more options and improve the tech even more! Thanks!
Great post. I learned something new today and it was very interesting!!! Eyesight is important in my opinion!! 💯💯
Glad you liked my post! I agree, eyesight is a lovely gift we take for granted. You must have keen eyesight to play basketball! Thanks.
I loved your style of writing, it’s not just informative but interesting to read. I was hoping for a device like the visor, which that visual impaired character used to wear in the Star Trek TV series. The diagrams and simple illustrations eased the information and helped the readers getting the idea. Great invention of 21st century. People must also be interested in its cost. Glad to know about it. Amazing article.👏
The cost of the visor is still quite high, unfortunately. I hope more companies will find the science important and help with research and development, to decrease the cost. Yes, that Star Trek character was Jordy! I’d forgotten about him. I’m gratified that you found my article has a good balance of facts and fun. Sara, thank you so much!
Hi Susan. I really enjoyed this blog post and will be sharing it with some friends with vision issues. As always, you give such clarity (pardon the pun!) to complicated science topics! Well done!
I love puns, as you can probably tell. Thank you so much!
Very very nice post, Thank you for sharing such a fantastic information.
You’re so welcome. I’m gratified that you like my post! Thank you!
The information shared is extremely helpful! Thank you for sharing!
I’m gratified that you find my post helpful! Thank you for stopping by!