Human Eyes Have Evolved for X-Ray Vision

Human eyes have evolved for X-Ray vision having the ability to see through things, according to a scientist at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

Mark Changizi, assistant professor of cognitive science, says that eyes facing the same direction maximise the ability of humans and some other animals to see in leafy environments like forests.

Blocked Tear Duct - Causes - Symptoms - Diagnosis - Treatment - FAQs
An obstruction in the tear drainage system is known as dacryostenosis. This is a common condition in infants. Adults can get a blocked tear duct due to infection, inflammation, eye injury or a tumor.

He corroborates his proposition with the fact that a person can see through a pen to the world behind it with both eyes open, though not with one eye closed.

Similarly, a person can see almost everything beyond his/her fingers when they are placed in random directions, and the subjects both eyes are open.

"Our binocular region is a kind of 'spotlight' shining through the clutter, allowing us to visually sweep out a cluttered region to recognize the objects beyond it," says Changizi, who is principal investigator on the project.

Glaucoma - Causes, Symptoms, Diagnosis, Treatment & Prevention
Glaucoma is a group of disorders involving the optic nerve, often associated with a rise in intraocular pressure. Uncontrolled glaucoma can lead to blindness.

"As long as the separation between our eyes is wider than the width of the objects causing clutter - as is the case with our fingers, or would be the case with the leaves in the forest - then we can tend to see through it," he adds.

Changizi, however, feels that eyes located on either side of the head-as in fish, insects, reptiles, birds, rabbits, and horses-might be more beneficial for humans these days because the sideways-facing eyes could allow them to see in front of and behind themselves.

Myopia - Symptoms and Diagnosis - Treatment - FAQs
Myopia is the inability of a person to see the distant objects clearly. Myopia is also known as near or short sightedness.

"In today's world, humans have more in common visually with tiny mice in a forest than with a large animal in the jungle. We aren't faced with a great deal of small clutter, and the things that do clutter our visual field - cars and skyscrapers - are much wider than the separation between our eyes, so we can't use our X-ray power to see through them," he says.

"If we froze ourselves today and woke up a million years from now, it's possible that it might be difficult for us to look the new human population in the eyes, because by then they might be facing sideways," he adds.

Strabismus | Squint - Types, Causes, Symptoms, Diagnosis, Treatment & Prevention
Strabismus or squint is a failure of the two eyes to maintain proper alignment when looking at an object. It is also called crossed eyes.

Source-ANI
RAS/L