This retinal implant 'Alpha IMS device' has given sight to 9 blind people so far!
This is an X-ray of one of the patients, showing the implanted chip with wires running to it from the retina, with a dial behind the ear that can be used to adjust brightness. It is powered wirelessly via a battery in the pocket.
Source: http://gizmodo.com/5985863/this-retinal-implant-has-given-sight-to-nine-blind-people
What the article doesn't say but probably should is that the sight these people gain is not the sight they would have even if they needed strong glasses. It is limited, but it does make a difference in a person's independence. It can allow them to travel more safely and indepently. Interesting that they can read braille visually instead of tactilely. I think this may have to do with the occipital lobe undergoing some changes from lack of stimuli, causing it to work in a different linguistic pattern. I need to do more searching on this and will get back to you.
ReplyDeleteElizabeth Weimann I have read about it on the institute website http://www.eye.uni-tuebingen.de/retina-implant-publication.
ReplyDeleteGood info, thanks
Amazing! Science used in this way is a boon to mankind!
ReplyDeleteTom Willingham
ReplyDeleteThat's deep and philosophical!