Bringing Sight to the World

Imagine if you lived in a country where there was no such thing as an eye doctor, and if there is one you don't know how to access them. This is the situation for millions of people around the world. The problem is that almost everyone will have vision problems during their life. If you live in the U.S. or another industrialized country, you simply go to a glasses shop and get fitted with a prescription, but this is not the case in places such as Sub-saharan Africa or India. So what's the solution?

Josh Silver, a physicist from Oxford has invented a pair of glasses that can be adjusted by the wearer. Since most vision problems are related to near-sidedness or far-sidedness, then it's just a matter of changing the shape of the lens. The glasses have two pieces of plastic with fluid in between them. The wearer changes the strength of the glasses by changing the level of fluid. Attached to each lens is a syringe, and once the fluid level is chosen, then a screw seals the fluid inside the lenses.

Giving sight back to people in the developing world will have an amazing impact. It will likely increase literacy, and it will allow people to work in their chosen industries longer. In Ghana, Silver met a man who retired as a taylor when he was 35 because he couldn't see to thread his needle anymore. Once he put on the glasses, he was able to see again and is working again.

Since an optometrist isn't needed, the cost for these glasses is extremely low. As of now, 30,000 have already been distributed, and Silver's goal is to give out 1 million by the end of one year. According to this article in the Guardian, he is partnering with business owners and governments around the world to increase distribution. He is also working on changing the design, since the current design is clunking and unfashionable.

Who knew that bringing sight to the world could be so easy. I hope that his project continues, and that he is able to meet his goal of distributing these glasses all over the world.