Physiology of Vision

Properties of Light

Properties of Light
Light source is required to see Speed of light It takes light one ten thousandth of a second to travel around the earth Light slows down when it enters a material depending on the material and its density. Our eyes respond to visible light which is onebillionth of a meter.

VISIBLE LIGHT
Visible light is composed of electromagnetic waves With frequencies between 4.0-7.5 x 10 hertz and wavelengths between 400-750 nanometers (nm)

 Visible light travels in the form of waves, and the wavelengths can be measured very accurately. Red wavelengths are the longest and have the lowest energy Violet wavelengths are the shortest and the most energetic White objects reflect all wavelengths of light Black objects absorb wavelengths of light

Reflection
The lens is transparent and curved on one or both surfaces Light travels in a straight line and is blocked by any transparent object. Reflection accounts for most of the light reaching our eyes. To see well the tissue must be transparent

Refraction
Light is bent toward the perpendicular when it travels from a less dense to a more dense medium.

The Process of Vision

Vision is the process through which light reflected from objects is translated into a mental image. It involves a sensory organ (the eye), in which light rays are focused by a lens onto the retina, where photoreceptors transduce light energy into electrical signals, which are integrated to create mental images after processing in the cerebral cortex

The Process of Vision

Particles called Photons bounce off of solid objects in all directions before reaching the eye The photons first reach the cornea (located at the front of the eye) The crystalline lens behind pupil The vitreous body located in the middle of the eye Retina photographic plate Stops at the retinal pigment epithelium Sets off the nerve pulses Pulse directed to the optic nerve Then the optic pathways Occipital brain where images are formed

The Retina
The ability to focus an image in the retina depends on the refractive power of both the cornea and the lens as well as on the shape of the eye globe.

The Retina
Distant Vision Our eyes are best adapted for distant vision Far Point of Vision distance beyond which no change in lens shape is needed for focusing Emmetropic (Normal) eye the far point is 6 m (20 feet) Sphincter like ciliary muscles are completely relaxed Lens is stretched flat by tension in the ciliary zonule Lens is as thin as it gets and is at its lowest refractory power The ciliary muscle relax when sympathetic input to them increases and parasympathetic input decreases.

The Retina
Close Vision demands the eye to make an active adjustment light from close objects(Less than 6m) away diverges as it gets closer and comes to a focal point farther from the lens The process for restoring focus in close vision: Accommodation of the lenses process that increases the refractory power of the lens. Constriction of the pupils the sphincter papillae muscles of the iris enhance the affect of accommodation by reducing the size of the pupil toward 2mm Convergence of the eyeballs - is the medial rotation of the eyeballs by the medial retus muscles so that each is directed toward the object being viewed.

The Retina
Myopia (nearsighted) occurs when distant objects are focused in front of the retina (you see objects close with no problems) Hyperopia (farsighted) occurs when the parallel light rays from objects are focused behind the retina (you see objects far away with no problem) Astigmatism unequal curvatures in different parts of the cornea or lens lead to blurry images .