Re: APOD: Sunspot Castle (2011 Nov 12)
Posted: Sat Nov 12, 2011 10:10 pm
Wow! What a striking image! Who knew sunspots could be seen with the unaided eye?
APOD and General Astronomy Discussion Forum
https://asterisk.apod.com/
Well - if you find a pointer to any such papers - that would be great. I'm aware of epidemiological studies in the 90's - but at that point they were having enough trouble just demonstrating that cataracts are definitively linked to UV exposure at all - let alone the much more subtle issue that sunglasses might have caused more than would have appeared otherwise. This is a topic I have been interested in over the years, and I lean much farther the other way - that UV protection from typical sunglasses today is much more effective than commonly thought - just based on the materials - and I doubt the claim that early sunglasses made things worse for those who wore them.Chris Peterson wrote: Not a handy one. But I've read several peer reviewed papers on the subject, with a rigorous analysis of the optical characteristics of lens materials and pupil response, and supported by statistical information regarding cataract rates and age of onset. Those papers would have been published in the early 1990s.
The procedure is called couching, and was probably used by the ancient Egyptians, and perhaps even earlier. I own a fine Arabic bronze couching needle, probably made (and used) in 11th century Damascus. This is not the sort of needle I'm comfortable seeing plunged into an eye- especially not my own!neufer wrote:The earliest records are from the Bible, as well as early Hindu records. Early cataract surgery was developed by the Indian surgeon, Sushruta (6th century BCE). The Indian tradition of cataract surgery was performed with a special tool called the jabamukhi salaka, a curved needle used to loosen the lens and push the cataract out of the field of vision.
Records pertaining to what? Cataracts, surgery, or both? And where abouts is it located in the Bible?? I don't ever remember running across any eye surgery. Although Sodom could have received a mass case of severe cataracts just before it got burned up.neufer wrote:The earliest records are from the Bible, as well as early Hindu records.
Cataracts. Here, let me lead you by the hand:Beyond wrote:Records pertaining to what?neufer wrote:
The earliest records are from the Bible,
Aw, c'mon neuf, the context of Psalm 69:23 is about people not understanding Jesus because He's been 'hidden' from their view. It's not a physical eyesight thingy.neufer wrote:
"In the land of the blind,
the one-eyed man is king."
- Erasmus's Adagia (1500)Cataracts. Here, let me lead you by the hand:Beyond wrote:Records pertaining to what?neufer wrote:
The earliest records are from the Bible,
"Let their eyes be darkened, that they see not;" -- Psalm 69:23
"And immediately there fell on him a mist and a darkness;
and he went about seeking some to lead him by the hand." -- Acts 13:11
Yeah, I'm not buying it either. Certainly there are references in the bible to blindness that could plausibly describe cataracts, such as in Genesis, where Isaac is described as having "dim" vision with his advanced age.Beyond wrote:Aw, c'mon neuf, the context of Psalm 69:23 is about people not understanding Jesus because He's been 'hidden' from their view. It's not a physical eyesight thingy.
I've never read Tobit. But then I've never read Tobe or not Tobe either.Chris Peterson wrote:Yeah, I'm not buying it either. Certainly there are references in the bible to blindness that could plausibly describe cataracts, such as in Genesis, where Isaac is described as having "dim" vision with his advanced age.Beyond wrote:Aw, c'mon neuf, the context of Psalm 69:23 is about people not understanding Jesus because He's been 'hidden' from their view. It's not a physical eyesight thingy.
The most interesting example, though, is found in the Book of Tobit, where the onset of his (Tobit's) blindness seems reasonably explained by cataracts, and his cure is reasonably explained by couching.
Beyond wrote:I've never read Tobit. But then I've never read Tobe or not Tobe either.Chris Peterson wrote:
Certainly there are references in the bible to blindness that could plausibly describe cataracts, such as in Genesis, where Isaac is described as having "dim" vision with his advanced age. The most interesting example, though, is found in the Book of Tobit, where the onset of his (Tobit's) blindness seems reasonably explained by cataracts, and his cure is reasonably explained by couching.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Book_of_Tobit wrote:<<The Book of Tobit tells the story of a righteous Israelite of the Tribe of Naphtali named Tobit living in Nineveh after the deportation of the northern tribes of Israel to Assyria in 721 BC under Sargon II. He is particularly noted for his diligence in attempting to provide proper burials for fallen Israelites who have been slain by Sennacherib, for which the king seizes all his property and exiles him. After Sennacherib's death, he is allowed to return to Nineveh, but buries a man who had been murdered on the street. That night, he sleeps in the open and is blinded by bird droppings that fall in his eyes. This puts a strain on his marriage, and he prays for death.
Meanwhile, in faraway Media, a young woman named Sarah prays for death in despair. She has lost seven husbands to the demon of lust, Asmodeus, who abducts and kills every man she marries on their wedding night before the marriage can be consummated. God sends the archangel Raphael, disguised as a human, to heal Tobit and to free Sarah from the demon.
The main narrative is dedicated to Tobit's son, Tobias, who is sent by his father to collect a sum of money that the latter had deposited some time previously in the far off land of Media. Under the guidance of Raphael, Tobias makes the journey to Media, accompanied by his dog. Along the way, he is attacked by a giant (or little) fish, whose heart, liver and gall bladder are removed to make medicines.
Upon arriving in Media, Raphael tells Tobias of the beautiful Sarah, whom Tobias has the right to marry, because he is her cousin and closest relative. He instructs the young man to burn the fish's liver and heart to drive away the demon when he attacks on the wedding night. The two are married, and the fumes of the burning organs drive the demon away to Upper Egypt, while Raphael follows him and binds him. Tobias and Sarah return to Nineveh. There, Raphael tells the youth to use the fish's gall to cure his father's blindness.>>
I haven't either but here it is! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Book_of_TobitBeyond wrote:
I've never read Tobit. But then I've never read Tobe or not Tobe either.