Heterochromia is when the eyes are two different colours
When someone has heterochromia, they have two different coloured eyes. This can be as the result of a disease or trauma to the eye. A lot of people believe David Bowie has heterochromia, but he in fact has anisocoria. Bowie developed this after a friend punched him in the face, causing one of his pupils to look bigger than the other.
Hawks and eagles see almost eight times better than humans
Birds of prey such as eagles have incredible eyesight, in fact compared to a lot of animals their eyesight is the most superior. They are especially skilled at vision from a distance, which of course makes sense considering the vast distances they cover in the sky.
Only 1/6th of your eyeball is exposed to the outside world
The eyes are bigger than you think! Most of the eyeball is hidden from view, showing just one sixth to the world, that’s all the surface area we need to take in the world around us.
The brain is the only organ in our bodies more complex than the eye
The eyes are so complex that they are sometimes used in place of fingerprint scanning, as eyes have a lot more unique characteristics than your fingerprint.
Children that have issues with their vision are often misdiagnosed with dyslexia and other learning difficulties
It can be difficult for teachers and parents to know if a child has learning difficulties or vision issues. Particularly with dyslexia, both the learning difficulty and vision issues can be present in similar ways.
There are over 1 million nerves connecting each eye to the brain
The optic nerve also carries messages to the brain through a million different nerve fibres.
The cornea is the only part of the body that receives its oxygen directly from the air, not the lungs
It’s important that contact lenses are breathable (allow oxygen through the lens) as the cornea relies on oxygen from the air instead of the lungs.
When concentrating, most people only partially blink
The next time you find yourself concentrating at your computer screen, make a conscious effort to blink fully. Only partially blinking throughout the day can stop the eyes replenishing properly and can lead to dryeyes.
The ‘red eye’ seen in photographs is due to red blood vessels in the retina
Flash photography can sometimes cause the blood vessels in the retina to flashback, causing the red eye effect you sometimes see in photos.
Seeing is so important that it takes up more than 50% of the brain’s functionality
Over 50% of our brains power is reserved for vision. This might explain why we are such visual learners too, as we retain information much better when we see it, rather than just hear it.
People generally read 25% slower from a computer screen compared to from paper
Research shows that reading on digital screens can be more difficult that reading on paper. The brightness of the screen can cause eyestrain, slowing down the rate at which we can take in and process information.
Our eyebrows are made to keep sweat from running into our eyes
Without eyebrows, sweat can easily get into our eyes and obstruct our vision. Eyelashes have a similar function, they stop foreign objects from reaching the cornea.
Sources:
https://www.jnj.com/our-company/just-for-kids-amazing-facts-about-the-human-eye
https://www.optometrists.org/general-practice-optometry/guide-to-eye-health/eye-mazing-facts-about-eyes/
https://opto.ca/health-library/funny-eye-facts
https://www.eyeclinicopticians.uk/fun-facts-about-eyes
