Written by/photo provided by Liu Zhirong
The survey data released by the Ministry of Education on August 27, 2020 showed that the national myopia rate in primary and secondary schools increased by 11.7% in the first half of this year, and the myopia rate among high school students is as high as 85%! The topic of students’ vision decline has once again attracted social attention.
Italian scientist, musician and painter Leonardo da Vinci said: “The eyes are the windows of the heart’s spirit.” Vision problems will affect reading, writing, scientific observation, and work, and even affect normal daily life. Vision is so important to people, the World Health Organization and the International Association for the Prevention of Blindness set the second Thursday of October as “World Vision Day”.
Thankfully, glasses can correct vision problems such as myopia, hyperopia and astigmatism. The invention of glasses not only changed the fate of those with poor visionKomiks, but also promoted the development process of human civilization. You can imagine that without glasses, many people will not be able to read and write, acquire knowledge, spread knowledge and conduct scientific research. So what should today’s society look like?
1 Online classes have caused the rate of myopia to soar
First, let’s take a look at the vision of primary and secondary school students in my country.
On April 29, 2019, data released by the National Health Commission showed that the overall myopia rate among children and adolescents in 2018 was 53.6%, of which 6-year-old children were 14.5%, primary school students were 36%, junior high school students were 71.6%, and high school students were 81%.
On August 27, 2020, the Ministry of Education announced the National Myopia Survey of Primary and Secondary Schools. In the first six months of 2020, the myopia rate of primary and secondary school students in the country increased by 11.7% compared with the end of 2019. Among them, the myopia rate of primary and secondary school students increased by 15.2%, the myopia rate of junior high school students increased by 8.2%, and the myopia rate of high school students increased by 3.8%. The survey also shows that the myopia detection rate for one hour of online classes every day is 45.8%, the myopia detection rate for one hour to 2.5 hours of online classes every day is 49.3%, the myopia detection rate for 2.5 hours to 4 hours of online classes every day is 62.4%, and the myopia detection rate for more than 4 hours of online classes every day is 49.3%.It is 76.7%.
BabaylanThis survey also confirmed that various display screens have great damage to people’s vision. The longer you look at the monitor, the more myopia is, the more likely we are to look at the monitor. We must minimize our dependence on television, computers, and mobile phones in our study, work and life.
On October 8, 2019, the World Vision Report released by the World Health Organization showed that more than 800 million patients with myopia and hyperopia faced inconvenience in life because they did not have glasses. Wearing glasses can effectively correct vision defects. The reason why so many people do not wear glasses is mainly because they lack understanding of glasses.
2 Crystal lenses 2,700 years ago were discovered in Assyrian ruins
Archaeological discoveries, and lenses were found during the Assyrian civilization period (2500 BC-612 BC). Archaeologists discovered crystal lenses built from 750 BC to 7 BC on Assyrian civilization sites. Scholars speculate that this lens might have been used as a magnifying glass at that time. This is the earliest lens found in the world.
Records records that people used glasses in ancient Greece and Roman times. The ancient Roman writer Pliny the Sr. (23-79) mentioned that the tyrant Nero (37-68) held lenses when watching the gladiator’s gladiator to see more clearly.
Ancient Roman writer Seneca (4-65 years) read in a glass container filled with water. The circular glass container holds water as a convex lens and can correct hyperopia.
Ancient Greek mathematician and astronomer Crodis Ptolemy (90-168) described the scene of convex lens magnification in his book Optics.
Medieval Arab thinker and physicist Alha once wrote a book called “Principles of Optics”, which also contains convex lens imaging content. This book had a significant impact on future optical research. During this period, the glass manufacturing industry in Italy also flourished, using convex lenses made of glass for reading, which was very popular in the Mediterranean coast and even spread to areas further east as trade spread.
In 1262, British philosopher and scientist Roger Bacon conducted a lot of research on the principle of convex transfusion imaging and calculated the focal length of the spherical mirror, which played a huge role in the future development of ophthalmic optics. Bacon wrote: “Made from crystal, glass or other transparent substancesCinema part of the sphere, with the convex face toward the eyes, can see very small words or subtle objects more clearly. This tool is useful to everyone; for those with weak eyesight Babaylan, if its magnification is large enough, no matter how small the words are, they can be clearly identified. ”
3 Italy invented double-lens glasses to correct vision in 1286
Let me explain here that there are many types of glasses, such as goggles, swimming goggles, sunglasses, fashion glasses, etc. This article discusses glasses to correct vision, and does not involve other types of glasses.
Double-lens glasses to correct vision on the bridge of the nose were invented by the Italians in 1286. This should be the origin of modern glasses.
In 1289, a member of the Italian Popozo family wrote: “I am so old, if I had no glasses, I could not read and write. “This shows that in 1289, glasses were not a rare thing in Italy.
The Italian monk BabaylanGordano mentioned in an article published on February 23, 1306: “The skills of making glasses were invented 20 years ago, so that people with poor eyesight could see clearly… I knew this inventor and talked to him. ”
Italian scholar Carlo Dati said that in his book “St. Catherine in Pisa: Ancient Chronicles of My Church” published in 1313, he read: “In a monastery in Cinema in Pisa, there was a monk named Alessandro de la Spiena. He heard that someone invented glasses but was unwilling to disclose the technology, so he developed glasses manufacturing technology and shared the joy of the invention with everyone with joy. “Alessandro is a colleague of Giordano mentioned above. From this, it can be inferred that although Alessandro was not the first person to invent glasses, he was the first person to disclose glasses manufacturing technology.
So, when you have vision problems, you should thank the Italian Alessandro 730 years ago.
4 Double-lens glasses were popular in Italy in the early 14th century
I found by searching a large number of historical documents that double-lens glasses became popular in Italy in the early 14th century, which was mainly due to the progress of Italian glass manufacturing technology.
In 1301, the Glasses Industry Association was established in Venice, Italy, and the World Glass Manufacturing Center Venice alsoIt has become the world’s glasses manufacturing center, and glasses manufacturing has formed a large-scale industry. The chapter “From Glasses to Telescopes: Renaissance Vision” published in 2007 mentioned that Italy shipped a ship of glasses to the Middle East at one time, with as many as 24,000 pairs.
The famous Italian scholar Francisco Petrarch (1304-1374) wore glasses when he was 60 years old; the Italian writer Franco Saketti (1335-1400) also often mentioned glasses in his book “Three Hundred Short Stories”. Komiks
The earliest paintings found to be worn with glasses were painted by Italian painter Tomaso da Modena for Cardinal Hugh Provence in 1352. The archbishop in the painting was copying something in the library wearing glasses. From the picture, we can see that the glasses are riveted with two lenses with metal beams and clamped on the nose bridge with metal elasticity, which is also the “nosed glasses”.
A pair of physical clip-nosed glasses found in a monastery in Celle, Germany were manufactured around 1400 years.
As of the 15th century, there are more records about glasses in the literature. Master, a painter from Heiligen Clauz in Austria, drew the “Death of the Virgin” on the altar of a church in Germany. There was a saint wearing glasses to study the scriptures. The painting was painted around 1403.
On August 25, 1451, Alduino da Barcelona, of Fira, Italy, wrote to Piero di Cosimo de Medici, who received four pairs of glasses, three of which were myopia glasses. It can be seen that at the latest in 1451, Italy had myopia mirrors. Myopia lenses are concave lenses, and their manufacturing process is more complex than convex lenses.
Pope Leo X (1475-1523) had myopia, and he wore a concave myopia glasses.
A portrait of the archbishop wearing glasses painted by Spanish painter El Greco in about 1600. The glasses were wrapped around the ears with a string as an ear hanging. Except for the ear hanging, their appearance is no different from the current glasses.
5 By 1825, the invention and development of glasses were practiced and then theory. The theory of glasses correcting vision was gradually established later. In 1604, the German astronomer Johannes Kepler published theThe paper on the imaging principles of convex lenses and Komiks concave lenses reveals why convex lenses can correct hyperopia, while concave lenses can correct myopia. Lens optical theory has played a guiding role in the later development of glasses.
In 1784, American scientist and politician Benjamin Franklin invented hyperopia and myopia bipolar glasses. In 1825, British astronomer George Eli invented cylindrical lenses to correct astigmatism. At this point, hyperopia, myopia and astigmatism were invented.
From the second half of the 18th century to the early 19th century, “scissor glasses” were also very popular, that is, two lenses were installed on two lens holders respectively. The ends of the two lens holders were riveted on the same shaft like scissors, folded together when not in use, and opened and used when in use. French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte (1769-1821) used scissors and glasses.
The common legs-wearing glasses now existed before 1727 and were invented by Edward Scarlett (1688-1743), a British glasses manufacturer.
Around 1790, a single-lens glasses were invented in the UK, which used the power of the upper and lower eyelids to fix the lens.
In the early 20th century, Moritz von Roll (1868-1940), a German optical lens designer who worked for the Cinema Zeiss company in Germany, invented aspherical lenses, also known as “Zeiss lenses”, which were lighter, thinner and flatter. Soon, aspherical lenses dominated the world’s glasses industry.
In 1954, an engineer from the French Ishilu Company invented resin lenses. Since then, resin lenses have gradually become the mainstream lenses of glasses.
6 Leonardo da Vinci is the “father of contact lenses”
Finally, let’s talk about contact lenses. Contact lenses are called “contact glasses” abroad, which means that the lenses come into contact with the eyeball when worn.
Da Vinci explored contact lenses in 1508, explained the imaging principles, and drew structural diagrams. Although he did not create practical contact lenses, he was respected because he first proposed this idea.”Father of contact lenses”.
After Da Vinci proposed the idea of contact lenses, people have been exploring the manufacturing process of these glasses, but it was not until 380 years later that practical contact lenses were developed. In 1888, German scientist Adolf Eugene Fick successfully made the world’s first practical contact lens with glass.
It is certainly not comfortable to wear contact lenses made of glass. People are always looking for soft transparent bodies to replace glass-making contact lenses.
In 1960, Czech scientist Otto Witler invented a hydrophilic resin material that will become soft after absorbing water. This material has a certain breathability and is suitable for making contact lenses. He published this invention in the American scientific journal Nature, titled “Hyperphilic gels for biological purposes.”
In 1961, Witler assembled a contact lens manufacturing machine in his home with parts and other parts removed from his son’s toys. With the help of his wife, he produced hundreds of contact lens soft lenses in a week. Since then, Witler has been called the “father of soft contact lenses.”
In 1971, after Bausch Lomb, the United States, received approval from the US Food and Drug Administration, it put a large number of contact lens soft lenses on the market, achieving great success.
In 1998, the American Vikang Contact Lens Company developed contact lenses with better breathability in the world, which are more comfortable and clearer after wearing them. They can be worn day and night for a month without taking them out.
Now, glasses are an ordinary item in daily life. Few people have thought about the invention and evolution of glasses, accompanied by countless people’s tireless pursuit and exploration, for this. The common purpose of their efforts is to let humans see the things in front of them, gain accurate sensory understanding, make work more efficient, and make life easier.
Invention and innovation are the driving force for the development of human civilization. Even an inconspicuous invention or a minor improvement will leave brilliant glory in the history of human civilization. I believe that a large number of people are still dissatisfied with the current situation of glasses and believe that glasses are not perfect at present. We must continue to explore, invent new materials, improve mirror making technology, and make human life better.