I never really thought about what it would be like to not see well or not at all. The closest I have ever been to blind was while finding my way through the touch tunnel at New Jersey’s Liberty Science Center, which, quite frankly, freaked me out. In fact, upon being given the question of choice, in a game of “Would You Rather”, between losing my hearing or my sight, I chose hearing hands down because any aesthetic pleasure would be taken away from me without being able to see. Plus, I couldn’t read or write, which might be the death of me. However, it is a sad fact that around 50,000 Americans, and many other people around the world, are faced with vision disabilities minor and major.

It seems to me that 2009 has been the year of the “artificial retina.” Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory’s artificial retina won an R&D 100 Award last month, and another one has just been demonstrated by Stanford Univ. researchers.

According to a press release issued on December 10 by Stanford Univ., a team of researchers have developed a retinal implant that aims to provide higher resolution to users and to make artificial vision more natural. Much like the R&D 100 winner, the artificial retina, the Stanford implant allows patients to make out shapes of objects and see meaningful images. However, unlike most retinal implants of the past, the Stanford version would allow users to not have to move their heads to see objects. It “retains the natural link between eye movements and vision,” according to the release. It also has approximately 1,000 electrodes, compared to the 60 that older versions have, providing high resolution images.

The Stanford implant works by having the user wear a video camera that will transmit images to a processor, which then displays the images on an LCD screen on the inside of the users eyes. And, according to the release, “the LCD display transmits infrared pulses that project the image to photovoltaic cells implanted underneath the retina,” which convert light signals into electrical impulses that stimulate retinal neurons above them.

It is re-assuring to me that people are keeping the path to visual aesthetics intact. And how cool are these technologies? In my opinion, very.