Dispatches from a rapidly changing, rapidly improving world

Special Dispatch November 27, 2009

We're running BATT's every day during Thanksgiving week.

Wow:

Blind man fitted with 'bionic' eye sees for first time in 30 years

A blind man who thought he would never be able to read again has had his vision partially restored after being fitted with a 'bionic' eye.

Peter Lane, 51, is one of the first people in the world to have electronic receivers implanted into his eye which send signals mounted in a pair of glasses to the brain.

The technology has allowed Mr Lane, from Manchester, to see the outline of objects, such as doorways and furniture, and to read letters through a series of dots of lights for the first time in almost 30 years.

As I have noted before both here at the blog and on the podcast, good news stories such as these are much more common than they used to be. With no intention of catching any back-to-back action, four days ago I published another piece of good news related to blindness in which I said:

One day soon, blindness will be a thing of the past.

Looks like that day is coming sooner than expected! If I may continue quoting myself...

In the mean time, it is encouraging to see how emerging technologies (and the resulting emerging possibilities) continue to chip away at the barriers the visually impaired have always encountered when trying to interact with a world that assumes vision.

There are sound reasons to be discouraged and even fearful about some of the things that are happening in our world. But we shouldn't losesight of the fact that we are living in the most astounding era in human history. We have more to be hopeful about than any previous generation. That is something to remember during a season of giving thanks.

Live to see it!