Re: 'Multiverse Theory' - Universe is a Virtual Reality Matrix

From: MorituriMax (newage_at_sendarico.net)
Date: 07/24/04 

Date: Sat, 24 Jul 2004 23:29:32 GMT

Snoopy wrote:

>> I don't. I merely reply to the post and let whoever posted it reply.
>
> What's fucked up about the design of the human eye?

"And right away, the flaws begin. The vertebrate retina is a terrible design.
The optic nerve comes into the eyeball at a certain point, and the nerve fibers
spread out across the surface of the retina. Each individual nerve fiber reaches
its assigned point, burrows down into the retina through several layers of
epithelial cells, and ends with the light receptor itself pointing away from the
lens of the eye, which is the direction from which the light must come. As a
result, incoming light strikes the surface of the retina and must penetrate
through multiple layers of inactive cells and then through the body of the nerve
itself before it reaches the active point where it might be detected. This both
diffuses and attenuates the light, decreasing the efficiency of the retina in
accomplishing its function.

It's possible to do this better. We know this because the mollusc eye does it
right. In the mollusc eye (typified by the octopus, squid and chambered
nautilus, all of which have excellent vision) the optic nerve spreads out under
the retina, and each nerve burrows up through the retina and ends with the light
sensor on the surface of the retina, pointing towards the lens. This means that
there is no attenuation of the light before it reaches the active components.
(Just incidentally, this also means that molluscs have no blind spot.
Vertebrates have a blind spot because there are no light receptors at the
location where the nerve passes through the retina.)

The mollusc design is completely practical, but vertebrates don't use it. Our
design is second rate. This alone is sufficient to demonstrate the inelegance of
our eyes, but the problems don't stop there."

--courtesy http://www.denbeste.nu/essays/humaneye.shtml

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