[HN Gopher] Show HN: Refractify - Optical software against myopia
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Show HN: Refractify - Optical software against myopia
Last summer there was an Ask HN[1] about a Nature article that said
bluring the blue and green color channels on screen may be good
against early myopia development. The OP wanted such software and
there was none available. So I quit my job and implemented this
software, did a short video with a 3D artist about it. Turns out
marketing is expensive, so I made an open source browser extension
version too. How it works? There is a small neural network on the
retina that tries to detect if the eye is far-sighted(most people
are born far-sighted), and it is producing dopamine to slow or
increase eye growth rate. It is not very smart, and if you do a lot
of near-work it can think you are still hyperopic, causing further
myopia progression. So, based on the refractive properties of the
eye the software calculates the signal that would convince the
retinal neural network that the eye is long enough, so it would
produce dopamine, a known signal to stop axial eye growth. (based
on myopic defocus LCA from the papers[2][3]) Some myopia control
techniques work similarly, like MiSight and Hoya lenses. Since
then I got a Neurobiologist co-founder and the goal is to best
understand the Retinal NN to create the best anti-myopic effect
that does not interfere with productivity. The effect can be tried
live on the site. Also check out the github repo. Any questions
suggestions welcome! [1]
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=37019143 [2]
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-022-26323-7 [3]
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S00144...
Author : macilacilove
Score : 19 points
Date : 2024-02-23 18:47 UTC (4 hours ago)
(HTM) web link (refractify.io)
(TXT) w3m dump (refractify.io)
| macilacilove wrote:
| Since last summer I learnt some about emmetropization, visual
| cues to myopia control and the state of consumer software
| business. Please let me know if you would like to discuss
| anything.
| mcdonje wrote:
| Interesting.
|
| Is the physical screen ideal or are software solutions expected
| to have similar efficacy?
|
| I wonder if it's possible to make an android app that does this
| globally.
|
| What's your business model?
| macilacilove wrote:
| Most optical properties of myopic defocus can be simulated on
| screen. Since the processing is on the retina, screen altering
| can be effective. Android app is in progress.
| kirill5pol wrote:
| This might be one of the coolest projects I've seen recently, are
| you planning on doing this for smartphones too? Also I wonder how
| Apple would respond there, just block it like they did Flux?
| macilacilove wrote:
| Thank you for the kind words. Smart phones are in progress,
| yes. Apple will possibly not like it as it alters the look, but
| we will try and see.
| leobg wrote:
| > This makes the screen look on the retina naturally as if it was
| at a greater distance.
|
| You can also do this the low tech way by using dirt cheap plus
| lens glasses. With the added benefit that they make a tiny phone
| screen look as huge as a cinema screen.
| macilacilove wrote:
| If you induce myopic defocus by plus lenses you create an urge
| to move the screen closer, which removes the effect. We need to
| achieve the right defocus on the retina. Wheres with the
| software solution you can not "cheat" by moving closer.
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