1y ago

Fluid in eye cells can 'boil' if you watch the eclipse without protection: expert

www.winnipegfreepress.com

Non-Paywall Article

24 comments

Just to be clear, this will happen ANY TIME you stare at the sun. News agencies and school boards seem to think that the eclipse is somehow more dangerous than the sun is on any other day.
- A coworker asked me if I had any eclipse glasses, and when I said I didn't, she replied "guess I'll have to drive home with my eyes closed". Another one told me she didn't want anything to do with the eclipse, and that she'd stay inside with the blinds closed.
  Misunderstandings and misinformation are out of hand.
  
  To be fair, there wouldn't be a difference between driving with eclipse glasses and driving with your eyes closed.
  
  As someone who has read Berserk, no no. I get it. Nothing to do with eclipses.
- The eclipse is more dangerous actually... The visible light is reduced so your pupil expands. But a lot of UV light comes from the corona of the sun which isn't blocked during the eclipse. So your pupils are more open allowing in more of the harmful UV light. And to add to it, your eyes don't realize they are being harmed by UV light without the visible so you don't have that impulse to look away.
- ANY TIME you stare at the sun
  That's true, but you usually don't stare at the sun because there really isn't much to see. With an eclipse people will stare for several minutes or until their eyes boil.
- Did you read the article?
  When people look up at the sun normally, the intense brightness triggers pain that causes them to look away quickly before it can cause damage, said Dr. Philip Hooper, president of the Canadian Ophthalmological Society.
  But as the moon starts to block the sun in the period leading up to the total eclipse “there is significant light energy that’s coming from the sun, but we don’t appreciate pain. And so you can look at it long enough to do damage to the eye,” said Hooper, who is also an associate professor of ophthalmology at Western University in London, Ont.
  Like yes, staring at the sun any time is bad, I don't think anyone is disputing that, but there are factors as to why an eclipse makes it more likely for people to damage their eyes.
Look if you really want to watch it, get a welding helmet, but make sure it's carrying the extra dark lens for outdoor welding during the day, not one for welding in a dark shop. they're 50 bucks and then you have one to try learn to weld with.
- Or, y'know, normal eclipse glasses.
  
  One of these things I can find at princess auto or the local store.
- Not all welding lenses are equal! The ones I got for the last eclipse were absolutely unsafe for viewing with. Test before you buy! The sun should be dark through the lens. If its even remotely bright you're gonna have a bad time.
  
  but make sure it’s carrying the extra dark lens for outdoor welding during the day, not one for welding in a dark shop.
- I totally want to learn to weld, it seems incredibly useful, like knowing how to work with wood or a 3d printer.
  
  It's really not that difficult to pick up the basics. Let's just say i wanted to learn to weld and play guitar, and, well, I'm a pretty good welder now. This may have been a natural aptitude thing. just get a cheap mig welder with flux core wire and read a book or two, start playing around.
Magnifying Glass + Ant = unhappy ant.
Eyeball + Sun = Magnifying Glass + Ant
unhappy ant.
Sun to the power of ant = magnifying glass.
Ant to the power of sun = unhappy ant.
Error: Used ant twice.
- Thanks for the edit, much clearer now. Ant is happy.
Serious question... Who the fuck is actually trying to look at the sun before/after totally? That shit is insanely bright, even in the few seconds before/after.
- You mean besides the former president of the United States, who did it live on international television, right?
  
  I should have qualified that phrase better.
  "What same person with a fraction of a brain..."

24 comments