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Animals renowned for their outstanding night vision include owls, cats, tarsiers (a tiny primate in Southeast Asia) — and even the dung beetle.
But humans? Not so much.
Over time, many people suffer from night blindness, also known as nyctalopia. This condition makes seeing in dim or dark settings difficult because your eyes cannot adjust to changes in brightness or detect light.
What are the dangers for those experiencing night blindness?
Night blindness is especially problematic and dangerous when driving. Your eyes cannot adjust between darkness and the headlights of oncoming vehicles, other cars may appear out of focus, and your depth perception becomes impaired, which makes it difficult to judge distances.
Night blindness also may affect your sight at home by making it hard for your vision to quickly adjust to a dark room after turning off the lights. "This can cause people to bump into furniture or trip and suffer an injury," says Dr. Isabel Deakins, an optometrist with Harvard-affiliated Massachusetts Eye and Ear.
What happens in the eye to create night blindness?
The ability to see in low-light conditions involves two structures in the eye: the retina and the iris.
The retina, located in the back of the eye, contains two types of light-detecting cells called cones and rods. The cones handle color vision and fine details while the rods manage vision in dim light.
The iris is the colored part of your eye. It contains muscles that widen or narrow the opening of your pupil to adjust how much light can enter your eyes.
If your irises don't properly react, the pupils can dilate and let in too much light, which causes light sensitivity and makes it hard to see in bright light. Or your pupils may remain too small and not allow in enough light, making it tough to see in low light.
What causes night blindness?
Night blindness is not a disease but a symptom of other conditions. "It's like having a bruise on your body. Something else causes it," says Dr. Deakins.
Several conditions can cause night blindness. For instance, medications, such as antidepressants, antihistamines, and antipsychotics, can affect pupil size and how much light enters the eye.
Eye conditions that can cause night blindness include:
However, one issue that raises the risk of night blindness that you can't control is age. "Our eyes react more slowly to light changes as we age, and vision naturally declines over time," says Dr. Deakins. "The number of rods in our eyes diminish, pupils get smaller, and the muscles of the irises weaken."
What helps if you have night blindness?
If you notice any signs of night blindness, avoid driving and get checked by an eye care specialist like an optometrist or ophthalmologist. An eye exam can determine if your eyeglass prescription needs to be updated.
"Often, a prescription change is enough to reduce glare when driving at night," says Dr. Deakins. "You may even need separate glasses with a stronger eye prescription that you wear only when driving at night."
Adding an anti-reflective coating to your lens may help to cut down on the glare of the headlights of an oncoming car. However, skip the over-the-counter polarized driving glasses sold at many drug stores. "These may help cut down on glare, but they don't address the causes of night blindness," says Dr. Deakins.
An eye exam also will identify glaucoma or cataracts, which can be treated. Glaucoma treatments include eyedrops, laser treatment, or surgery. Cataracts are corrected with surgery to replace the clouded lens with an artificial one. Your eye care specialist can also help identify dry eye and recommend treatment.
Ask your primary care clinician or a pharmacist if any medications that you take may cause night blindness. If so, it may be possible to adjust the dose or switch to another drug.
Three more ways to make night driving safer
You also can take steps to make night driving safer. For example:
Source: Harvard Health Publishing
Instablog9ja
1 h
10
A 35-year-old man who att@cked and k+lled his brother over N270,000 unpaid debt has been arrested by the police in Kano State after nearly six years on the run.
Magaji Yellow, who hails from Kunya village in Minibar LGA of Kano state had conspired with two others to k+ll his brother on August 10, 2018, to cover up the debt of N270,000 he owed him.
The Kano Police Command image-maker, SP Abdullahi Haruna Kiyawa in a statement said: “On 10 August, 2018, a report was received from a resident of Kunya Village in Minjibir Local Government Area of Kano state that one Magaji Yellow (38) of the same address and some others, att@cked his brother Gausu Umar Sadam (35) with d@ngerous we@pons and c¥t his leg vein including other parts of his body and ran away.
On receipt of the report, the victim was rushed to the hospital, where he was certified d£ad by a medical doctor.
On preliminary investigation, two of the culprits were arrested namely: Rabiu Sarki Lots and Nasiru Adamu Namade, all of the same address, and were charged to court for offences of criminal conspiracy and culpable homicide.
After review of cases under investigation by the State Commissioner of Police, CP Salman Dogo Garba, he raised a combined team of detectives and directed that the principal suspect be trailed and arrested.
On 15 July, 2024, sustained follow-up coupled with intelligence-led technical operations led to the arrest of the principal suspect, Magaji Yallo, after five years, eleven months and four days, that is 2160 days after the incident.
On discreet Investigation, the suspect confessed that they lured the victim to Wailari Quarters in Minjibir Local Government Area, Kano State under the pretext that he was going to pay him his money, the sum of N270,000 he owed him, and thereafter k+lled him.”
Instablog9ja
3 hrs
12
Minister of Youth Development, Dr Jamila Ibrahim, has appealed to youths to shun the proposed nationwide protest against hardship in the country.
Speaking in Abuja, Ibrahim said that the country needed peace and stability to achieve its mandate, adding that the current hardship is not peculiar to Nigeria.
Ibrahim advised the young people not to engage in any activity that would not be law-abiding.
According to her, “Government is already addressing these issues. The economic hardships that we are facing today is not limited to Nigeria.
Since COVID-19 struck, the global economy has not quite recovered.”
Instablog9ja
4 hrs
12
50-year-old Ghanaian gospel singer, Diana Asamoah has vowed to stay single until she receives an approval from God.
Speaking during a cooking show by Empress Gifty, the evangelist who has never been married and has no child, revealed that despite being approached for marriage by several men, including pastors, she remains resolute in her decision to await heavenly approval before tying the knot.
“I have met a lot of men, including men of God. While some of them came with genuine intentions, others were fake. Until I get an approval from God, I will never marry any of them.
I will get married and have children at God’s appointed time,” she said.
Investopedia
9 hrs
9
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McDonald's reports earnings before markets open Monday amid reports that the fast food giant is planning to extend the $5 value meal promotion it launched last month into August.
Analysts expect McDonald's revenue to rise slightly to $6.63 billion from $6.5 billion in the second quarter of 2023, according to estimates compiled by Visible Alpha, while net income is projected to fall to $2.24 billion from $2.31 billion last year.
UBS analysts, who maintained a "buy" rating while lowering their price target for McDonald's to $305 from $335, said that second-quarter earnings could be pressured by inflation. However, the analysts said McDonald's performance could improve in the second half of the year as the chain's emphasis on value brings customers back into stores.
Comparable-store sales have slowed in recent quarters for McDonald's from double-digit increases last year. Executives have noted the impact inflation has had on many customers. In the second quarter of 2023, McDonald's reported 11.7% comparable sales growth globally, and just over 10% in the U.S.
Baird analysts said that they are "gaining confidence" that the company's emphasis on value in its newest advertising efforts could improve the chain's perception of value among consumers, bringing them back into McDonald's locations.
"History would suggest McDonald's can gain significant share when emphasizing value-oriented price points with its sizable advertising budget," the analysts said.
After spending much of the first half of 2024 acknowledging the impact inflation was having on sales as customers pulled back on discretionary spending, McDonald's and several other restaurants have rolled out lower-cost value meals with the hopes of winning back price-conscious customers,
Early indications appear to be positive, as and reported earlier this week that nearly all McDonald's locations have agreed to extend the promotion beyond the initial schedule of four weeks from its late-June start.
The promotion appears likely to extend into August as company leadership is reportedly enthusiastic about the rate at which customers are returning to McDonald's locations. Investors could be looking for confirmation on the promotion's future on Monday.
McDonald's shares have fallen about 15% since the start of the year, at $251.46 as of Thursday's close.
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Investopedia
12 hrs
13
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Microsoft-backed (MSFT) OpenAI unveiled a new artificial intelligence (AI) search engine called SearchGPT on Thursday that could rival Alphabet's (GOOGL) Google Search.
The ChatGPT maker said it's testing a temporary prototype of the tool with a small group of users to start.
"We’re testing SearchGPT, a prototype of new search features designed to combine the strength of our AI models with information from the web to give you fast and timely answers with clear and relevant sources," OpenAI said in a release.
The company highlighted that SearchGPT is designed to provide clear sourcing of the information it gives, which could help ease concerns about the accuracy of results and driving traffic away from original content.
The long-awaited OpenAI search tool could also potentially draw users away from Google Search, negatively affecting Alphabet.
Shares of Alphabet were 1.4% lower at $170.20 in intraday trading Thursday following the news.
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