Ok I get we all look at small letters and images on screens and paper these days. Is this why in the last 150 years or so millions and millions of humans need spectacles? Is it because we are meant to be looking at things from a distance rather than nearby so our eyes haven’t caught up?
In: Biology
Many people who need glasses have relatively mild prescriptions. If they were born 150 years ago they would have managed just fine because their minor deficiency in vision would not have affected their life in any meaningful way. In this day and age, society is built around a presumption of literacy, which includes being able to read signs which means accurate distance vision that people would not have needed in the past, as well as reading large amounts of small print which would not have been expected from the majority 150 years ago. Also do not underestimate the impact of cars/driving – it is much more important to be able to accurately identify objects at a distance when you are approaching them at 50+mph and require much more stopping distance than a horse and cart.
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