Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Shortsightedness has become an epidemic

economist.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

241–250 of 424 posts

Re: Shortsightedness has become an epidemic

#241

Post by FollowingTheDao »

JoBrad wrote: post #230
sandstrom wrote: post #192

For several decades it has been known that myopia (nearsightedness) and intelligence are correlated[1][2]. Initially it was speculated that reading caused nearsightedness, and through that higher intelligence. There is probably some truth to that. But with modern DNA sequencing techniques researches has found genes that seem to affect both[3][4]. The hypothesis is that one (or a set of) genes affects both eye size gr…

The last study says “myopic children regardless of their IQ gain better school achievement”. This makes me think the difference is cultural vs genetic.

Does it mean they are more obedient? Not meaning that as a put down, but being good in school has a lot to do with behavior.

Re: Shortsightedness has become an epidemic

#242

Post by FollowingTheDao »

oblak wrote: post #240

While I am all for the idea that we need to have more sunlight indoors, I am not at all convinced that's the cause for the condition. TV watching wasn't big when I was a kid, and I didn't have the patience for reading, yet I've got it. So yeah. I am sure prolonged focusing contributes a lot but not sure it's the main cause.

It is always nature and nurture. You have have been more prone to being near sighted because of your genetics.

https://www.revieweducationgroup.com/ce/how-environment-and-...

Re: Shortsightedness has become an epidemic

#244

Post by FollowingTheDao »

Is dopamine playing a role? Like social media use on top of less sunlight? Some of the genetics linked to myopia involve dopamine:

https://www.revieweducationgroup.com/ce/how-environment-and-...

"Some of the loci identified include those involved in dopamine and light processing. These genetic findings provide further support for mechanisms of myopia development involving light exposure, defocus and contrast.

Despite these important findings informing potential genetic locations and mechanisms of myopia development, these studies have identified less than 5% of the variation in refractive error due to genetic variants.42 Clearly, the dramatic rise in myopia cannot be due to genetics alone, but is likely due to a combination of both genetic susceptibility and increased environmental triggers."

Re: Shortsightedness has become an epidemic

#245

Post by veltas »

xioxox wrote: post #129
mikewarot wrote: post #126

Pet peeve about language use: I thought it was obvious that short-sightedness (Exclusively Short term thinking) is an epidemic, nobody on Wall Street can see past the next Quarter's numbers. I don't need the economist to point that out. Nearsightedness is what this article is about... a completely different thing. I've dealt with that my entire life... and just went through the knock-on effect of retina detachment, a…

Short-sightedness is the eye problem in British English: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/short-sightedness/ We also use long-sightedness.

Funny you say that because I'm British and only hear and say "near-sightedness". I certainly wouldn't be offended by "short-sighted" but instead confused because it has dual meanings.

Re: Shortsightedness has become an epidemic

#246

Post by Qem »

saiya-jin wrote: post #167
ejb999 wrote: post #156

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>>Making young kids study all the time is killing their eyesight! reply I very much doubt kids 'studying too much' is the problem - staring at iphones all day watching tiktok and playing video games is more like it.

That doesn't certainly help, but there was already a disproportionate army of myopic asian (mostly chinese IIRC) kids that were spending their entire young lives burried in books, way before modern world glued their eyesight to those tiny crappy screens.

Now wonder if Chinese children must spend more time buried in books because their writing system is more time-demanding to learn (~4000 logograms vs. a few dozens letters in languages with alphabetic writing systems).

Re: Shortsightedness has become an epidemic

#247

Post by dhzhzjsbevs »

veltas wrote: post #245
xioxox wrote: post #129

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Short-sightedness is the eye problem in British English: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/short-sightedness/ We also use long-sightedness.

Funny you say that because I'm British and only hear and say "near-sightedness". I certainly wouldn't be offended by "short-sighted" but instead confused because it has dual meanings.

It's not really a dual meaning, shortsighted in relation to thinking is a metaphor.

Re: Shortsightedness has become an epidemic

#248

Post by alexalx666 »

mikewarot wrote: post #126

Pet peeve about language use: I thought it was obvious that short-sightedness (Exclusively Short term thinking) is an epidemic, nobody on Wall Street can see past the next Quarter's numbers. I don't need the economist to point that out. Nearsightedness is what this article is about... a completely different thing. I've dealt with that my entire life... and just went through the knock-on effect of retina detachment, a…

It's very true that there is nothing to focus on that is further than the next tall building in that area, add it to looking at the screen like its life or death all day

Re: Shortsightedness has become an epidemic

#249

Post by starkd »

robinduckett wrote: post #189
mikewarot wrote: post #126

Pet peeve about language use: I thought it was obvious that short-sightedness (Exclusively Short term thinking) is an epidemic, nobody on Wall Street can see past the next Quarter's numbers. I don't need the economist to point that out. Nearsightedness is what this article is about... a completely different thing. I've dealt with that my entire life... and just went through the knock-on effect of retina detachment, a…

This feeds into my pet peeve that Americans assume the world revolves around them and that all use of non American English is invalid despite the stereotype being that British English speaking people are worse for this.

You need not be disturbed by this. Every nation/culture tends to think in terms of the world "revolving" around them. A people need a frame of reference to view the world that is provided by one's culture. I don't think the OP intented to treat British English as inferior or invalid.

Re: Shortsightedness has become an epidemic

#250

Post by cassandratt »

bigmealbigmeal wrote: post #172
mikewarot wrote: post #126

Pet peeve about language use: I thought it was obvious that short-sightedness (Exclusively Short term thinking) is an epidemic, nobody on Wall Street can see past the next Quarter's numbers. I don't need the economist to point that out. Nearsightedness is what this article is about... a completely different thing. I've dealt with that my entire life... and just went through the knock-on effect of retina detachment, a…

> I strongly suspect the amount of light outdoors is NOT really the issue. If you're always focused on things close at hand (as the above mentioned folks on wall street), you never allow the eyes to focus on the far horizon for an appreciable fraction of the time. Then you need to read more on the matter. Studies on chicks, tree shrews and rhesus monkeys show that simply increasing the amount of indoor light intensit…

Does it? This isn’t a scientific journal, nor is this a hard science forum. So the expectations that a layman conform to the standards of a field to have a conversation about a fairly esoteric subject is asinine.

I can’t know the top science in every field, so that bars me from discussion, lest I be slammed for having a thought.

This isn’t just anti-science, it’s ignorant of social interactions, and the conversations that lead to greater understanding. You aren’t nearly as smart as you think you are.

Post reply on HN