Josh Silver, a retired physics professor from Oxford University, has a quest to allow all the poor people in the world to see. In one of the most ingenious inventions ever devised, he created a pair of glasses that the wearer could “tune” to allow themselves to see without the aid of an optometrist. From the article:

Silver has devised a pair of glasses which rely on the principle that the fatter a lens the more powerful it becomes. Inside the device’s tough plastic lenses are two clear circular sacs filled with fluid, each of which is connected to a small syringe attached to either arm of the spectacles.

The wearer adjusts a dial on the syringe to add or reduce amount of fluid in the membrane, thus changing the power of the lens. When the wearer is happy with the strength of each lens the membrane is sealed by twisting a small screw, and the syringes removed. The principle is so simple, the team has discovered, that with very little guidance people are perfectly capable of creating glasses to their own prescription.

The glasses cost $1 USD to manufacture. The goal is to produce 1 million pairs to distribute throughout the third world every year. What a simple and elegant solution to a widespread condition throughout the world. This has the potential to be a world changing invention much like the automobile or airplane. Read the full article HERE.