Glasses
Overview
Lens (optics)
A lens is an optical device with perfect or approximate axial symmetry which transmits and refracts light, converging or diverging the beam. A simple lens consists of a single optical element...
worn in front of the eye
Human eye
The human eye is an organ which reacts to light for several purposes. As a conscious sense organ, the eye allows vision. Rod and cone cells in the retina allow conscious light perception and vision including color differentiation and the perception of depth...
s. They are normally used for vision correction
Corrective lens
A corrective lens is a lens worn in front of the eye, mainly used to treat myopia, hyperopia, astigmatism, and presbyopia. Glasses or "spectacles" are worn on the face a short distance in front of the eye. Contact lenses are worn directly on the surface of the eye...
or eye protection
Eye protection
Eye protection is protective gear for the eyes, which comes in many types depending upon the threat that is to be reduced. The threats can be particles, light, wind blast, heat, sea spray or some type of ball or puck used in sports...
. Safety glasses are a kind of eye protection
Eye protection
Eye protection is protective gear for the eyes, which comes in many types depending upon the threat that is to be reduced. The threats can be particles, light, wind blast, heat, sea spray or some type of ball or puck used in sports...
against flying debris or against visible and near visible light
Light
Light or visible light is electromagnetic radiation that is visible to the human eye, and is responsible for the sense of sight. Visible light has wavelength in a range from about 380 nanometres to about 740 nm, with a frequency range of about 405 THz to 790 THz...
or radiation
Radiation
In physics, radiation is a process in which energetic particles or energetic waves travel through a medium or space. There are two distinct types of radiation; ionizing and non-ionizing...
. Sunglasses
Sunglasses
Sunglasses or sun glasses are a form of protective eyewear designed primarily to prevent bright sunlight and high-energy visible light from damaging or discomforting the eyes. They can sometimes also function as a visual aid, as variously termed spectacles or glasses exist, featuring lenses that...
allow better vision in bright daylight, and may protect against damage
UV Coating
"UV coating" refers to surface treatments which are either cured by ultraviolet radiation, or protect the underlying material from its harmful effects.-Ultra-violet coating of paper:...
from high levels of ultraviolet light. Other types of glasses may be used for viewing visual information (such as stereoscopy
Stereoscopy
Stereoscopy refers to a technique for creating or enhancing the illusion of depth in an image by presenting two offset images separately to the left and right eye of the viewer. Both of these 2-D offset images are then combined in the brain to give the perception of 3-D depth...
) or simply just for aesthetic or fashion purposes.
Historical types of glasses include the pince-nez
Pince-nez
Pince-nez are a style of spectacles, popular in the 19th century, which are supported without earpieces, by pinching the bridge of the nose. The name comes from French pincer, to pinch, and nez, nose....
, monocle
Monocle
A monocle is a type of corrective lens used to correct or enhance the vision in only one eye. It consists of a circular lens, generally with a wire ring around the circumference that can be attached to a string. The other end of the string is then connected to the wearer's clothing to avoid losing...
, lorgnette
Lorgnette
A lorgnette is a pair of spectacles with a handle, used to hold them in place, rather than fitting over the ears. It is derived from the French lorgner, to take a sidelong look at, and Middle French, from lorgne, squinting. They were invented by an Englishman named George Adams. The lorgnette was...
, and scissor or scissors-glasses
Scissors-glasses
Scissors-glasses are eyeglasses, normally used to correct distance-vision, mounted on scissoring stems rather than on temple stems as modern eyeglasses are....
.
Modern glasses are typically supported by pads on the bridge of the nose
Human nose
The visible part of the human nose is the protruding part of the face that bears the nostrils. The shape of the nose is determined by the ethmoid bone and the nasal septum, which consists mostly of cartilage and which separates the nostrils...
and by temple arms (sides) placed over the ear
Ear
The ear is the organ that detects sound. It not only receives sound, but also aids in balance and body position. The ear is part of the auditory system....
s.
Unanswered Questions
Discussions
Quotations
"The optimist looks at the world through rose-tinted spectacles." ~ English proverbs|English proverb
"Men seldom make passes / At girls who wear glasses" ~ Dorothy Parker
"When you're a kid that sees through plastic With a harness of elastic So the girls all think you're icky And the boys all think you're queer" ~ John Sebastian, "Four Eyes"
"Rose-colored glasses are never made in bifocals. Nobody wants to read the small print in dreams." ~ Ann Landers
Category:Technology
pl:Okulary