Your eyes are one of the most complicated parts of your body

In order to see, your eye focuses light onto the retina, converts this light into chemical signals, and

sends those signals to the brain.

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There is a lens in your eye that focuses the light onto the back of the eye

The light then hits the retina which is covered in photoreceptors

When stimulated, these photoreceptors undergo a chemical

change that sends an electrical signal to the brain.

This is constantly happening without you even noticing!

There are two types of photoreceptors- rods

and cones

Rods

Cones

Cones help us see colors! This is easy to remember because cones

and color both start with “c”!

Rods help us see the difference

between black and white.

There is also a spot on your retina with no rods or cones

called the “optic disk”

The optic disk is often called a blind spot.

There is also a point in your eye known as the “fovea”

The fovea is a point in the middle of the

retina tightly packed with photoreceptors

When light is focused on the fovea, we get the sharpest image!

When light misses the fovea When light hits the fovea

Today, we will be looking at

what happens when your eyes don’t

work the way they are

supposed to

A common eye disease is called “retinitis pigmentosa” or “RP” for short

Normal View View with RP

RP causes your photoreceptors to stop working.

Usually, RP starts by first degrading your rods (which detect light)

Later, RP will affect your cones (which detect color).

We will be using math today to study a patient’s retina to see the

effect of RP over time

We will also use math to see if a certain treatment can slow down the progression of RP.

Have fun!