Bonus Episode: Optical Technology (HISTORY OF EYEGLASSES + MODERN DAY VISION)

Summary

Ologies with Alie Ward: Bonus Episode on Optical Technology Release Date: August 1, 2025

In this special bonus episode of Ologies, Alie Ward delves into the fascinating world of optical technology, exploring the rich history of eyeglasses and the current state of modern-day vision. This episode features insightful conversations with Jenny Benjamin, the Director of the Museum of the Eye in San Francisco, and Dr. Nadia Sledge, a practicing optometrist in Houston, Texas. Together, they unravel the evolution of eyewear, the science behind vision correction, and the challenges posed by the digital age.

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1. Exploring the History of Eyeglasses with Jenny Benjamin

Early Origins and Invention Jenny Benjamin sets the stage by tracing the origins of eyeglasses back to around 1286. She highlights the establishment of a lens-manufacturing guild in Venice, Italy, in the early 1300s. Despite existing depictions, such as Cardinal Hugh of Provence supposedly wearing glasses in a 1352 painting—a historical inaccuracy since he died in 1263—eyeglasses quickly became symbols of learnedness and wisdom.

Jenny Benjamin [07:19]: "Eyeglasses meant you were learned. Right. So a priest, so you've, you know how to read, probably to write."

Evolution of Eyewear Designs Jenny discusses the transformation of eyeglasses from practical tools to fashion statements. The introduction of bifocals by Benjamin Franklin marked a significant advancement, allowing users to see both near and far without switching lenses. Over the centuries, designs became more sophisticated, leading to the creation of lorgnettes—handheld glasses popular in the late 18th century.

Jenny Benjamin [25:03]: "I really love is actually our collection of lorgnettes. And lorgnettes are handheld eyeglasses."

Cultural Significance and Stigmas Historically, wearing glasses was often stigmatized, associated with infirmity and age. Jenny reflects on how perceptions have shifted, noting that from the 1300s to the mid-20th century, glasses were more a sign of intellectualism and wisdom rather than a fashion accessory.

Jenny Benjamin [17:14]: "Glasses as we know them weren't widespread until about 100 years ago, and they definitely were not cool before that."

Manufacturing and Accessibility The production of eyeglasses has evolved from handcrafted precision instruments to mass-produced, affordable items. Jenny explains how early eyeglasses were expensive, often sold by jewelers, making them accessible primarily to the affluent. The advent of metal frames and standardized manufacturing processes in the 19th century democratized access.

Jenny Benjamin [19:08]: "We're talking about cheap frames available. They're made out of metal, base metal, and it's just a simple pair of lenses."

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2. Modern Day Vision and Eye Health with Dr. Nadia Sledge

Impact of the Digital Age on Vision Dr. Nadia Sledge discusses the alarming rise in myopia (nearsightedness) among children, attributing it to increased screen time and reduced outdoor activities. She emphasizes that by 2050, half of the world's population is expected to be nearsighted.

Dr. Nadia Sledge [32:12]: "By 2050, it is anticipated that half of the world will be nearsighted."

Importance of Regular Eye Exams Highlighting the necessity of annual eye examinations, Dr. Sledge explains that regular check-ups are crucial not only for vision correction but also for detecting systemic diseases that manifest in the eyes.

Dr. Nadia Sledge [30:47]: "There is over 270 systemic diseases that we can diagnose in the eye itself."

Myopia Management and Preventative Measures To combat the rise in myopia, Dr. Sledge advocates for the "20-20-20 rule"—every 20 minutes, look at something 20 feet away for 20 seconds. Additionally, she encourages increased outdoor time to reduce the progression of nearsightedness in children.

Dr. Nadia Sledge [40:48]: "Every 20 minutes, look 20 feet away for 20 seconds just to give your eyes a little bit of a break."

Advancements in Eyewear Technology The conversation moves to modern eyewear innovations, such as polarized lenses, which reduce glare by blocking horizontal light waves. Dr. Sledge explains the practical applications of polarization in activities like driving and water sports.

Dr. Nadia Sledge [37:01]: "Polarization is basically a filter that decreases that reflective glare."

Debunking Online Eye Exams Addressing the rise of online eye exams, Dr. Sledge underscores their limitations, emphasizing that comprehensive in-person evaluations are essential for accurately assessing eye health and vision.

Dr. Nadia Sledge [44:27]: "There is no way that anybody on an online eye exam can tell you that your eyes are actually healthy."

Practical Tips for Glasses Care Dr. Sledge shares practical advice on maintaining and safeguarding glasses. Her mantra, "If they're not on your face, they're in the case," serves as a simple yet effective strategy to prevent damage or loss.

Dr. Nadia Sledge [45:48]: "If they're not on your face, they're in the case. That might work for adults as well as kids."

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3. Notable Quotes and Insights

• Jenny Benjamin on Historical Stigma:

  "Eyeglasses meant you were learned. Right. So a priest, so you've, you know how to read, probably to write." [07:19]

• Dr. Nadia Sledge on Modern Eye Strain:

  "We're staring more than ever, and our blink rate decreases, leading to dry eyes and increased strain." [38:00]* *(Note: Approximate timestamp inferred)

• Jenny Benjamin on the Beauty of Lorgnettes:

  "They have jewels in them and gorgeous enamels. They're like pieces of jewelry." [25:13]

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4. Conclusion and Takeaways

This bonus episode of Ologies masterfully intertwines the historical journey of eyeglasses with contemporary challenges in eye health. From the medieval origins of spectacle-making to the sophisticated optometric practices of today, listeners gain a comprehensive understanding of how vital vision has been—and continues to be—in human society. The episode underscores the importance of regular eye care, the impact of technology on our eyesight, and the evolving cultural perceptions of eyewear.

Key Takeaways:

• Eyeglasses have transitioned from symbols of wisdom to essential fashion and health accessories.
• Regular eye exams are crucial for maintaining eye health and detecting broader health issues.
• The digital age has significantly contributed to an increase in myopia, especially among children.
• Modern eyewear technologies, such as polarized lenses, offer practical benefits beyond vision correction.
• Personal care and proper maintenance of glasses can prevent costly damages and losses.

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Resources Mentioned:

• Museum of the Eye, San Francisco: [Museum Link]
• Dr. Reid Wainas' Episode: [Episode Link]
• Pearle Vision: pearlevision.com
• Disability Sociology Episode with Dr. Gwen Chambers: [Episode Link]
• Fun with Catherine Price Episode: [Episode Link]
• Salugenology with Jules Hotz Episode: [Episode Link]

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*Note: Timestamps are based on the provided transcript and represent approximate locations within the episode.

Transcript

[Alie Ward]

Today's episode is sponsored by Pearle Vision. You know how you're like, I have to get a physical once a year. You gotta go to the dentist. A lot of people are like, my eyes. I forgot. Even if no one in your family wears glasses, you could have underlying issues. This is where Pearl Vision comes in. It was the first place of its kind to bring easy access to comprehensive eye exams and glasses all in one place. And now, over 60 years later, Pearlevision has doctors throughout the U.S. canada and Puerto Rico and they're making sure that you see your best and also that you look your best because they have cool glasses there. You can book an eye exam online and I love that they have an option to book an appointment for up to three people. So you can just gather your fam or your friends. Head to Pearle Vision. From my eyes to yours. Nobody cares for eyes more than Pearl. Visit pearl pearlvision.com for more information. Eye exams available by independent doctors of optometry at or next to Pearl Vision. Doctors in some states are employed by Pearl Vision. See you at the eye doctor. Oh, hey, it's that friend who cannot leave the house without sunglasses and has a glove compartment chock full of them. Alie ward this is a bonus fun. Just a special little episode of ologies. It's unlike the rest of them, it's a little looser, it's shorter. The there's a couple of people. It's more of an overview. I was thrilled to do it so a few months back and I will tell you this whole story later in the episode. But I was wondering about the history of eyeglasses and I thought like someone needs to do a deep dive on that. Cause I wanna know. And then I realized that that is me. I'm the kind of person that would do that as a job and that's great. And then Pearl Vision came to me and said, hey, do you have any ideas about a vision based mini episode? And I said, boy howdy do I. So we've done an ophthalmology episode in the past with a wonderful LA based ophthalmologist, Dr. Reid Wainas. Look him up and we'll link his episod in the show notes. But this one is a little different because in the first half we chat with Jenny Benjamin, the director of the Museum of the Eye in San Francisco, all about how far back eyewear goes and what it looked like and how they made it and weird Roman trivia and Downton Abbey fashion and sunglasses and how eyewear used to be Considered sinful. And then we bop to the present and over to Houston, Texas, to chat with a real life optometrist, Dr. Nadia Sledge, who tells me all about how our eye is changing in the digital age and how kids are becoming more nearsighted and what to do about it when it's time for reading glasses as you age, and how online eye tests overlook a lot of critical stuff and why you should see your eye doctor every year. Every year. And also how I would have not survived in the past or maybe survived without glasses. So thank you for coming along on this. A little deep dive into what is on your face and why and the absolute magic of vision correction with Jenny Benjamin and Dr. Nadia Sledge in this bonus episode. Optical Technology, the History of Glasses and Modern Day Vision.

[Jenny Benjamin]

My title is actually a little long. The director of the Trillson Marmor Museum of the Eye. I am also the Stanley M. Trulson, MD, Director of Ophthalmic Heritage.

[Alie Ward]

That was a lot of words I know.

[Jenny Benjamin]

Doesn't fit on my cards, but it is amazing. That's my whole job. My whole job is to celebrate people and talk about the history of eyes and vision.

[Alie Ward]

And I noticed you have glasses on.

[Jenny Benjamin]

I do, I do. Actually. These are bifocals. This is a new step for me.

[Alie Ward]

Nice.

[Jenny Benjamin]

Yes, yes, it's fabulous. You know, everybody comes to that day when they walk into their doctor's office and they say, why don't we try the near card, the near readers? And I said, no, I couldn't possibly need that. And then they put on some bifocals or whatever. I was like, oh, oh, yeah, right, right, right, right, right. Yeah, I'm going to need those.

[Alie Ward]

I remember back in the day, bifocals were very obvious. And now I feel like it's undetectable.

[Jenny Benjamin]

Right? It is. These are invisible. Yeah, they have no line. My bifocals. In fact, I've also noticed that nobody likes to stay bifocal anymore. Oh, yeah, right. That's taboo. I don't have bifocals. I just have lenses that let me see both distance and near. Love it. Every time I said bifocal, the doctor was like, oh, no, no, no, we don't say that anymore. Ben Franklin would be so upset since he invented them. Benjamin Franklin would just be like, what happened to my bifocal?

[Alie Ward]

Do you have any idea? What did they look like when he invented them? Were they like two separate lenses stacked on top of each other?

[Jenny Benjamin]

They were. So Benjamin Franklin rode away to a friend. Inventor, slash eyeglass maker and asked for specifically, he had a very specific design in mind, but he asked to have the lens split in half, so half moons. So they were stacked in one frame and the lenses were a little wobbly. That's eyeglass making 101. You gotta make the lenses focus, otherwise it doesn't work.

[Alie Ward]

And there are these archival scans of Franklin's 1785 letter to his pal George Whatley. And it's in a handwriting like so elegant and so slanted, it's just illegible, at least to modern humans. And Franklin recounts that he tried a mock up of these glasses while having dinner in Paris. And he was able to both cut his food and then look up and see the expressions of his dinner companions, which I don't think they were reacting to how he was cutting, but just in general, he could see their faces with one set of glasses. Miracle. But let's go back further. Let's go way back.

[Jenny Benjamin]

So eyeglasses were invented around 1286, let's say around then, late 1200s. But we do have documents from the early 1300s showing us that there is a guild in Venice, Italy, where they are manufacturing lenses. And then about 52 years later, around 1352, there's our first depiction of somebody wearing eyeglasses. And it's a priest, actually, it's a cardinal. Cardinal Hugh of Provence is depicted in a painting wearing eyeglasses. Oh, fancy, fancy. But it's not accurate because Cardinal Hugh unfortunately did not live that we know of in a time period where eyeglasses were worn. They weren't invented yet, so it's not accurate.

[Alie Ward]

So Cardinal Hugh died in 1263. This is decades before glasses ever existed. But like a lot of anime characters and religious figures of yore, people just kept making more fan art even when they weren't around.

[Jenny Benjamin]

But what's amazing is how that portrait signals what eyeglasses meant. Right? Eyeglasses meant you were learned. Right. So a priest, so you've, you know how to read, probably to write. But also in this portrait, the cardinal, the good cardinal, looks quite elderly. So it's also a signal of age. Right. And wisdom, Those sort of connotations just stick with eyeglasses almost all the way up to 1955, when they become fashion.

[Alie Ward]

Fashion.

[Jenny Benjamin]

Like, what would have happened if they had found a really hot priest or something and they had, you know, instead of Cardinal Hugh, what if they had picked somebody cool? I don't know. But they didn't.

[Dr. Nadia Sledge]

It'll pass.

[Alie Ward]

So the 1300s is when people started wearing Glasses. Do we know who invented them?

[Jenny Benjamin]

We don't. We don't know who invented eyeglasses. It's kind of lost to history. There is a tombstone sitting somewhere in Italy where somebody has claimed right on the, you know, the so and so, the inventor of eyeglasses. But most historians feel that that is inaccurate. Venice for, you know, years was the center of glass manufacturing. It's where it's from.

[Alie Ward]

What did people do before that? For hundreds of thousands of years.

[Jenny Benjamin]

They slowly lost their eyesight. Yeah, yeah.

[Alie Ward]

Time's the brakes.

[Jenny Benjamin]

Like Roman emperors may have used magnifiers. There is some evidence that ancient peoples. We're talking about ancient. Ancient. May have used natural lenses. So it's mostly magnifiers. Early on. Readers is what we would call them today. So starting around in the Renaissance, in the 1500s, books are already being written about the abuse of eyeglasses.

[Alie Ward]

Abuse?

[Jenny Benjamin]

Yes, that's what they called it, actually. And that's the idea that you could overuse eyeglasses and permanently harm your vision was really practical, prevalent between 1580s, 1550s, all the way through the 1800s.

[Alie Ward]

So you mentioned, like, natural stone. Were people getting quartz and trying to make it convex and that was helping them.

[Jenny Benjamin]

That's right. Quartz was common to. They would nap it. Right. They would polish it up. Quartz, of course, has, you know, it's unusual to find a specimen that doesn't have some sort of inclusions. Yeah. So that's tough.

[Alie Ward]

Yeah.

[Jenny Benjamin]

We also have some apocryphal stories about Nero using an emerald as a magnifier because a polished gemstone could be used. I. Let's put it this way. Of course, Nero being Nero.

[Alie Ward]

Yeah, of course he would have something like that.

[Jenny Benjamin]

Right. Of course. That just feels right.

[Alie Ward]

Nero, side note, was a Roman emperor who took the throne as a teenager after both his father and his older brother were suspiciously murdered. And then his mom later was also suspiciously murdered, and then his wife was murdered, and her head was sent to his new wife, who he later murdered. So then he married one of his servants, who he called by his late wife's name. Nero also probably set Rome on fire, and he had a golden statue of himself, and he loved to make people listen to him sing while playing acoustic lyre. So an emerald magnifying glass is, like, not a big deal.

[Jenny Benjamin]

I do believe that the earliest eyeglasses were readers for looking at things up close, and most of the eyeglasses in our collection here at the Museum of the Eye are readers.

[Alie Ward]

It also makes sense that if you weren't driving a car.

[Jenny Benjamin]

All right.

[Alie Ward]

90 miles an hour.

[Jenny Benjamin]

What the heck you need it for?

[Alie Ward]

Yeah. On a Jersey turnpike.

[Jenny Benjamin]

And they also had some alternatives, so theaters, operas and that sort of thing. There was a lot of folks who wanted to see the theater better. Right. And they were actually using miniature telescopes and binoculars. Of course, those were invented in the 1600s, so it was really common. Opera glasses and then little mini telescopes. They're about the size of a binocular, but just one. So you just look through one eye when you needed it.

[Alie Ward]

I have never thought about that. In period pieces, when they whip out opera glasses, they weren't wearing contacts.

[Jenny Benjamin]

No. Right. No. That's what they're for. Or also spying on each other. There's a lot of books of decorum from the 1800s about. Stop staring at fellow theater goers. Keep your binoculars and your monoculars on the stage where they belong.

[Alie Ward]

I wonder if they were doing lip reading like we see at awards shows, where people are trying to suss out what celebrities are talking about. Yeah, exactly. What Taylor Swift whispered.

[Jenny Benjamin]

I am a. I am sorry. So sure. That must have been happening. These miniature telescopes actually are often hidden in other objects. You wouldn't necessarily see them. Some of them were obviously ostentatious and meant to dazzle, but a lot of them were hidden in small objects so that you. They could be carried easily. That made sense. And also so that you wouldn't be making. Pardon the pun, but you wouldn't be making a spectacle of yourself by staring at everybody. It was cool.

[Alie Ward]

What kind of things were they hidden in? Like a powder compact or. How did that work?

[Jenny Benjamin]

So there were opera purses where you could have your smelling salts with your. Your small spyglass and a fan. Hello. You needed your fan in case things got a little heated. And I have in the collection two beautiful examples of monoculars hidden inside perfume bottles. The perfume bottle may also have held smelling salts. So it depended on, I think, the lady. But in a day and age when there was no air conditioning and you were in a tight outfit and. Yeah, right. And you needed to be either revived from overheating or. Right. There's the possibility that not everybody else around you had bathed recently. Right. So perfume makes perfect sense. And then you could use your little spy glass to see if you wanted to get closer to somebody. Right. Make your decisions.

[Alie Ward]

Oh, so cunning. I never thought about that. I picture too, like the Wild West. Like, did old cowboys and such have glasses? Or was that just not even a thing?

[Jenny Benjamin]

Oh, no, that was a thing. Sure. That Was a thing. Yeah. There's evidence. Manufacture of eyeglasses in America starts very early. When we say manufacture, we usually mean the frames. The lenses were imported for a long time until about World War I. Oh, wow.

[Alie Ward]

Like today, Taiwan manufactures over 90% of the world's advanced computer chips. So that was eyeglass lenses.

[Jenny Benjamin]

But Italy, like anything there, it's made in America, but more like assembled in America.

[Alie Ward]

Yeah.

[Jenny Benjamin]

Okay, we're going to just leave that there. Leave that there. But cowboys. Yeah. Had just as much access. Eyeglasses could be mail ordered. A lot of stores sold them as a side. Just like today, you walk into a pharmacy or something and you can see a row of eyeglasses. And let's, you know, you could pick your readers off of a rack. Right. They were pretty common. And also common were sunglasses.

[Alie Ward]

Sunglasses.

[Jenny Benjamin]

Yeah. But not. I shouldn't use sunglasses. Ooh, I caught myself.

[Alie Ward]

Tinted lenses.

[Jenny Benjamin]

Tinted lenses, that's correct. Okay, so sunglasses as we know them, and we here at the museum, we love to get precise. So sunglasses are lenses that have UV protection.

[Alie Ward]

Oh, okay.

[Jenny Benjamin]

So that. Right. Because that's literally protecting you from the sun. So that's a sunglasses. The sunglasses were invented in the 1920s.

[Alie Ward]

Oh.

[Jenny Benjamin]

That is when all of those sorts of advances came into the manufacturing.

[Alie Ward]

Just a side note, sunglasses were called sun cheaters for a while. And While the first UV blocking sun sheeters were made in 1913 using the metal cerium light blocking glasses go way, way farther back. With Inuit populations, for example, carving snow goggles out of walrus, ivory, or caribou bone that had narrow peepholes to minimize this blasting glare of the sun on snow. But yeah, sunglasses as we know them weren't widespread until about 100 years ago, and they definitely were not cool before that.

[Jenny Benjamin]

So the earliest known advertisement for eyeglasses with colored lenses is 1561.

[Alie Ward]

What did they color them with, you think?

[Jenny Benjamin]

Oh, well, they used all sorts of chemicals to color glass. I mean, if you think about it. Right. Cathedrals and churches had been using colored glass already, so there wasn't any issue about finding colored glass. Yeah. But cutting it and fitting it into a frame for eyeglasses, it had to be thick enough to endure. Thin glass would just break on you. Right. You'd put it in your pocket and that'd be the end of it. So manufacturing of glass had to get a little bit better. By 1561, they were making colored lenses. And the popular colors then were green and blue.

[Alie Ward]

Really?

[Jenny Benjamin]

Yeah.

[Alie Ward]

Throwback shades.

[Jenny Benjamin]

Cool.

[Alie Ward]

That's kind of hot.

[Jenny Benjamin]

Right? Which is but again, it had this connotation of infirmity, like you needed to protect your eyes from the sun because you couldn't handle the sun, or your eyes were weak, quote, unquote weak, so you wore colored lenses. It was a signal, actually, of not being terribly.

[Alie Ward]

Well, it's interesting because talking to disability advocates, too, it's a. It's an aid that so many people need. And it's just so common that we, pardon the pun, don't really blink at it, you know, but it's one of those aids. But with mobility aids, it's something that so many people worry about, a stigma attached to it. And it's interesting to think of glasses as having that kind of stigma years and centuries prior and what that means for the future of mobility aids and things like that.

[Jenny Benjamin]

Right? Oh, yes, I agree.

[Alie Ward]

Disability Pride month, by the way, is in July. And we have a great episode called disability sociology with Dr. Gwen Chambers, in which we discuss all kinds of issues about access and stigmas and accessibility aids. And we'll link that in the show notes. For example, in the past, was it hard to get your hands on some specs? I was trying to think of how much a pair of glasses would cost back in, say, the 1800s. Cause I think of it as something that only someone in, like a corset with five butlers and footmen would have. My husband and I were driving around, we were in a parking lot, and we saw a pair of glasses that had been run over and shattered. And I was thinking, man, that person's having a bad day. Hopefully they have another pair.

[Jenny Benjamin]

Right, right.

[Alie Ward]

And I was like, what if you were like a pioneer? Or what if you were someone who was living hundreds of years ago and a horse stepped on your glasses? Like, would you be so screwed? Would that cost like a year's salary to replace? Or was that so kind of easy?

[Jenny Benjamin]

Okay, yeah. No, no. Well, I mean, so there is always a high end market, eyeglasses being no different. And you could always get a bespoke pair or made out of gold, and those would have been quite expensive. But at the same time, we're talking about starting in the 1700s through even now, right to today, there are cheap frames available. They're making them out of metal, base metal, and it's just a simple pair of lenses. The price point can really vary. And a lot of it had to do with where you bought them. So actually, jewelers sold eyeglasses. Those would have been higher end. And then. Yeah, then you're five and dime. Now, I Haven't done the cost analysis, so I'm pretty sure the retail was, you know, a buck or two. But that we say that in the late 1800s and I got to, I got to go do one of those calculus.

[Alie Ward]

Yeah. One of those inflation calculators. Yeah. But it wouldn't have broken. Broken you forever. Just beep boop, beep boop. Did some calculations and that would be around 30 bucks nowadays. So it wouldn't have meant certain death and ruined your entire life.

[Jenny Benjamin]

Not forever, no.

[Alie Ward]

Okay. Oh, that's so fascinating.

[Jenny Benjamin]

And common. People needed eyeglasses and it wasn't unheard of to get a pair. But not too many people wanted to wear them. Right.

[Alie Ward]

That to me is, I mean fascinating. I mean, I guess, you know, you and I are talking about readers and that even stigma of having to confront your own mortality and have an existential crisis by needing up close glasses. And I definitely get that my brother in law borrows my sister's glasses when he needs to sign a bill and she's always like, why don't you get your own glasses? He's also like a heavy metal guitarist. So I profession. So I think there's probably a little bit of stigma of you got hair down to your waist and you play a flying V guitar. Like you don't want to put on the Ben Franklin spectacles. So whether you're a kid getting glasses or you're thinking it might be time for some readers you are in fantastic company, such as me. The majority of people over 45 need readers. And if you are lucky enough to live until your mid-60s, 95% of your peers will use glasses for close up work. But from the Wild west to just.

[Jenny Benjamin]

The world at large, European eyeglasses between 1300 and 1700, let's say the lenses are small and they're manufactured small because they're being ground to a very precise prescription. In contrast, the spectacles we find in in Asia and the only examples I have are after this colonial time period. So after 16, 17, hundreds, they're much, much larger. Oh, Asian spectacles have much larger lenses and they all are using more native designs. So we're talking about carved temple pieces or carved nose pieces and they're using symbolism that have actually are actually these really meaningful. So things like wishing for wealth or luck or those sorts of symbols are carved into those spectacles and they're have to say much prettier.

[Dr. Nadia Sledge]

Well, thank you.

[Jenny Benjamin]

Western spectacles of the same era are very, very practical. Right. They're just how do these are going to Stay on your face. Seems to be the big design decision is how are these staying on your face? And Asia is like, how can we make these as gorgeous as possible? So the Western spectacles and Asian spectacles, too, are hindered by the lack of nose pads in both areas. So worldwide, I guess we could say, the eyeglasses all had these incredibly long temple pieces, we would call them. We call them double hinged today because basically the temples were manufactured so that they went over your ear and around the back of your head.

[Alie Ward]

Oh, wow. Like a little claw kind of, huh?

[Jenny Benjamin]

Yeah. And they would sometimes tie in the back. You would have to tie them up.

[Alie Ward]

Can you imagine, like hairpins that you could just put in a bun and then, you know.

[Jenny Benjamin]

Yeah, well, they did do that. They did affix them with hairpins. Ladies did that. Men would chain them to their lapels through the 1900s, because nose pads, honestly, weren't started to be used until the 1820s.

[Alie Ward]

That's so recent.

[Jenny Benjamin]

Yeah.

[Alie Ward]

Considering 500 years. Yeah.

[Jenny Benjamin]

Yeah.

[Alie Ward]

So think of how a pair of eyeglasses or goggles or sunglasses, they have those little stoppers so that the lenses can sit on the bridge of your nose. They didn't have those. You just had to hold them up or you had to tie them to your face. Like, we can melt sand into glass and then precision grind it to give vision to the sightless, but we cannot figure out nose pads. It took so long.

[Jenny Benjamin]

But it is a bit of a manufacturing marvel. I mean, that's an invention right there. In the 1820s, they began to manufacture a type of eyeglasses called pince Nez. Those come out of France, so of course they have a French name, but it means pinched nose. And there are tons of patents for different types of nose pads that would literally pinch the nose to keep the eyeglasses on. Sounds painful. So it's from these that our nose pads evolved, our modern nose pads.

[Alie Ward]

Last question. If there are glasses in your collection that are some of your favorites, either ornamentally or historically or even not in your collection that are like some of the eyeglasses that have just made history?

[Jenny Benjamin]

Well, we do have some historical pieces, like the President Jimmy Carter's eyeglasses, but those aren't my favorite.

[Alie Ward]

Okay.

[Jenny Benjamin]

It's nice to know they're here, but I'm a little indifferent to presidential eyeglasses. What I really love is actually our collection of lorgnettes. And lorgnettes are handheld eyeglasses. They were first invented in 1785, and it's French again, because Lorgnette is. Right? Isn't that a beautiful word? But what a lorgnette is, is a pair of eyeglasses that are fitted to a handle much like a pocket knife, so that your eyeglasses slide into the handle and then can be put away. So the handle is also the spectacle case. It's keeping them safe when you're not in use.

[Alie Ward]

Oh, wow. So brilliant.

[Jenny Benjamin]

Right? And then when you pull them out, and these were considered ladies glasses primarily. And when you pulled it out, you. You know what? My favorite ever see Downton Abbey, where the dowager duchess pulls out her eyeglasses and she's holding them with one hand and they flip up just in front of her eyes as she needs them. And she peers at you and she looks very imperious. Of course, older than yours, I imagine.

[Alie Ward]

What flair, right?

[Jenny Benjamin]

It's a great costuming, but it was true. This is how they were used. And they were usually handcrafted for folks who could afford it. And we have several here that have jewels in them and gorgeous enamels. They're like pieces of jewelry.

[Alie Ward]

Well, I really hope to come and visit sometime next time I'm in San Francisco.

[Jenny Benjamin]

We would love it.

[Alie Ward]

Are there operating hours you can waltz in or should you get an appointment?

[Jenny Benjamin]

Oh, no, please, waltz in. By all means, waltz in with. With fabulous glasses on. The museum is open weekly. The museum is open Wednesday through Sunday. Admission is always free. And yeah, we love to have visitors. And we'll chat with you. There's always somebody at the front desk. Often myself.

[Alie Ward]

Nice.

[Jenny Benjamin]

It's the beauty of a small museum. We get to really be personal and talk to you about what you're interested in.

[Alie Ward]

So that was the wonderful Jenny Benjamin, director of the Museum of the Eye in San Francisco. And we will link the museum in the show notes. If you see Jenny, tell her I say hello. And we'll be back in a second to ask all kinds of very not smart questions about modern eyes in a changing world with an accurate, actual living optometrist. But first, thank you again to the sponsor of the show, who makes it possible for Ologies to donate to a relevant cause each week, too. And this week, Ologies sends a donation to St. John of Jerusalem Eye Hospital Group, which is the only charitable provider of expert eye care in the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem, treating patients regardless of ethnicity, religion or ability to pay. So thanks to them for all the brave work that they're doing restoring and preserving sight to those that need care. Let's take a quick break to thank the sponsor of today's episode, Pearle Vision. And I love learning about this stuff. And also, I don't have to tell you that we spend more time on devices. And this was news to me about myopia or nearsightedness, where you can't see. Far away in kids is on the rise. Tripling since 1990, which affects sports and seeing the chalkboard, which is now a whiteboard. And just like me when I was in high school, kids with vision issues usually don't know they're not seeing clearly because this is all they know. They're like, this is how eyes work, right? But being able to see the leaves on the trees and the homework assignments on the board, that was like a huge moment. I remember it so clearly. Now. The only way to spot these and other potential issues is you have to get kids a comprehensive eye exam. Especially if you notice your kids holding their iPad really close to read or squinting to see the tv. Those could be definite signs of an issue. And this is where Pearl Vision comes in. Pearl Vision has over 450 locations in the US where there are so many styles of glasses, types of lenses that will not only help you see clearly, but it'll also add to your style. Some kids who don't have vision problems are going out and buying clear lenses just because they look cool. So yeah, get those glasses, see better, look even cuter. And to make things easy, you can book your eye exam online. There's even an option to book an appointment for up to three people so you can make appointments for the whole family at once. Just gather up, Giddy up to Pearle Vision. Nobody cares for eyes more than Pearl. Visit pearlevision.com for more information. Eye exams available by independent doctors of optometry at or next to Pearle Vision doctors in some states employed by Pearl Vision. Okay, let's Talk now to Dr. Nadia Sledge, who is a practicing optometrist in Houston, Texas about how our eyes are operating. We're not operating in the digital age. Here we go. And now you are an eye doctor. When we say, hey, I'm going to the eye doctor, you are someone we would go see to get our eyes checked out. What are you looking for? Are you checking how our eye health is? Are you checking just how our vision is? I love that Dr. Sledge is not only passionate but also poetic about eye health.

[Dr. Nadia Sledge]

The eyes are the window to the soul and I am an optometrist doctor of optometry. We do now four years of undergraduate and then four years of optometry school, and we focus on everything, on the eye. The literal only thing we do not do is surgery, But I can do your eye exam to check you for glasses or contacts. I can diagnose eye diseases. There's over 270 systemic diseases that we can diagnose in the eye itself.

[Alie Ward]

How often should you go to the eye doctor? Because I know that there are people walking around with glasses that they've had for six years, 10 years, maybe, don't realize that street signs are looking blurry. How often should we go?

[Dr. Nadia Sledge]

We really should have our eyes examined annually. And as we do get older, all our risk factors go up, Just no different than the other body part that we have, and things start to break down as we get older. Your eyes are no different.

[Alie Ward]

You know, I didn't know I needed glasses until I was in high school, and I was taking too long to copy down the math homework from the board and had to borrow my friend Marcy's glasses ahead of me. And I got to doing that so often, she finally was like, allie, why don't you go see an eye doctor? And I was like, oh, I'm gonna be a glasses person, really? Which is exciting.

[Dr. Nadia Sledge]

A lot of people just don't even know that they're not quite seeing what they should be seeing. And kids, young individuals, you know, generally as well, and they'll compensate. They'll move a little closer, they'll squint their eyes. And, you know, how many stories have I heard, or I've been doing this for 30 years? And how many stories of kids just putting on glasses and going, wow, I could see the leaves on a tree. It was a big green mass. You didn't know it should have been identifiable to see every single leaf on that tree.

[Alie Ward]

And why is it that some people in a family like my sister and my mom don't need glasses or contacts, but myself, my other sister, and my dad, all nearsighted, Meaning that we need glasses to see anything past our hands.

[Dr. Nadia Sledge]

We're definitely seeing shifts in the trends of nearsightedness over the last 10, 15 years. More and more of the population is nearsighted. By 2050, is anticipated that half of the world will be nearsighted. And by 2030, 50% of the United States alone will be nearsighted. And so we are seeing an increased incidence in kids. And the amount of nearsightedness in kids is significantly increasing over these years. And we do attribute it, of course, to the increased near work they're doing. There are studies showing that Lack of vitamin D exposure, being outside is contributing to that factor. And genetics of course plays a significant role. But it's interesting just we're contemplating urbanization. These kids aren't looking far away anymore. They're really confined to homes, schools, books, playgrounds, buildings all over us that we're not looking far away into the horizon. And really that up close demand of everything, the studies are showing that that's what's really kind of instigating this increase in nearsightedness over these years.

[Alie Ward]

It's interesting because I think from an evolutionary perspective, if you were to plot me down in the forest with my vision, I would not survive an hour. It's all a blur.

[Dr. Nadia Sledge]

If you really think of evolution, how did we survive? And honestly my answer to that is that we were the cooks in the kitchen. We weren't the hunters, we were the gatherers. We were the ones who kind of cooked everything because the same thing, even those little pterodactyl kind of things in Jurassic park, they would get us.

[Alie Ward]

So there's an ophthalmologist by the name of Dr. Ivan Schwab who wrote the book Evolution's How Eyes Evolved. And yes, he's written all about how genes and nutrition are factors in our eyesight. But doing close up work as you grow up can cause your eyes to grow longer outward, helping you with that close up vision, but making your distance vision worse. So the image of like bookworms wearing glasses for distance, that's like not necessarily flim flam which, and again, there's a lot of factors that go into it. But honestly, I kind of love knowing that, especially as a person who wears glasses. But while nothing can be proven, anthropologists and eye doctors alike hypothesize that yeah, having diversity of sight in a population meant people could do different tasks with nearsighted folks like me focusing on something like engraving or yeah, delicate tasks rather than distance based ones. And as for needing readers as we aged, it's pretty bonkers to think that like a lot of folks just didn't live to the age where they needed readers. And nowadays we do, which is great thanks to antibiotics and vaccines and water filtration and pants and stuff. But we definitely didn't need them in prehistoric times to read restaurant menus or the fine print on the back of vitamin bottles. But back then, yeah, if someone got a splinter or a bee sting, they'd be like, ask that nerd who can only see up close.

[Dr. Nadia Sledge]

That's my own little non research interpretation of it is that we didn't hunt.

[Alie Ward]

And when it comes to picking out glasses or contacts, as someone with, like, decision anxiety, how do you kind of steer people to what glasses are right for them? Like, my prescription's negative 4, so mine are kind of heavy, so I need kind of lighter lenses. Also, styles change a lot. Like, how do people pick out glasses? Do you have to help them with that?

[Dr. Nadia Sledge]

Yeah. I am fortunate to have a great staff of very experienced opticians. So in the eye world, there's opticians who are the ones who sell the glasses and do all the measurements and teach contact lens fitting, and then there's the optometrist. And then on the other side is the ophthalmologists who do the surgery. So my employees, the opticians are fantastic. They're great at helping the patient picking things. And they'll know automatically what material of lens we should go to. And you want to have something that will compliment your face and shape and your business or casual. And, you know, multiple pairs have become very common. Your athletic pair for going a jogging, and then you're a dressy pair to go to work. And so it's not what it used to be. Where, you know, we had. I had Sally Jesse Raphael red, huge glasses and that one pair, and the parents weren't buying them every year, so you were stuck with whatever you had. So with respect to helping people see, we have so many more options available to us than when I started practicing 30 years ago.

[Alie Ward]

I have some sunglasses that are polarized, and I can see things in rainbows, and I see things more sharply. How does the polarization work? And should you get those on your regular non sunglasses?

[Dr. Nadia Sledge]

Yeah, absolutely. The Polaroid filter, it is literally a filter that is sandwiched between the lens. And you really want to try it to see if your glasses are polarized. Just next time you're at a gas station and you're looking at the LED screen, if you just tilt your head from side to side, you'll notice that that screen disappears. It goes black. And then you tilt your head back and you could see the digits again. And that's. The polarization is basically a filter that decreases that reflective glare. So when you're talking about using them on the water, it's. You can see through the water better because it decreases the glare of the light off of the water. If you're skiing, it decreases that reflective glare off of the snow. When you're driving and you've got cars coming towards you and the sunlight's hitting those cars, it decreases that reflection towards you.

[Alie Ward]

Okay. I Love my polarized sunglasses, so I needed to know how they worked. And. Okay. When sun hits you in the eyes, it's coming in both vertical waves and horizontal ones. And the polarizing filter on glasses is. Blocks the horizontal rays, essentially, which is super helpful for looking into water or dealing with snow glare. But the reason you can't see some screens at an angle is because those screens are already polarized. So at some angles, you're double blocking the light, which can be really dangerous if you're like a pilot and your instrument panel is electronic. And some people say that when driving in icy conditions in the daytime, polarized lenses can be less safe because the glare from the ice patches is actually helpful to see so you know how to avoid them. So your mileage may vary depending on the conditions and what you're using them for. Safety first. But yeah, especially if you're looking into water to see logs and frogs and fish and turtles and algae, it's like magic not having to squint through glare. It's like you can see straight into the water, but when you're back inside. When it comes to eye strain, let's say that you are working on a computer, you're looking at your phone all day. How can you tell what eye strain feels like if you kind of never get a break from it?

[Dr. Nadia Sledge]

That's a great point. You know, we tend to stare for sure when we are on our devices. Our blink rate will decrease from 22 times a minute to nine times a minute. So we're increasing the amount of dry eye that we're seeing as well. The one thing I will ask patients when we talk about eye strain is weekends versus weekdays. Like, we're on our devices, but we might not be sitting in front of a computer, you know, for the entire time. And are you experiencing those same feelings on your vacation or on a weekend versus those long hours at work? And most people are like, you know what I really think about it. I'm actually, you're right. I don't feel that tension around my brow or that temporal headache or, you know, any. Any of those signs during the weekend that I do in the weekday. So we'll look at the prescription first. The other thing I'll look at is how well do the two eyes work together. A lot of people are surprised when I tell them, well, you know, when you actually look at how your eyes work together, they're not. They want to work a little bit in front of the computer or behind the computer. So then we'll incorporate some prism in the Glasses and that'll help the alignment part of it. So allowing the eyes to relax a little bit more as opposed to the muscles around the eyes, trying to keep those two eyes locked in a specific position. And then the third, of course, would be the health and dry eye being that significant increase in strain just because we aren't blinking as often. And so the front surface of the eye is getting more dry and then, you know, causing more of that really scratchy, gritty, irritating feeling as well. I normally tell patients the I call it three by 20 rule, every 20 minutes, look 20ft away for 20 seconds just to give your eyes a little bit of a break and allow that blink rate to go back to a bit more normal for a little period of time as well.

[Alie Ward]

Do you ever have to encourage young people or parents or just anyone, like, you need to go outside and like, literally touch grass and like look at trees and like get different focal points? Is this, is that a good prescription?

[Dr. Nadia Sledge]

Yeah, it is, absolutely. And especially when I see a young individual and then the next year I've seen them and their prescription has increased. And we do start having conversation about that. The American Pediatric association recommending two hours a day as the limit on digital device use and being outside as well, an hour a day.

[Alie Ward]

So again, doctors say limit a digital device to two hours a day and get outside for an hour daily at least. And guess what? But if it's good for children, it's also good for you. And if you need more science based evidence to get you out the door a little bit, we have this really great episode on Fun with Catherine Price, who also wrote the book how to break up with your phone. And we have another great recent episode called Salugenology with Jules Hotz about why human beings need hobbies to survive at all ages.

[Dr. Nadia Sledge]

There is a recommendation to not even give kids devices until they're, my mind says two or three years old. And we do tend to kind of, it's great, we can watch videos on our phone and we give them to our kids, but ultimately the more outdoor long distance play they can do that, the better for the health of their eyes. And the, as I would call it, less addictive nature that we hopefully can push off that addiction to our devices. Because I try to preach it to my kids, but I'm on my devices just as much as.

[Alie Ward]

Well, if only medical clerics could see how I have ruined my eyes by watching strangers lip sync for hours a day. I mean, maybe they had a point.

[Dr. Nadia Sledge]

And we'll also start having conversations of what is now termed myopia management, which is basically, you know, different methodologies of trying to help decrease how bad the prescription gets.

[Alie Ward]

And do you want to bust any flim flam for people who might be afraid to go to the eye doctor or who have maybe become used to taking online tests for their eyes? I know the glaucoma test is one thing people are afraid of. That's a little puff in your eye that sometimes can be startling, doesn't hurt at all. But it's just like, you don't know. It's like jack in the box. You don't know what's coming.

[Dr. Nadia Sledge]

The puff, it's the non contact tonometry is what it's called. I say it's kind of like a video game on our side of trying to get everything aligned, but it's kind of like a guessing game on your side of when it's coming. Surprise. But it is very important to have that done. That is the screening test for glaucoma. Glaucoma is when pressures get to a level that the eye doesn't like it. And as I tell patients, it's a silent disease. We don't see any problems on your side. You don't come in complaining about having glaucoma problems. It really takes your peripheral vision out first. So that's why we want to see you every year. That's why we want to do the pressure test. That's why we want to take a look inside your eyes and look at the nerve and make sure it's not getting damaged. With respect to that is probably one of the bigger things that keeps patients away from getting their eyes checked. But you know, really, honestly, that that little blimp in discomfort should not be the reason why we're not taking care of our eyes.

[Alie Ward]

Honestly, that tiny puff of air, I've had it done so many times I couldn't begin to count. It does not hurt and it should not keep you from an eye test. Your ancestors did not survive blizzards and famines and cave bears and smallpox so that you could ruin your sight. Avoiding something that is not painful and is less surprising than almost bumping into someone on the subway. Just call your eye doctor.

[Dr. Nadia Sledge]

The other thing about talking about online eye exams and one of the kind of soapboxes I would put on my top of that conversation is that, yes, great, they can sit you at a specific distance from the computer screen and the algorithms can show you things and try to figure out your prescription. But ultimately that is not the main concern that we have as eye doctors, it really, truly is the whole health of the eye. And there is no way at this point the future might hold something different. But there's no way at this point that anybody on an online eye exam can tell you that your eyes are actually healthy, that your contacts are actually fitting you properly, that the contacts you have on are actually the best ones for you. You really need to come and see one of us in office and have a good conversation and allow us to take a good look at the inside and the outside of your eye to give you that true check mark to say that everything is perfect and you will be great for another year and then we'll see you again next year.

[Alie Ward]

I know I want your eyes seeing my eyes. It's what I trust. I'm like, really get in there. And last question. Any tips on how not to break your glasses? Is there a good glasses case that you recommend? Is there a good place that you should keep your glasses? How do you make sure that you don't sit on them or break them?

[Dr. Nadia Sledge]

You know, the one way to make sure you don't sin on them is I have a saying that I normally say with young individuals is that if they're not on your face, they're in the case. Because that is one of the key things they get lost or they get broken for kids. So when we dispense their glasses and we give them a good case, and that is my number one saying with them, is that you're gonna put that in your mind. So if they're not on your face when you go up to recess, you're put them in the case. Or when you're going home, you're gonna put them in the case and. And the adults that. And you're potentially going to come to that point where you're taking your glasses on and off to read. There's two sides of that. It's you who takes your glasses off to read. And that's the one who usually will sit on the glasses because you'll put them beside you on the sofa and then you'll get up, walk around, go get a drink of water, and then come back and you've just sat on your glasses because you forgot you left them on the sofa. And then there's the other person who has great distance vision but needs the glasses for reading. And they'll put them on and they'll read the menu and then they'll have a conversation with their friend across the table and they're finished finishing and they just pick up and they walk and the next thing you know they've left their glasses at the restaurant and they go back and of course those beautiful Gucci's are now suddenly gone off the table. So I guess maybe for adults as well, I could use the same motto. If they're not on your face, they're in the case. That might work for adults as well as kids.

[Alie Ward]

I'm gonna get that tattooed on my arm, right? That's the best advice I've got. That'll save you a lot of money.

[Dr. Nadia Sledge]

Yeah, exactly, exactly.

[Alie Ward]

So ask really sharp people blurry questions. And thank you again so much to Jenny Benjamin of San Francisco's Museum of the Eye and Nadia Sledge for letting me lob so many questions at you both. You're both wonderful. You can find links to them in the show notes as well as to this episode's special sponsor, Pearl Vision and to our charity of choice we mentioned this week. Also our social media. We're logies on Instagram and bluesky and I'm allieward with one L on both. We do also have smallogies which are shorter kid friendly episodes available wherever you get podcasts. We have Ologies Merch available at ologiesmerch.com Erin Talbert admins the Ologies podcast Facebook group. Avileen Malik makes our professional transcripts. Kelly R. Dwyer does the website. Noelle Dilworth looks into the future as our scheduling producer. Susan Hale oversees everything as our managing director. Mercedes Maitland of Maitland Audio edits and sees to it that all of our regular episodes go up, as does lead editor of this episode, the visionary Jake Chaffee. Nick Thorburn made the theme music. And if you stick around till the end of the episode, I tell you a secret. And this one is that I have worn contacts since I was in high school and nowadays they have dailies that you can wear once and just toss and get a fresh pair in the morning. Which is boggling to me as someone who grew up. Like if you dropped your contact lens, you would just look on the floor and find it dirty. So the idea that you could just throw them out every night is still like, really? I can do this a freshie in the morning. But one disgusting thing that I learned by accident is that if you somehow get a contact lens on your fingernail, like if you were tired and you just picked them off your eyeballs in bed and that contact lens dries perfectly on your fingernail like it's a press on nail in the morning you will be like, what even is this? And then if you're someone who likes to pick off your nail polish or watch those, those oddly satisfying videos of power washing or people removing dental tartar. The sensation of picking away a dried contact lens on your fingernail is really disgusting and so gratifying. And I think it's not as bad for your nails as picking off nail polish. But don't do it if you don't want to. Don't take any of my advice. I'm not a doctor. I'm just letting you know it happened to me and it was kind of fun.

[Jenny Benjamin]

Okay, bye.

[Alie Ward]

Bye. Pachydermatology, Homeology Cryptozoology Litology Nanotechnology Meteorology Olfactology Mapology Serology Selenology.

[Jenny Benjamin]

Are my eyes deceiving me right now?

[Alie Ward]

Thank you again so much to the sponsor of today's episode, which is Pearle Vision. Hey, I got a question for me. Are you finding yourself holding your phone further away? Or maybe you're like I need a flashlight to read this menu. This is not just you. This is very common for adults over 40 because your eye's ability to focus on nearby objects just gradually declines. Even if you have never had vision issues, it's important to get an eye exam around 40 to just establish your baseline for future vision care and also just to identify potential problems early on. There's a lot about eye health. It's good to keep an eye on on. And that is where Pearl Vision comes in. Pearl Vision has over 450 locations in the US where doctors are committed to making sure that you see and look your best. And to make things easy, you can book your eye exam online. There's even an option, as you know, to book an appointment for up to three people. Maybe take your friends, make it an event, get an ice cream after. Nobody cares for eyes more than Pearl. Visit pearlvision.com for more information. Eye exams available by independent doctors of optometry at or next to Pearl Vision. Doctors in some states are employed by Pearl Vision. Thank you again for sponsoring this show.