Boffins at MIT have come up with a new type of glass that resists fogging, eliminates reflections and is ‘self cleaning’.
The surface of the glass is covered with tiny nanocones (1000 times thinner than human hair) which break up reflections and prevent water droplets sticking to the surface causing fogging.
The technology writers are buzzing about the use of the glass to increase the efficiency of solar cells by remaining crystal clean and even more excited about making touchscreens for smartphones out of the glass to prevent those greasy fingerprints grubbing up the screen.
However, at CO we’re more interested in whether it can put an end to finger prints and fogging glasses lenses. Particularly intriguing is the lenses ability to produce no reflections which would the lenses would not need to be anti reflective coated.
We’ll keep watching but in the meantime, you could always try contact lenses…
After trials on rats scientists now hope to develop treatments for conditions such as macular degeneration using regenerative Muller Glial (MG) cells – these cells have the ability to morph themselves into healthy versions of damaged or dying retinal cells. Dormant MG cells cells are found inside the human eye. Trials are now underway to find a way to “kick start” these naturally occurring regenerative cells. In the meantime researchers hope that active MG cells can be nurtured in a lab and transplanted into human eyes.