The Human Eye

Anatomy of the eye

A human eye gives the sharpest vision when it is perfectly spherical, that is, round like a basketball. Distortion occurs when either the eyeball or the cornea are slightly out of round, causing the vision conditions known as myopia (nearsightedness), hyperopia (farsightedness), or astigmatism.

How the eye works

Light from the object (A) is focused by the cornea and crystalline lens to form an upside-down image on the light-sensitive cells of the retina. Information is transmitted as impulses from these cells to the brain via the optic nerve. The quantity of light entering the eye is regulated by the iris. The pupil is the variable-sized black circular opening in the center of the iris.