Wednesday, October 13, 2010

I Might Just Get an Eye Patch





(Above: Yes, I know that's not a pirate.)

The other day, I was reading about pirates (as I'm wont to do), and I came across an interesting "fact." Some pirate experts (can you imagine a better job?) claim that sailors may not have worn eye patches to look tough or to cover up injuries. Instead, the eye patch might have been a trade secret of sorts. If a sailor always kept one eye in the dark, that eye wouldn't need time to adjust when the sailor went below deck.

Interesting, right? (Perhaps you already knew?) Anyway, I was thinking that this might have a few practical applications for those of us who don't spend our days on the high seas. Perhaps you have some suggestions?

20 comments:

Some Lost Melody said...

Ahahahaha it's a doll of Ciel from Kurshitsuji!! XD That's funny because I just finished that anime yesterday.

About the pirates though that's pretty interesting. Never really thought about it.

Andrea said...

The Mythbusters featured this on their Pirate special and ruled it "plausible." A summary video of their results is up on their website.

Awesome doll.

Kitty said...

Kuroshitsuji.. watched/read it a long time ago; no offence it wasn't that good /shot XD

But isn't that bad for your eyes...? Oo' But that's pretty cool..! I never would have guessed ^^'

Anonymous said...

Dear Everyone:

Hi! I recall reading US Air Force command post ("Looking Glass") pilots used to do that trick with the eyepatch. The idea was if a nuclear bomb went off nearby, they could switch to their other eye.

I don't think I had a very good sleep that night after I read that.

Robert in San Diego

falcon said...

i saw that mythbusters! haha

Anonymous said...

hm, i didnt know that. funny, though, i do a similar thing-if i get up to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night, i keep one eye shut so i can see going back. i hate the dark (who knows whats lurking in it??). but also, did you know that most pirates were actually quite civilized? the captain wouldnt just take power, i think there was elections or something. and they werent illegal, a lot of them had permits signed by the monarch of their country saying it was legal to plunder other ships. and only like one of them actually buried a treasure chest. also: brontosauruses never existed and the great fire of london wasnt really that bad.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mark-juddery/11-most-overrated-things_b_649671.html#s114620

montana irregulars said...

that makes a lot of sense!!

Anonymous said...

In a little travelogue he'd written about the Galapagos Islands, Herman Melville (yeah, the Moby Dick author) described a wonderful garden seat that had been built by civilized pirates (he claimed). He went on for about two paragraphs of vivid imagery about the natural beauty of the earthwork bench, but brought us back to earth by announcing it must have been pirates because of all the empty rum bottles tossed out the back.

Robert in San Diego

Toodles*** said...

Actually, I do remember having heard that somewhere. Pretty cool, hey? I bet the irregulars could use it so when they descend into the Shadow City they don't have to squint for the first couple minutes. Or when they explore lost cities deep inside caves. Or when they look for clues leading to a long-lost 24 carat gold coffin holding a mummy that could change the whole theory of evolution inside an undiscovered pyramid of Giza.

Oh, the ideas that come to mind...

And awesome picture. I've always wanted to be able to draw manga anime.

Toodles*** said...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BO2rW1alVv8&feature=player_embedded

Watch the pedestrian.

Toodles*** said...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QTsXlTKaFq0&feature=player_embedded#!

:Toilet Paper Dispenser

http://www.walyou.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/07/bacon-soap-bar.jpg

:Bacon Soap- my friend actually has this, and it is AWESOME! Mostly because it smells like bacon. And no. I didn't lick it.

http://www.baconandmeat.com/images/bacon-band-aids.jpg

:And the one-and-only... Bacon Band-Aids!!!

http://www.baconandmeat.com/index.htm

:And last but not least, a large variety of awesome meat merchandise. I'm sorry for all those vegans and vegetarians. But I couldn't help myself.

The 355 said...

Saw it on mythbusters! It works! Haha pirates!

Erin_Flight said...

Ciel Phantomhive. He wears his eye patch to hide a demon seal. Scary huh?
Those pirates are quite smart. Being able to see immediately in the dark would give them quite an advantage. They could immediately fight while there enemies eyes where adjusting.

Kirsten Miller said...

I am totally impressed that so many of you watch Mythbusters. It's one of my favorite shows. Apparently, I need to watch it a little more often!

Ari the Awesome said...

Did anyone hear about the Manhattan UFO sighting yesterday???

Jin Ai said...

I heard about this a long time ago, and it's a good idea - though unfortunately no practical applications in my life.

btw, remember Cows Cows and Cows?
I just discovered the guy who made it has other videos. I am so happy.

this is the trippiest thing ever, I was hysterical by the end:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-0Xa4bHcJu8&feature=player_embedded

Je Reve said...

Mythbusters. My sister laughed for about 10 straight minutes at them tripping around.

Anonymous said...

KUURRROOOOSHHIIIITTTSSUUUJJJIIII!

EQ said...

@ Anonymus: Civilized? Democratic, certainly. Great workers' comp, absolutely. (Set amounts to be paid for specific injuries, even)

But on the other hand, there's the whole killing-people thing.

Pirates helped win the revolution. And the war of 1812, I think.

Anonymous said...

As a person undergone eye surgery, I insist that eye patches are very bad for health. I had to wear a patch for 12 hours each day during a month after the operation (scleroplasty, Pivovaroff's method; AFAIK, in USA, the Snyder-Thompson method is way more popular). The effect after removing it was the complete loss of coordination. Seriously, I was not able even to stand up with both eyes open! This generally happens because of the brain getting used to monocular eyesight. With only one eye, one can not percept depth, only a flat image. When it suddenly reappears after a month of pure 2D, the brain does not already know how to handle the new information! The normal feeling of depth and volume is restored in not less than three days (my observation, some may re-adapt faster or slower).