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Re: Laser Pointer Danger?




On Sun, 25 Jan 98 16:45:04 EST David Dockstader <DRDOCK00@UKCC.UKY.EDU>
writes:
Herb,
You don't mean to imply that looking at the sun causes no permanent
damage do you?

I don't recall stating or implying that looking at the sun cannot cause
permanent damage. It can result in permanent blindness with a few
minutes exposure to the eyes and it can also result in life-threatening
damage to the skin with longer exposures. In most cases, the eye's blink
reflex limits the time of exposure
to most bright lights. Very short exposures to the sun, and most other
bright lights (including low-power laser pointers) often produce
TEMPORARY blindness until the
retina recovers. There is no permanent damage.

I do have it on good authority, however, that snow blindness causes
only temporary damage to the eye. Of course if it happens in the wrong
place, like on top of a remote mountain the side effects can be fatal.

Similarly, the bright headlights from an oncoming automobile at night
can also produce fatal side efffects when cars collide during temporary
blindness after- effects..

Herb Gottlieb from New York City
(Where sudden FAILURE of automobile headlights can also have fatal side
effects)

On Sat, 24 Jan 1998 19:21:42 +1300 (NZDT) kevin murphy
<kdmurphy@voyager.co.nz> writes:
Further to Herb's query I have written to Tony Leverton of the
Department of Consumer Affairs, from whom the report emanated.
I will let you know if I receive an informative reply.

The report in the Dominion dd 17 January 1998 referred to Consumer
Affairs Ministry trading manager Tony Leverton "calling on retailers
and

importers to voluntarily import and sell only low-powered laser
pointers
after
incidents have left people temporarily blind or with eye damage."

******************************************************************
I shall be looking forward the reply from Tony Leverton. Hopefully it
will indicate whether or not the "temporary blindness" was similar to
the
after-effects that we receive for a short time after looking directly
into the sun or any other bright light for that matter. the problem
is
that some people will interpret "temporary blindness" to mean that it
requires the use of a seeing eye dog for a few days or weeks until
the
person recovers.

Also, unless the the extent of the specific eye damage is stated and
verified by experts, the term "eye damage" is open to wide
interpretations. For example, there is the joke about an elderly
man
who reported that he COULDN'T READ after being exposed to the beam of
a
low-power laser pointer. When questioned further, the man confessed
that
he had never learned how to read.

Herb Gottlieb from New York City
(Where people CAN READ after being exposed to the beam of a low-power
laser pointer)