| Leonardo
da Vinci illustrated the concept of lenses placed in the
eye in 1508. In 1887, glassblower F.E. Muller made the
first pair of contact lenses from glass, which were
fitted over the entire eye. Plastic contact lenses were
only developed in 1948 but did not achieve wide-spread
use until the invention of soft contact lenses in 1971. Back in the
1970s, you could tell who had perfect eye-sight and who
did not. That most women today seem to have better sight
is thanks to contact lenses, negating the need for bulky,
heavy, in-your-face spectacles.
From
hard lenses in the 1970s, there are now daily disposals
which you use and throw, and the latest
breakthrough--true continuous wear. These lenses can be
worn for 30 days straight without removal and were
developed initially as eye bandages for eye surgery.
Contact
lenses are also a fashion statement, with tinted and
pattern lenses. Depending on your mood, you could be a
green-eyed monster or be literally starry-eyed.
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