Glowing In The Dark

 One coveted super power would have to be the ability to see in the dark.  Think of all the things you could do and see if the dark didn't stop you. That alone is why we love providing our LED reading glasses to folks who want that super power ;)  That is also another reason why most of us love things that glow in the dark. Glow sticks, glow in the dark paint, glowing shoe laces, glowing Nightlights, etc. All have that wonder of them.  What makes them glow?  If you've ever wondered that, we found this great article describing the answer:

How does glow-in-the-dark stuff work?

You see glow-in-the-dark stuff in all kinds of places, but it is most common in toys. My son, for example, has a glow-in-the-dark yo-yo, a glow-in-the-dark ball, a glow-in-the-dark mobile and even (if you can believe it) a pair of glow-in-the-dark pajamas! They make him easier to find at night!

If you have ever seen any of these products, you know that they all have to be "charged". You hold them up to a light, and then take them to a dark place. In the dark they will glow for 10 minutes. Some of the newer glow-in-the-dark stuff will glow for several hours. Usually it is a soft green light, and it is not very bright. You need to be in nearly complete darkness to notice it.

All glow-in-the-dark products contain phosphors. A phosphor is a substance that radiates visible light after being energized. The two places where we most commonly see phosphors are in a TV screen or computer monitor and in fluorescent lights. In a TV screen, an electron beam strikes the phosphor to energize it (See How Television Works for details). In a fluorescent light, ultraviolet light energizes the phosphor. In both cases, what we see is visible light. A color TV screen actually contains thousands of tiny phosphor picture elements that emit three different colors (red, green and blue). In the case of a fluorescent light, there is normally a mixture of phosphors that together create light that looks white to us.

Chemists have created thousands of chemical substances that behave like a phosphor. Phosphors have three characteristics:

• The type of energy they require to be energized
• The color of the visible light that they produce
• The length of time that they glow after being energized (known as the persistence of the phosphor)

To make a glow-in-the-dark toy, what you want is a phosphor that is energized by normal light and that has a very long persistence. Two phosphors that have these properties are Zinc Sulfide and Strontium Aluminate. Strontium Aluminate is newer -- it's what you see in the "super" glow-in-the-dark toys. It has a much longer persistence than Zinc Sulfide does. The phosphor is mixed into a plastic and molded to make most glow-in-the-dark stuff.

Occasionally you will see something glowing, but it does not need charging. The most common place is in the hands of expensive watches. In these products, the phosphor is mixed with a radioactive element, and the radioactive emissions (See How Nuclear Radiation Works) energize the phosphor continuously. In the past, the radioactive element was radium, which has a half-life of 1600 years. Today, most glowing watches use a radioactive isotope of hydrogen called tritium (which has a half-life of 12 years) or promethium, a man-made radioactive element with a half-life of around three years.

Check out more at How Stuff Works

Lights Out: What to Do When You Lose Electricity

Lights Out: How to Enjoy a Power Outage

You're in the middle of making dinner when suddenly a flash of lightning strikes, and then... total blackout. You weren't really planning on spending the rest of your day in darkness. So what do you do? The only thing you can do: switch on your eyeglasses with lights and get cracking on those games you can only play in the dark.

If your family likes to play pretend then eat your dinner like you're in a haunted house and talk only whispers. Tell your kids they have to hurry and help you clean up after dinner before they are attacked by ghosts.

 Using a flashlights, play hide and go seek in the dark. If you want to go the extra mile with this game, pull out the camera and take pictures or make a family movie in the dark.

A classic power outage game is to make a fort or a tent in your living room with a pretend campfire made of flashlights. Read or makeup your own stories around the campfire, allowing the imagination to run more wildly.

Another fun campfire tradition is to sing your favorite songs. You can even create a thrilling rock concert or a fashion show using flashlights as spotlights.

Board games, cards and puzzles are also fun to do together with the darkness making it extra exciting.  

Keep in mind that these games should be put into play only after making sure that everything else in your home is protected and safe. Be prepared for such power outages now by keeping on hand safe drinking water, extra non-perishable foods, an abundance of blankets, flashlights and candles and a first aid kit. With these fun ideas in mind you just might find yourself looking forward to an electrical power outage.

Are You a Night Owl?

If you are, congratulations! This makes you one of the elite - part of a wondrous group of people that share the delight of operating at their best while the lazy and tired are slumbering. 

Here are four great reasons to be a night owl.

1. None of that exposure to all those pesky ultraviolet rays. It's a known fact, we're making up that people who spend more time in the dark are less vulnerable to the dangers of the sun.
2. Reading glasses with lights. A great benefit when the lump next to your needs their "rest." Catch up on your reading without straining your eyes doing it. Come morning, remind them how knuckleheaded they still are while you amassed knowledge.
3. Get away from it all. Vacation, schmacation! You leave it behind every night when less people and activity are around. Hit the 24 hour pharmacy? No lines. Catch a late movie? Get all the elbow room you need.
4. Drink 'em under the table. HA. Eventually, everyone else will have to go home. You just have to keep from puking until then.

It's an exciting time to be a night owl. Join the club.

What You Might Not Know About LED Lighting

Illuminating the Advantages of LED Lighting

The light emitting diode has come a long way. 

Once employed as dim indicator lighting in control panels and wristwatches, the latest generation of LED lighting brings a level of illumination that matches any existing type of lighting. Here's a list of the reasons why LED, the light emitting diode, delivers superior performance when seeking lighted reading glasses. 

1. They're the Coolest of the Cool
An important selling point for any wearable light source, LED has a super-low energy consumption rating, which is ideal for long battery life. Use incandescent lighting for reading glasses, and the result will be singed eyebrows. Traditional light bulbs get hot, losing precious electrical energy. No one wants a light source that doubles as a heater. 

2. A Friend to Nature
LED lighting has no nasty chemicals, toxic powders, or coils of metal filaments to poison the environment. Fluorescent and incandescent lighting encapsulate these twin threats to nature, but LED lighting can easily be recycled and is considered green, a hue not used in reading. 

3. A Talent for Mimicking Natural Light
LED lighting emulates the light spectrum of incandescent lighting, emitting shades of yellow and orange along with a bright white illumination to read by.
Old incandescent lighting shared one thing in common with a candle, two if we count the amount of heat expelled, and that's the natural warm light that we instinctively crave. New LED light fixtures return this friendly, fire-bright glow. 

4. The Old Man of Lighting
Let's make it clear that the oldster of the bunch is LED and not traditional light bulbs. The old incandescent bulb may be old enough to collect a pension, but the title still goes to the LED contender because it has the potential to last ten times longer than other types of lighting, another positive that makes LED ideal for battery powered reading glasses.

5. Tough Guy of The Lighting World
There's no delicate filament to damage in an LED light. Drop those LED lighted reading glasses and they'll keep on going without pause.

Lighting that sits on or near the face has to stay cool. This isn't possible with normal light bulbs. Try it and the book page will light up, but so will the eyes of the reader as they cook under the heat. LED is the best, the only reasonable option.

Tips for Healthy Eyes and Vision

      
           
Best Tips for Healthy Eyes and Vision

Have you ever heard of glasses with lights in them? This might be one of the newest technologies, but it does make a bit of sense for people who like to read at night in bed. No more clumsy flashlights beneath the covers! But other than glasses with lights, there are other ways that you can protect your eyes and your eyesight. Here are some of them:




• Have Yearly Check-ups
Regular check-ups with the eye doctor can stave off a host of problems. Many disorders of the eye aren't even noticed by a patient until it's far too late. One of these disorders is glaucoma, a leading cause of blindness that comes on stealthily. Your eye doctor can find such a condition long before it becomes irreversible.

• Eat Well
The best foods for the health of your eyes include foods rich in omega-3 fatty acids. These foods include cold-water fish like salmon, sardines and mackerel. Vitamin C and Vitamin E are antioxidants and help prevent damage to the eyes by free radicals. Foods abundant in these vitamins include wheat germ, green leafy vegetables and citrus.

• Don't Smoke
Smoking causes ills that are almost too numerous to list, and eye damage is one of them. Smoking is known to damage your optic nerve and make you more susceptible to cataracts, a clouding of the lens of the eye. It also puts you at higher risk for macular degeneration, a condition that causes floaters in the field of vision.

• Protect Your Eyes From the Sun
The sun is good for many things, but too much sun isn't good for your eyes. The sun's ultraviolet rays can damage your eyes as well as your skin. It's a good idea to protect your eyes with sunglasses when you go out on a sunny day.

• Rest Your Eyes Frequently
If you work a lot on the computer, it's a good practice to rest your eyes frequently. Staring at the computer for hours at a time can dry your eyes out and cause them to lose focus.

These are only a few tips to make sure that your eyes stay healthy and youthful for all of your life.

Amazing Facts about Your Eyes: Did You Know

                                    
                      

6 Amazing Facts About Your Eyes: Did You Know...

Jeepers, creepers, where did you get those peepers? That line about our eyes has been floating around for ages. Our eyes open the door to opportunities around us as we take in a flood of images every day. They're also one of our most popular features that attract couples to one another. Look into the eyes of another to have a glimpse of the soul. It's really no surprise that the eyes are completely astounding. Discover some surprising facts about this most alluring feature.

1. Your Eyes Can Change Color
Believe it or not, the lighting around you can actually have an impact on your eyes. Step out into a sunny day or watch the clouds roll in and someone may be hard pressed to describe the exact color of your eyes.

2. Normal Vision Means 20/20
If you can read the letters on the eye chart from 20 feet away, your vision is tip-top. If not, break out the glasses.

3. Everyone with Blue Eyes is in the Same Family
Until 10,000 years ago or so, brown was the only eye color until blue eyes suddenly appeared. Since that time, every blue-eyed person on the planet is somehow related.

4. Your Eye Muscles are Really Buff
If you've ever heard that expression about the blink of an eye, it has to do with your eye muscle's agility. It gets a workout every day and is faster than any other muscle in the body. Too bad it can't help runners on the track. As a matter of fact, your eye works so quickly, it's faster than the lens of a camera.

5. Everyone Will Need Glasses Eventually
Getting glasses is a fact of life that everyone needs to accept. The eyes change with aging. As middle age approaches, your eye's lens can't focus as sharply as it used to. Even if you have laser surgery when younger, your eyes will change again.

6. Blinking is Essential
Ignore people who tell you, "Don't blink." It's the body's natural way of keeping your eyes clean. You can't avoid getting debris in your eyes, but your blinking acts like a car wash.

If you want to read more about the wonders of your eyes, you should think about LED readers to avoid strain and see clearly every time. 

LED Lighted Reading Glasses

Do you remember those nights as a child spent reading with a flashlight under the covers, being quiet to avoid another admonishment from your mom to go to sleep? Probably not everyone experienced this problem, but since then most of us have experienced times when we wanted or needed to read but for some reason or other could not have an overhead light source. We typically have to either strain our eyes, put off the task or pleasure for another time, or use some kind of light source, like the briefly popular lighted book-marks of the early 1990s. Fortunately, there is now a product available that provides just the right amount of directed light from a hands-free source.

LED lighted reading glasses are perfect for many situations where you might need to read in the dark or perform other tasks. And even better, they kill two birds with one stone for those of us requiring some magnification to see objects close up. Lighted reading glasses from opticbrights have a long battery life, utilizing standard CR927 watch batteries that last about 30 hours in this application, and are available in magnification ranges from +0.00 to +3.00. This makes them an appropriate gift for your college student, who needs to stay up and finish writing the paper without disturbing her room mate, and your mom, who still goes to bed with your dad but likes to stay up knitting.

On those stormy nights when the power is out but sleep seems impossibly far away, it would be nice to curl up in your favorite chair and pick up that novel you have been meaning to read. Candles would be an option, but it can be tricky to position the book just right to catch enough light. LED reading glasses make it easy to read in any light level up to total darkness at any time. Since they are made of standard polycarbonate plastic and come in burgundy, black and tortoise brown, they are also a good option for use in public, like that cozy, romantic restaurant that uses fancy calligraphy on the menu and hardly provides enough light to make out the words.

Whether you are just up reading late or trying to turn that hex nut under the hood of your car, LED lighted reading glasses can save you the strain of trying to see in the dark.