Biological Vision

After applying the principles of visual science to military reconnaissance andintelligence for many years, the author has prepared a tutorial integrating themany fundamental mechanisms underlying the visual capability found in theanimal kingdom.He shows that multicolor vision has been found in the animal kingdom fromthe beginning (for at least 500 million years) and that vision is generallytetrachromatic. He shows that human vision follows this general plan, althoughits spectral performance is partially blocked by the absorption inherent in the lensof the eye. As a result, the human can be considered a blocked tetrachromat; inthe vernacular but unscientifi cally, a trichromat.He provides an extensive series of circuit diagrams, from those defi ning theelectrical performance of individual neurons, synapses and Nodes of Ranvier tocomplete diagrams integrating all of the major visual circuits of the eyes and thebrain.The fundamental mechanisms and physiology associated with the photoreceptorcell of the eye are developed in detail, including the precise chemical compositionof the four chromophores of vision. The concept of an ion-pump is defi ned interms of the underlying electrostenolytic process for the fi rst time. It is shownthat glutamic acid (glutamate) is the primary energy source powering the neuralsystems of all animals.The key elements of the midbrain involved in reading are described for the fi rsttime.The book closes with a variety of fi gures describing the spatial and chromaticperformance of the human visual system. Additional fi gures, an extensive glossary,an expanded tabulation of the parameters of the human eye, and more than 1000references are available at the associated website, www.4colorvision.com.