Vernon D. is a member of VSP's Provider Services team.

A physics professor at the University of Oxford may have found a unique avenue to help those who don’t have access to eyeglasses in developing countries. Joshua Silver has developed frames with the unique ability to adjust to variable strengths, on-the-fly. One frame with the potential to serve millions without a visit to an optometrist?

Here’s a quick rundown on how those glasses work:

The secret of the self-refractive glasses is their lenses. They consist of clear membranes filled with silicon oil, protected by plastic discs. The wearer can adjust the amount of oil in the lenses using a dial fitted to a syringe on the arms of the glasses.

Changing the amount of oil in the lenses changes their curvature, which alters their strength. When someone has adjusted the lenses to suit their vision, the lenses are sealed with a valve and the syringes removed, giving near-instant glasses with no need for an optometrist.

With this affordable innovation, the  U.S. Military Humanitarian and Civic Assistance (HCA) Program have finally found a way to reach those who would otherwise be left unheard and unseen. With an estimated 30,000 pairs already distributed around the world to those in desparate need, looks like these frames are on a great start.

I smell a valid contender for the Nobel Peace Prize!

Via CNN