Dear Friends,

    A personal loss.

    Francis Young died last year.  I co-wrote papers with him on
the dynamic nature of the fundamental eye.  This is my
rememberance of him and for him.

                     *     *     *     *    *

    Facts which at first seem improbable will, even on scant
explanation, drop the cloak which has hidden them and stand forth
in naked and simple beauty.

          Dialogues Concerning Two New Sciences
          Galileo Galilei

    Philosophy is written in this grand book -- I mean the
universe -- which stands continually open to our gaze, but it
cannot be understood unless one first learns to comprehend the
language and interpret the characters in which it is written.  It
is written in the language of mathematics, and its characters are
triangle, circles, and other geometrical figures, without which it
is humanly impossible to understand a single word of it; without
these, one is wandering about in a dark labyrinth.

             Il Saggitore
             Galileo Galilei

Subject:  Francis Young's Data on the natural eye
         in the "open" and in a school environment.

    These Eskimos went to an un-graded "mission" school, and then
went out and lived a "hunting" life.

    One out of 143 had a refractive STATE of -2 diopters (as you
did).  6 had refractive states from -0.25 to -1 diopter.  And this
was from the "younger" who had more schooling.  All the rest had
excellent distant vision and POSITIVE refractive STATES.  i.e.,
they could read the eye chart THROUGH a +1 diopter lens.  While
you are now at -0.75 diopters, you should understand that the eye
"in the open" gradually changes its refractive STATE in a positive
direction.  Here are the facts and measurements.

    I support the idea that "just the facts" should be presented
as developed by Scientists.

    I think we can all agree that professor Francis Young is a
scientist, and the other authors of this document.

    Here are his facts concerning the Eskimos who spent very
little time in a "mission" school at Point Barrow.

    From:  "Refractive Errors in Eskimo Familes", Young, et.  al.

    Table 1

    Distribution of Right Eye Refractive Characteristics in Total
Eskimo Population by Five Year Age Groups

Age N Mean SD Myop Range

36-40 29 +1.08 1.67 6 -0.99 to +5.38

41-45 33 +1.61 1.19 1 -1.95 to +4.48

46-50 20 +1.79 0.97 1 -0.25 to +4.20

51-55 24 +2.26 1.10 0 +0.50 to +5.60

56-60 21 +2.23 1.26 0 +0.76 to +4.20

61-65 16 +2.25 1.38 0 +0.75 to +5.89

    For this group the number is 143 Eskimos

    The mean was 1.8 diopters

    The Standard Deviation was 1.27 diopters.

    Just the facts concerning the measured refractive states of
the natural eye.

============================================================

Subject:  The refractive STATES after spending 12 years in school

    Here are the additional objective facts concerning the
refractive STATES of the natural eye.

    These Eskimos entered into the REQUIRED educational (12 year)
school system AFTER WWII at Point Barrow.

    The group age 21-25 was 88 percent myopic.

    The younger group age 16-20 was 59 percent myopic.

    The data was measured by Francis Young et.  al.  using the
standard retinoscope/cycloplegic technique.

    Here are their facts concerning the Eskimos who spent very
long time in a 12 year REQUIRED educational system.

    As always you can apply your own interpertation of the facts
as it might strike you.

From: "Refractive Errors in Eskimo Familes", Young, et. al.

Table 1

Distribution of Right Eye Refractive Characteristics in Total
Eskimo Population by Five Year Age Groups

Age N Mean SD Myop Range

16-20 63 -0.79 2.65 37 -5.16 to +7.69

21-25 41 -2.07 2.23 36 -7.09 to +4.77

    For this group the number is 104 Eskimos

    The mean was -1.4 diopters

    The Standard Deviation was 2.44 diopters.

    Just the facts concerning the measured refractive states of
the natural eye -- be they positive or negative.

=========================================================

    Dr Francis A. Young, Ph.D. Former Professor Emeritus and
Head of Washington State University's Primate Research Center.
During the course of his career, Dr. Young published 95 research
papers and received 11 honors including the American Optometric
Association's "Apollo Award" for his breakthrough research into
myopia (nearsightedness). Dr. Young was on the Board of the
American Vision Institute from 1981 until his death in 2006.