“Seeing is believing” is perhaps among the most pertinent adages. The visual sense enables you to perceive the world around and actively engage with the environment. Thus, caring for the eyes is an integral aspect of our well-being. While considerable research is conducted on the eyes’ structure and functions, some less-known facts about the visual senses make for an intriguing read. Here are some fun facts about the eyes that you perhaps did not know.

The eyes are the second most complex body organs
The only body organ more complex than the eyes is the brain. The human eye has the incredible ability to focus on 50 objects every second and can identify 10 million different colors.

The iris has 256 unique characteristics
Today, iris scans have gained more popularity as biometric authentication methods than fingerprint scans. This is because while the fingerprints have about 40 unique characteristics, the iris has 256, making it the clear winner.

Humans blink approximately 5.2 million times a year
Humans blink about 15-20 times every minute, which averages to about 900-1200 times an hour and 5.2-7.1 million times a year! Blinking helps clear debris from the eyes and provides adequate nutrition to ensure optimum eye health.

The eyes account for 85% of the total knowledge acquired
The human eye processes 24 million images in a lifetime; thus, the eyes account for 85% of the knowledge acquired within the span of your life. Consequently, visual learning is being incorporated as an effective educational tool today.

Over 1 million nerve fibers connect each eye to the brain
A million nerve fibers transport visual information from each eye to the brain. These nerve fibers are found in optic nerves. The back of each eye comprises one optic nerve, which connects the eye to the brain. Any damage caused to the optic nerve can lead to loss of vision.

Only one-sixth of the eyeball is visible
The entire eyeball is the size of a ping-pong ball; but an unknown fact about the eyes is that only one-sixth of the eyeball is visible. The part of the eye that is visible is protected by our eyelids and eyelashes, which help prevent dust particles and excessively bright light from penetrating the eyes.

You cannot sneeze with your eyes open
Closing our eyes while sneezing is a reflex action by the nervous system. Although some individuals have managed to sneeze with their eyes open, this feat is incredibly rare and takes considerable effort.

Pirates believed that earrings improved their eyesight
Some pirates believed that wearing earrings made of precious stones would improve their eyesight, perceiving the precious stones to contain healing powers. Thus, in the olden days, many pirates wore hooped gold earrings.

The eye does not contain pain nerves
One of the most interesting facts about the eyes is that they do not have any pain nerves. So, many people at the starting stages of severe eye conditions like age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and glaucoma do not realize that they are developing the disease until it reaches an advanced stage.