Monday 30 July 2018

LOSING SIGHT: Inside the Myopia Epidemic


There is a relatively new blindness epidemic happening around the world. It is predicted that half the world’s population will be short-sighted (or myopic) by 2050, and nearly 1 billion people will progress to dangerously high levels of myopia what can lead to profound blindness.

Most people are not aware of this new epidemic or how to guide their children’s development to avoid myopia. Sally McFadden, from the School of Psychology at UoN, is involved in supporting both the production of international guidelines with the International Myopia Institute as well as the production of an educational film about this epidemic and its possible causes. A link to a teaser for this film can be found here:
LOSING SIGHT: Inside the Myopia Epidemic

Sally has been working for decades on the science of myopia and its causes. Her dedication has led to the translation of her work into developing possible treatments for myopia. These include drugs that aim to halt the relentless progression of myopia, and for those who have already developed high myopia, bioengineering treatments that aim to stop the development of associated changes in the eye that lead to profound blindness. The Vision Sciences Group led by Sally is seeking new PhD students who wish to participate in this exciting work. Additionally, The Hunter Medical Research Institute (HMRI) is interested in hearing from anyone who wishes to support the important research work that will help develop these treatments.



Tuesday 10 July 2018

Children's University at the School of Psychology


Recently, the School of Psychology entertained and educated groups of school children who visited the Callaghan and Ourimbah campuses as part of the Children’s University program. Over 1,000 children visited, and each took part in four different activities from different research groups at the university. For the children who took part in the psychology activity, we entertained them with some illusions, a video, and even a card trick. These led to interesting discussions about what psychological science really is. The activity ended with a game of building blocks - but huge building blocks! The students raced in teams to make patterns out of giant-sized cardboard boxes, which we made harder and harder by imposing tricky rules. This generated lots of discussion about teamwork and communication - and organisational psychology!

Thanks to all the people from the School of Psychology who made this event work so well!

Kerry Chalmers
Tanya Crawford
Jade Frost
Paul Garrett
Montana Hunter
Elise Kalokerinos
Michelle Kelly
Stuart Marlin
Bryan Paton
Sonja Pohlman
Alex Provost
Alison Rasmussen
Patrick Skippen