Eye Wear

[nicko]

as per this blog.

http://www.polartrec.com/expeditions/be ... 07-04-19-0

A few days ago, the sun was quite intense. Shining down on the white ice, the glare was blinding. Most of us up on the bridge put on polarized sunglasses. But what if you didn’t have sunglasses?

One of the native Alaskan people, the Inupiat, relied on their wits in order to survive and flourish in the tundra of the North. In spring, the light from the sun becomes more intense and lasts for longer periods of time. (Last night it was still light at 11:30 when I finally went to bed). The brightness can result in temporary snow blindness if one isn’t careful.

Inupiat hunters and whalers often made snow goggles from pieces of driftwood or bone. The goggles have a long narrow slit that permit sunlight to enter and the hunters to have a good view of the world. There are lots of variations on the basic slit style seen among different Alaska peoples.

Why not give it a try and make some snow goggles for yourself out of driftwood, or some other material that you have around the classroom. See how your snow goggles compare to the traditional form the Inupiat Eskimo made.

[Aduron]

+1 for snow blindness being incorporated into the game. There could be craftable eye protection, like nicko said, or you could just find sunglasses (it would give those "visors" on cars a lot more use, that'd probably be the best place to find them. I've never found anything in them before). Pair that with a hotkey to "put on sun protection", and the screen becomes less glared, protecting you from snow blindness. The negative effect of snow blindness should be increased fatigue and increased "glare/sunspots" on screen, and the recovery would just be x hours out of the sun? Is this something that people would enjoy dealing with (I know that sounds ridiculous)?

Of all the negative health effects that the far North has to challenge you, it seems like the big three are hypothermia/freezing, frostbite, and snow blindness. With the new inclusion of hypothermia (which I love), I'd really like to see the other two added.

[Patrick Carlson]

Interesting stuff Nicko. Certainly altitude plays an important role in the onset of snow blindness, but even at lower altitudes fatigue can set in from all that bright snow.

I'd like a pair of those traditional goggles.