Implant gives new hope to the blind

The Philadelphia Inquirer reports that two months ago, surgeons at the Wills Eye Institute implanted a small array of electrodes in the back of Michael Adler's left eye. Now, in the last few weeks -- with the aid of a small video camera in his sunglasses that transmits images to his retinal implant -- he has begun to gain some limited vision.

Much like a cochlear implant enables a deaf person to perceive sound, the retinal implant bypasses damaged cells in the eye, transmitting signals to the same part of the brain that registers images in people with normal vision. So far all 32 individuals in the trial have been able to see something, according to Second Sight Medical Products, the California maker of the device.