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1. Most people can see a million colors
Scientists estimate that the average person can see at least a million colors thanks to the eye’s cone cells, which send signals to the brain that allow us to perceive different hues. If that sounds impressive, consider that people with a rare condition called tetrachromacy have an extra type of cone cell and can see as many as 100 million colors as a result!
2. You spend 10 percent of your waking hours blinking
Blinking keeps your eyes lubricated and protects them from dust and debris, which may help explain why we do so much of it: The average person blinks between 15 and 20 times per minute, or 14,400 to 19,200 times a day — that’s about 10 percent of your waking life, or upwards of 5 million times in a year.
3. The quick-healing cornea has no blood vessels
The cornea is the transparent covering over the front part of the eye — and unlike other body parts, it doesn’t have its own blood supply (instead, it receives oxygen from the air). The cornea does, however, have nerve endings, which is why scratching your eye can hurt quite a bit. Fortunately, most abrasions heal quickly, within 24 to 72 hours.
If you have a pair of baby blues, you’re among the 8 to 10 percent of the population worldwide with blue eyes, which are the result of a mutation that causes the irises to lack pigment. Researchers believe this mutation first appeared in a person who lived in Europe between 6,000 to 10,000 years ago, meaning all blue-eyed people alive today share a common ancestor.
5. How you feel affects what you see
For people struggling with depression, saying that the world seems drab, flat, or gray may be more than a metaphor. Research has found that individuals with major depression experience measurable differences in how their eyes perceive contrast, which validates the idea that mental health can influence how we see our surroundings.