People who are blind, obviously can't see. But new research shows that while they can't see, they're brains can! Anthony explains what this means and how this ability actually plays an important role in a blind person's everyday life. Read More: Circadian rhythm sleep disorders: lessons from the blind http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1087079200901473 "As totally blind people cannot perceive the light--dark cycle (the major synchroniser of the circadian pacemaker) their circadian rhythms often "free run" on a cycle slightly longer than 24 h." Study With Totally Blind People Shows How Light Helps Activate the Brain http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/10/131028090408.htm "Light enhances brain activity during a cognitive task even in some people who are totally blind, according to a study conducted by researchers at the University of Montreal and Boston's Brigham and Women's Hospital." Circadian rhythm abnormalities in totally blind people: incidence and clinical significance. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1619000 "When people are completely isolated from environmental time cues, their circadian rhythms free run with a nearly 24-h cycle, generated by an internal body clock. Free-running temperature, cortisol, and melatonin rhythms have also been described in totally blind people, even though they were living in normal society and had access to abundant time cues; thus an intact visual system may be essential for synchronization of the circadian system." Ganglion Cell Layer http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ganglion_cell_layer "The ganglion cell layer (ganglionic layer) is a layer of the retina that consists of retinal ganglion cells and displaced amacrine cells." Watch More: What Is Circadian Rhythm? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jFfAbMbrZrA TestTube Wild Card http://testtube.com/dnews/dnews-437-pets-make-us-healthier?utm_campaign=DNWC&utm;_medium=DNews&utm;_source=YT Stem Cells Cure Blindness http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kn3lgskKA08 ____________________ DNews is dedicated to satisfying your curiosity and to bringing you mind-bending stories & perspectives you won't find anywhere else! New videos twice daily. Watch More DNews on TestTube http://testtube.com/dnews Subscribe now! http://www.youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=dnewschannel DNews on Twitter http://twitter.com/dnews Anthony Carboni on Twitter http://twitter.com/acarboni Laci Green on Twitter http://twitter.com/gogreen18 Trace Dominguez on Twitter http://twitter.com/trace501 DNews on Facebook http://facebook.com/dnews DNews on Google+ http://gplus.to/dnews Discovery News http://discoverynews.com DNews Audience Survey http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/dnewssurvey?utm_source=YTother&utm;_medium=DNews&utm;_campaign=DNewsSurvey

• published: 03 Nov 2013
• views: 20196