Bionic Man | Bionic Eye

The world's first bionic eye has given some sight to a blind woman

[From the increasing use of pacemakers to keep heart beating on time to the rise of Olympian runner Oscar Pistorius (a.k.a. "Blade Runner"), a double-amputee who uses two prosthetic lower legs called "blades," the merging of human and machine continues apace. In this month's series, "Bionic Man," 13.7 takes a broad look at the history, evolution, ethics and impact of prosthetic and bionic engineering, nanotechnology, cybernetics and technological singularity.]

"All of a sudden I could see a little flash," said 54-year-old Dianne Ashworth, the first woman to be fitted with a real bionic eye, according to a recent article in The Telegraph. "It was amazing."

Developed by Australian researchers, the bionic eye, fitted into the retina, is equipped with 24 electrodes which send electrical impulses to nerve cells in the eye, stimulating the ability to see.

And while Ashworth can only see flashes of light and general shapes, this incredible development marks an important step towards giving blind people the ability to see.

"Much still needs to be done in using the current implant to 'build' images for Ms. Ashworth," said Professor David Penington from Bionic Vision Australia. "The next big step will be when we commence implants of the full devices."