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1. Evolution’s Witness: How Eyes
Evolved, Ivan R. Schwab.
The prologue of Ivan Schwab’s timely
testimony to evolution marks life’s begin-
ning on earth at 3750 million years ago,
followed closely in time by photorecep-
tion; logical because virtually all life
depends directly or indirectly on sunlight.
Indeed, the premise of Evolution’s Witness
is that photoreception endured the test of
time, thriving in multiple life forms many
still in existence today. With beautiful
illustrations and engaging prose, Professor
Schwab tracks the course of photorecep-
tion through time, allowing readers to
marvel at Darwin’s Theory and fully
comprehend the evolution of the eye.
The inside cover of Evolution’s Witness
is a color-coded list of geologic time
spanning more than 4 billion years from
the Hadean Eon to Cenozoic Era and
present day. Major events are listed for
each time frame, and page margins for
each chapter are color-coded to corre-
spond to colors in the geologic timeline.
The first three chapters set the stage for
ocular evolution with the birth of life,
onset of photoreception, transition from
single-cell prokaryotes lacking nuclei (e.g.,
cyanobacteria) to eukaryotes (e.g., Euglena
with an eyespot to capture light and
propeller-like flagellum to move toward
or away from light), and finally mul-
ticelled metazoa. Fundamental evolution-
ary developments during this time,
conserved and passed on through lineages,
included rhodopsin-like molecules with
light-catching retinal chromophore and
opsin to confer spectral sensitivity, coupled
with a primitive form of the PAX6 master
gene essential for eye formation. Beyond
these invariances, it is proposed that the
eye evolved numerous times, yielding di-
verse morphology and specializations critical
to flourish in myriad settings with distinct
survival needs. Each subsequent chapter
is a unique episode in time detailing eyes
characteristic of that era and ultimately
spanning millions of years, species, and
morphologies ranging from eyespots to
compound and camera eyes. Amazing
color photos on nearly every page ensure
a vivid trek through evolution of the eye.
An all-inclusive glossary and chapter-
specific references accommodate diverse
readers of this captivating text. Appendi-
ces detailing evolution of ocular muscles,
retinal blood supply, cornea, lens, accom-
modation, and photoreceptors prove in
valuable for specialists and generalists
alike. Evolution’s Witness, in whole or
part, is an essential mainstay for multiple
disciplines, irreplaceable for vision scien-
tists and eye care professionals.
Jeff C. Rabin
San Antonio, TX
Femtosecond Cataract Surgery:
A Primer, Lois E. Probst and
Clara C. Chan.
The purpose of this book, as stated by
the author, is to educate ophthalmologists
on the subject of femtosecond laser cataract
surgery, one of the latest advancements in
cataract surgery. The book hopes to inform
the surgeon of the current options available,
the advantages of the new procedure, and
practical advice for the novice surgeon
hoping to integrate this technology into his
or her surgical armamentarium.
The book is divided into two main parts.
The first part, chapters 2 to 5, discusses the
various platforms currently available for
femtosecond cataract surgery and the features
of each system: LensAR, LenSx, Catalys, and
VICTUS. Each chapter describes the unique
features of each system, any related studies,
and surgicalresults. Each section also includes
practical advice on how to integrate the
system into the surgical flow, including its
placement in the operating suite and other
practical considerations. Lastly, each of these
chapters concludes with a summary table,
Oxford: Oxford University Press;
2012. $75.00.
Thorofare, NJ: SLACK Inc.; 2012. $84.95
1040-5488/13/9005-e147/0 VOL. 90, NO. 5, PP. e147Ye148
OPTOMETRY AND VISION SCIENCE
Copyright * 2013 American Academy of Optometry
BOOK REVIEW
Optometry and Vision Science, Vol. 90, No. 5, May 2013
Copyright © American Academy of Optometry. Unauthorized reproduction of this article is prohibited.